It Happened One Night is a 1934 romantic comedy in which an elite socialite (Claudette Colbert) tries to get out from under her father's thumb, and falls in with a rogue reporter (Clark Gable). As in most Frank Capra films, everything turns out all right in the end; the film fit very well with the upbeat view of the world that Frank Capra repeatedly tried to portray. One IMDb user even made the following observation about the movie: "There is a scene in which the two of them are forced to hitchhike, and their 'breakfast' is only a handful of carrots plucked from a garden they were lucky to find. As Gable stands at the edge of the road and Colbert is perched atop a wooden fence, his wisecracking posture is said to be the inspiration for the beloved cartoon character Bugs Bunny."

Legend has it that Gable had a profound effect on men's fashion, thanks to a scene in this movie. As he is undressing for bed, he takes off his shirt to reveal that he is bare-chested. Sales of men's undershirts across the country allegedly suffered a noticeable decline for a period following this movie.

It Happened One Night is considered to be the first of the great "screwball comedies" of the 1930s, which usually centered around a couple getting into hapless situations, and falling in love as a result.

This film was nominated for five Oscars (all the major ones) and won all five. This feat would not be repeated again until One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest.

The film has also been selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry.