"The Greatest Gift" | |
---|---|
Short story by Philip Van Doren Stern | |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Genre(s) | Fantasy |
Publication | |
Publisher | Cluster Publishing Ltd |
Media type | Print (hardback) |
Publication date | 1943 (written) 1944 (published) |
Pages | 48 pp |
"The Greatest Gift" is a 1943 short story written by Philip Van Doren Stern, loosely based on the Charles Dickens 1843 novella A Christmas Carol, which became the basis for the film It's a Wonderful Life (1946). It was self-published as a booklet in 1943 and published as a book in 1944.
The film was nominated for five Oscars and has been recognized by the American Film Institute as one of the 100 best American films ever made,[1] placing number 11 on its initial 1998 greatest movie list and number one on its list of the most inspirational American films of all time.[2]