Seneca Falls, New York
“Remember, no man is a failure who has friends,” is the last message from Clarence, the guardian angel, in ‘It’s A Wonderful Life.’ it is one of my favorite movies and my family indulges my desire to watch it year on Christmas Eve.
Even though the whole film was shot in California, Seneca Falls in New York is claimed to be the inspiration for the movie location. Besides the downtown looking like Bedford Falls, with its well-kept Victorian homes and idyllic 1850’s anywhere small-town America vibe, there is the iconic steel-truss bridge where in 1917, an Italian immigrant, Antonia Varacalli, jumped off and saved a woman from drowning, by pulling her to safety, but unfortunately perished himself.
It is this story that director Frank Capra heard from his longtime local Seneca Falls barber while he was visiting. He then changed the script to include this as a key part of the story – that George Bailey jumps in to save Clarence from drowning.
There are several more references to Seneca Falls: similar architecture (several old houses looked like right from the movie set), the college younger brother Harry Bailey went to was going to be nearby Cornell, the train station looks similar, and there is even an affordable housing neighborhood called Rumseyville, similar to Bailey Park.
We got the local story and references direct from our wonderful B&B hosts and then headed to the small, but mighty “museum.” It is a collection of stories, photos, and facsimiles from the movie. Each main actor has a biography and quotes with a lot of focus on a few actors who have returned to Seneca Falls for their annual December celebration. Most notably is the actress Karilyn Grimes who played Zuzu. Ms. Grimes has done a lot of interviews and seems to hold a special place for Seneca Falls. One year they had all the actors who played the Bailey Children participate. Next year will be a big 80th anniversary celebration of the movie’s release – you can book your spot now!
It is a nostalgic walk down memory lane with a few others who also have that magic gleem in their eyes. We left with a few momentos of our own-mainly magnets.
And while we can see that Seneca Falls could be the inspiration for the movie location, I believe it is even better to accept Frank Capra’s intention that Bedford Fall and the story of people coming together to support each other was meant to symbolize Anytown USA.
We all live in a Wonderful Place – and it truly is a Wonderful Life.
Siri and David Adventures 