It Happened One Night is often considered a quintessential screwball comedy; it's even credited with starting the whole screwball trend. But film scholars continue to argue about whether the label "screwball" really applies to Capra's masterpiece. Check out this conversation between two critics to get a sense of what's in the name "screwball" and what the controversy's all about.

Bugs Bunny and Clark Gable may not seem to have that much in common, but Bugs's carrot-eating technique is totally based on the way Gable chows down in It Happened One Night. (Source.)

Farran Smith Nehme notes that Capra had a hard time finding an actress to play Ellie. Several candidates turned down the part before Colbert accepted it—but only on the condition that she earn $50,000, a pretty penny in 1934 (close to a million in today's dollars). (Source.)