Which came first? · Tricky

Which came first: The Catcher in the Rye or It's a Wonderful Life?

It's a Wonderful Life came first, in 1946 (released). The Catcher in the Rye followed 5 years later, in 1951 (published).

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  1. Second1951

    The Catcher in the Rye

    book · published

    J. D. Salinger's The Catcher in the Rye came out in 1951.

    Checked against Wikipedia and Wikidata

  2. First1946

    It's a Wonderful Life

    film · released

    It's a Wonderful Life, from 1946, lost money at first and became a Christmas classic through TV repeats.

    Checked against Wikipedia and Wikidata

All which-came-first pairs · About Older Than You Think · Quiz games

Years from Wikidata, each checked against the item’s English Wikipedia article on 2026-10-18. A year stands for what its label says: a founding, a first patent, a premiere.