MOVIES - Jan. 2, 1992

It’s a Wonderful New Year: On the first day of 1992, the 1946 classic “It’s a Wonderful Life” aired for the first time on television in the new Commonwealth of Independent States. Peter F. Paul, president of the Beverly Hills-based American Spirit Foundation, which helped arrange the showing, said, “Hopefully, the uplifting and inspirational nature of the film will help the Russian people persevere through the hardships they are facing.” He presented the idea of airing the movie earlier this month to Boris Yeltsin’s administration through an attorney. The Russian state radio and television company Lossiyskoye Eelebideniye then agreed to broadcast it.