It Happened One Christmas airwaves on an annual basis, the remake slipped into obscurity. The reviews were mixed. After its initial airing a "New York Times" follow-up article revealed that Frank Capra, the director of the 1946 film "It's A Wonderful Life", had denounced the remake as "plagiaristic." The ratings, however, were good enough that it was rebroadcast on ABC twice, in 1978 and 1979. But by that time the original "It's A Wonderful Life" had begun its resurgence on television and eventually eclipsed the remake. "It Happened One Christmas" is rarely shown today, and has not, as of 2017, been issued on DVD.
It Happened One Night film underwent an extensive restoration. Spoiled heiress Ellen "Ellie" Andrews has eloped with pilot and fortune-hunter King Westley against the wishes of her extremely wealthy father, Alexander Andrews. Andrews wants to have the marriage annulled because he knows Westley is really only interested in her money. Jumping ship in Florida, she runs away and boards a Greyhound bus to New York City to reunite with her husband. She meets fellow bus passenger Peter Warne, a freshly out-of-work newspaper reporter. Soon Peter recognizes her and gives her a choice: If she will give him an exclusive on her story, he will