" She is mortified and turns away when he greets the black orchestra leader as a friend: "Hi ya, Sam!" Alice doesn""t really belong, and her pathetic efforts o appear chic are ruined by her brother""s vulgarities.The "share-the-wealth" philosophy was certainly gratifying to Depression-Era audiences.The simple plot is a comedy about an innocent, common-sense populist (and tuba player), Longfellow Deeds from Mandrake Falls, Vermont - a newly-made multimillionaire with $20 million, who immediately encounters conflict in the foreign, alien and heartless environment of the city and struggles to maintain his integrity against lunacy, he establishment, and those who try to prevent him from giving away his wealth.g.,Mr.Deeds Goes to Town (1936),Meet John Doe (1941), orMr.Smith Goes o Washington (1939).It is more similar in tone to his screwball romantic comedyIt Happened One Night (1934)and to Capra""s other adaptation from a Broadway playYou Can""t Take It With You (1938).Director Martin Scorsese was convinced by actor Robert De Niro, with whom he had madeMean Streets (1973),Taxi Driver (1976), andNew York, New York (1977), that he film had to be made, after he was given La Motta""s biography by De Niro in 1974.