Frank Capra - biography

“I made mistakes in drama.  I thought drama was when actors cried.  But drama is when the audience cries.”

“In our film profession you may have Gable’s looks, Tracy’s art, Marlene’s legs or Liz’s violet eyes, but they don’t mean a thing without that swinging thing called courage.”

“A hunch is creativity trying to tell you something.”

“My advice to young film-makers is this: don’t follow trends, start them!”

“Film is one of the three universal languages, the other two: mathematics and music.”

“Compassion is a two way street.”

“Don’t follow trends, start trends.”

“If you want to send a message, try Western Union.”

“Scriptwriting is the toughest part of the whole racket...  the least understood and the least noticed.”

“Whenever a situation develops to its extreme, it is bound to turn around and become its opposite.”

Frank Capra directed the following films:
Fultah Fisher’s Boarding House (1922)
The Strong Man (1926)
Long Pants (1927)
For the Love of Mike (1927)
That Certain Thing (1928)
So This Is Love? (1928)
The Matinee Idol (1928)
The Way of the Strong (1928)
Say It with Sables (1928)
Submarine (1928)
The Power of the Press (1928)
The Burglar (1928)
The Younger Generation (1929)
The Donovan Affair (1929)
Flight (1929)
Ladies of Leisure (1930)
Rain or Shine (1930)
Dirigible (1931)
The Miracle Woman (1931)
Platinum Blonde (1931)
Forbidden (1932)
American Madness (1932)
The Bitter Tea of General Yen (1933)
Lady for a Day (1933)
It Happened One Night (1934)
Broadway Bill (1934)
Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936)
Lost Horizon (1937)
You Can’t Take It with You (1938)
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939)
Meet John Doe (1941)
The Nazis Strike (1943)
Divide and Conquer (1943)
The Battle of Britain (1943)
Prelude to War (1943)
The Battle of Russia (1943)
The Battle of China (1944)
Tunisian Victory (1944)
Arsenic and Old Lace (1944)
Your Job in Germany (1945)
Know Your Enemy: Japan (1945)
Two Down and One to Go (1945)
War Comes to America (1945)
It’s a Wonderful Life (1946)
State of the Union (1948)
Riding High (1950)
Here Comes the Groom (1951)
A Hole in the Head (1959)
Pocketful of Miracles (1961)


Frank Capra contributed to the screenplay for the following films:
Tramp, Tramp, Tramp (1926)
Westward the Women (1951)