Christmas Specials and Cartoons

See you next year!

2011-12-26T10:36:00.003-06:00

Well, things have wound down here at the old lodge. We hope everyone had a very, merry Christmas and that you have a blessed new year. We will most definitely see you all in 2012.

So, until then, Merry Christmas!

Holiday Affair (1949)

2011-12-14T10:30:00.000-06:00

Starring Robert Mitchum and Janet Leigh,

Holiday Affair is a romantic comedy about a veteran drifter who is employed as a clerk by a New York dept. store who falls for a war widow and her son, Timmy.

Distributed by RKO pictures.

Christmas in Connecticut (1945)

2011-12-12T10:33:00.002-06:00

Starring Barbara Stanwyck and Sydney Greenstreet, this farcical comedy tells the story of one Elizabeth Lane, a writer for Housekeeping magazine who writes about her homestyle life as a cook, expert mother and wife. The only problem is, she is neither. The situation is further complicated when the unsuspecting editor of the magazine concocts a scheme to have a Naval hero from the war spend a real, old-fashioned Christmas at the Lane farm in Connecticut with her husband and children.

Stuck in this predicament, Elizabeth spends the movie trying to juggle lie after lie to keep from being exposed and fired, while in the meantime, falling for the Naval hero.

This film was made by Warner Brothers and was released in August of 1945.

Here is the movie in it's entirey (while it lasts, Lol)

Santa and the Three Bears (1970)

2011-11-25T11:35:00.001-06:00

Featuring the voice talents of Hal Smith and Jean Van Der Pyl (who was the voice of Wilma Flinstone) and written and directed by Tony Benedict, this production from Modern Sound Film tells the story of a park ranger who shares the story of Christmas with two bear cubs who are determined to stay awake so they can see Santa Claus.

This is a pretty good little film, so here it is

Scrooge (1935)

2011-11-14T10:46:00.001-06:00

Directed by Henry Edwards, this 1935 British film is the first sound adaptation of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol.

Starring Seymour Hicks as the miserly Ebeneezer Scrooge, this film differs from all other adaptations in that none of the ghosts of Christmas are ever shown - save The Ghost of Christmas Present. Marley is only shown super-imposed on a door knocker.

The achievement of special effects was not yet advanced enough to offer film makers a way to believably show the spirits.

Seymour Hicks was a veteran actor who had played Scrooge on stage many times beginning in 1901 and had played him in a 1913 silent film.

Here is the film in its' entirety.

Andy Williams reports he has Cancer

2011-11-07T10:21:00.001-06:00

Andy Williams told the audience at his Moon River theater in Branson, MO on Saturday that he has Bladder cancer. Andy, who is 83, vowed to return next year to celebrate his 75th year in show business.

"I do have cancer of the bladder," Williams said. "But that is no longer a death sentence. People with cancer are getting through this thing. They're kicking it, and they're winning more and more every year. And I'm going to be one of them."

The Gathering (1977)

2011-10-18T12:56:00.002-05:00

The Gathering is a made-for-tv movie starring Ed Asner and Maureen Stapleton about a man who learns he is dying and tries to gather his dis-jointed family together for one last Christmas. The caveat is that none of his children know he is dying.

Rounding out the cast is Gregory Harrison who plays Adam "Bud" Thorton, Jr., a very outspoken critic of the Vietnam War, who after an arguement with his father, moved to Canada under assumed names.

The movie was nominated for five emmy awards and won two including Outstanding special - comedy or drama.

Here is the final scenes from the film.

Now we're on Facebook!

2011-10-06T15:11:00.001-05:00

We have created a Facebook page to let even more people know about our blog. You can help us spread the word about Christmas Cartoons and Specials by liking our page! Here, you can also share stories about your favorite specials and cartoons and even request shows not currently on the blog. If we can find them, we'll put up a clip here.

You can find us here

Silver Bells - Andy Williams featuring the Osmond Brothers

2011-10-05T17:23:00.001-05:00

Here is another performance by Andy Williams and the Osmond Brothers from one of Andy's earliest Christmas shows.

Bing Crosby: The Television Specials Volume 2- The Christmas Specials

2011-09-02T14:48:00.001-05:00

Last year, the Bing Crosby estate release a second DVD containing the specials of Bing Crosby. This time, the Christmas specials. A selection of four including The Bing Crosby Show produced in London in 1961, the first color holiday special from 1962 featuring Mary Martin and Andre' Previn, one from 1971 featuring the late Robert Goulet, and the last one from 1977, Bing Crosby's Merrie Olde Christmas featuring David Bowie and Twiggy.

This set also features some great bonus material including Happy Holidays with Bing and Frank, from ABC's Frank Sinatra Show.

You can find this on Amazon or your favorite DVD provider.

Below is a sample blend of Bing singing White Christmas on his various specials.

Burger King Christmas commercial (1978)

2011-08-29T12:48:00.002-05:00

Here is a vintage commercial from the 1978 Holiday season from Burger King©.

Christmas in July 2011

2011-07-12T14:35:00.004-05:00

Offically, Christmas in July isn't until the 25th but I wanted to share this now.

Bing Crosby hosted many radio shows throughout the years and each one had a Christmas show. Later, Bing would host a Christmas radio broadcast specifically and these are still broadcast every year on Sirius/XM radio during their annual airing of Bing Crosby Christmas Radio.

But, for this year's treat, here is the entire Bing Crosby Christmas show broadcast from 1942.

Part One

Part Two

The Carpenters: A Christmas Portrait

2011-07-08T14:26:00.000-05:00

A Christmas Portrait was released by A & M records on October 13, 1978 and became an instant classic.

That same year, a television special was produced. For this year's Christmas in July, here is part one of that special. Want to send special thanks to Neroli8676 for uploading this special to Youtube. Go out and give them a shout of thanks.

Ray Conniff Singers

2011-06-27T11:49:00.000-05:00

Here is a wonderful Christmas medley from The Ray Conniff Singers.

Santa Claus for Camel cigarettes

2011-06-13T19:53:00.002-05:00

Here is an old commercial for Camel cigarettes featuring old Kris Kringle himself.

...dusting off the old fireplace

2011-06-09T18:09:00.000-05:00

Well, it's summer. That means that it's almost time for Christmas in July.

Gonna try and cook up something good for that day so stay tuned...

End of the Season

2010-12-27T09:56:00.000-06:00

Hello friends,

Hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and are looking forward to a great new year. Hard to believe that the Christmas season is over (except for our Orthodox friends). Wrapping things up for another year here on the old blog. Hope you enjoyed some of the treasures I've found.

So, until next year.....Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas sing with Bing!

2010-12-24T09:29:00.000-06:00

Merry Christmas everyone!

Thought I would start the day by bringing you my favorite Christmas Carol. Do You Hear What I Hear was inspired by the events during the Cuban Missile Crisis. The Husband and wife team of Gloria Shayne Baker and Noel Regney wrote the song and the Harry Simeone Chorale were the first to record it in October of 1962. But the next year, Bing Crosby recorded a version on November 22, 1963 - the same day that President John F. Kennedy was assassinated. Bing has been synonymous with the song ever since.

This song truly expresses what Christmas is really about.

Christmas Eve on Sesame Street (1978)

2010-12-13T17:48:00.000-06:00

Beginning in November of 1969, The Children's Television Workshop began producing the show on PBS. It featured Actors and kids along with Jim Henson's muppets (Jim is a Mississippi native like me) and was a general education show that tackled reading, arithmetic, language, culture, music and social interaction.

In 1978, PBS produced a primetime Holiday special that featured the cast on Christmas Eve.

Here is part one of the program (all parts are available on Youtube)

Osmond Family Christmas featuring Andy Williams

2010-11-30T15:04:00.003-06:00

Here is a clip of an Osmond family Christmas special featuring Mr. Andy Williams sometime in the early to mid '70s which is when I came on the scene, Ha.

Enjoy!

Traditional or Modern Christmas Music?

2010-11-29T16:36:00.000-06:00

I have a new poll for this year.

Do you prefer Traditional or Modern Christmas music? Now, I suppose we should define that by traditional, I mean everything from the Mormon Tabernacle Choir to Bing Crosby. And by modern, I mean everything from Mannheim Steamroller to Brittany Spears.

I almost bet I know what the answer is going to be, but we have many international visitors to this site and I am anxious to hear their thoughts as well.

So Vote!

Results to be posted on Dec. 16th.

Tom and Jerry - The Night Before Christmas cir. 1940's

2010-11-23T09:11:00.000-06:00

Here is everyone's favorite Cat and Mouse team as they celebrate the holidays in their usual manner - at WAR.

This MGM short was created by William Hannah and Joseph Barbera who brought us such characters as The Flinstones and The Jetsons.

This short is titled The Night Before Christmas.
Enjoy!

Popeye - Mister and Mistletoe (1955)

2010-11-22T08:46:00.000-06:00

Paramount acquired Fleischer studios in 1941 and in 1943 began producing the Popeye series in Technicolor.

There were three Christmas episodes from the Popeye series and here is a great one.

From 1955, here is Mister and Mistletoe

The Little Rascals Christmas Special (1979)

2010-11-12T17:06:00.002-06:00

Here is a rarely remembered cartoon. In 1979, NBC broadcasted an animated Little Rascals cartoon during the Christmas season. I only saw it once and never knew if anyone remembered it. But, I've found it.

It's hardly a "classic", but it's funny enough that I thought I would put it up anyways.

Enjoy!

Happy Veteran's Day

2010-11-11T09:54:00.001-06:00

Today is November 11th, the day we honor our Military Veterans. So to honor them, here is a rendition of White Christmas sung on a front line in Europe during WWII......

A Christmas Carol (MGM 1938)

2010-11-04T11:06:00.002-05:00

MGM pictures have always been a bit saccharine. It was Louis B. Mayer's intention to make "feel good" movies for the public to take them away from the problems in the everyday world. Their 1938 production of Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol" is no different. Starring Sir Reginald Owen and Gene Lockhart, this film is a sort of compact, Christmas card version of the famed story. But, it is fun to watch and has plenty of Christmas spirit.

Here is an MGM promo featuring Lionel Barrymore for your viewing pleasure.

November already?

2010-11-02T17:54:00.000-05:00

Well, it's already November and the leaves are turning. Soon, it'll be time for Turkey and the Macy's parade.

In honor of the upcoming holiday, here's a cartoon from MGM

Andy Williams show update

2010-10-29T10:14:00.000-05:00

I updated the video on the Andy Williams Show post to a much better one. I think you'll like it.

Happy Days - "Guess Whose Coming to Christmas" (1974)

2010-10-27T10:17:00.003-05:00

Before we get started, I'd just like to thank my international visitors for coming to this site. I hope it gives a glimpse of how we celebrate Christmas in America and we would love to hear how you celebrate in your perspective countries.

Happy Days is as a part of American culture as apple pie and the Christmas episode from 1974 is a great one. In the early days of Fonzie's relationship with the Cunningham family, they are just beginning to get to know the Fonz. It's Christmas Eve and Mr. C and Richie have had car trouble with the DeSoto. Fonzie fixes the problem for free as a Christmas present. It is then that Howard and Richie realize that Fonzie will be all alone for Christmas.

Here is a part from that episode, Enjoy!

The Andy Griffith Show - "Christmas Story" 1960

2010-10-25T15:15:00.000-05:00

This is one of my favorites. The Andy Griffith show with Andy Griffith and Don Knotts. In this episode, Ben Weaver has a local man hauled in for moonshining. After Andy, Barney and the gang bring Christmas into the jailhouse for the family, Ben begins to long for Christmas himself and does whatever he can to get thrown in jail so he can participate in the Christmas he knew long ago.

Here is part of that show

The Jack Benny Show (1950-1964)

2010-10-14T12:18:00.000-05:00

After Jack Benny left radio he moved right into the new medium of television. The Jack Benny Show ran from October of 1950 to September of 1964. Here is a clip from the Christmas show featuring Mel Blanc in one of Jack's greatest holiday bits.

Enjoy!

Christmas Episodes

2010-10-13T09:59:00.001-05:00

One thing we all looked forward to every year was the Christmas episode of our favorite TV shows. From my childhood, it was everything from M*A*S*H to Diff'rent Strokes. When you watch these now, Christmas wasn't callous or considered "cheesy" but was given the treatment it deserved.

Below is a mini-sode of The Jeffersons. I'll be posting different Christmas episodes from time to time in the future. Enjoy!

Hollywood Christmas Parade (1928-Present)

2010-10-07T12:50:00.000-05:00

Originally called the Santa Claus Lane parade, The Hollywood Christmas parade takes place on the weekend after Thanksgiving in Hollywood, California. The parade began in 1928 as a way to boost shopping during the holiday season and was created by the chamber of commerce.

In 1946, Gene Autry rode his horse down the parade route and was so inspired by all of the children yelling "Here comes Santa Claus" that it inspired him to write the now famous song.

By 1978, the parade was broadcast in KTLA-TV and had attracted many celebrities. In 2004, NBC tried to present it as a primetime special which proved disastrous. By 2008, the chamber of commerce cancelled showing the parade on all Tribune owned stations (such as WGN in Chicago) due to losses of $100,000.

The parade also ended up being cancelled and a new parade called the Hollywood Santa Parade was initiated.

It was announced that MyNetworkTV would telecast the 2009 parade. It's a shame that the original parade had come to this.

Here is a promo for the 1987 parade that featured Jimmy Stewart as the Grand Marshall.

Norelco Santa Commercial

2010-10-04T22:06:00.002-05:00

I love Christmas commercials. More than specials or movies they are a window into Christmas past like nothing else. They bring to mind memories long forgotten of a time gone by. The Norelco commercials are no different and here is I believe the original.

*Below it are two more, one made in the 1970's and the other from 1994.

I hope you enjoy it!

Perry Como Christmas Specials (1948-1994)

2010-10-01T15:03:00.003-05:00

Born Pierino Ronald Como in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania, Perry Como is a well-loved Italian-American crooner with a string of hits in the 40's and 50's.

Perry joined a list of crooners who became synonymous with Christmas such as Bing Crosby and Andy Williams. In a way, Perry and Andy share a sort of commonality in that they both discovered musical acts and had them on their show. In Perry's case, he very much liked Richard and Karen Carpenter. In fact, on their album "Christmas Portrait", Richard and Karen did a version of "Christ is Born", a staple of Perry's christmas carols.

Perry's last special was taped in Ireland in 1994 and titled "Perry Como's Irish Christmas".

Here is a sample of Perry singing "It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas"

Enjoy!

The Fat Albert Christmas Special (1977)

2010-09-29T10:34:00.001-05:00

It may not be considered by some to be a classic, but I believe The Fat Albert Christmas Special deserves to be put up with the rest.

First airing on December 18, 1977, the show features Fat Albert and the gang as they try to keep a stingy old land owner from tearing down their clubhouse and help a stranded family who is about to have a baby and whose youngest son, Marshall, has run away believing he is unloved.

This is a pretty good special and has a lot of Christmas cheer.

Enjoy!

Eddie Fisher, dead at 82

2010-09-24T09:16:00.001-05:00

Pop singer Eddie Fisher, whose clear voice brought him a devoted following of teenage girls in the early 1950's before marriage scandals over-shadowed his fame, has died at age 82.

Click here to read more

Dick Van Dyke for Kodak (1970's)

2010-09-23T15:51:00.003-05:00

Here, Dick Van Dyke does an ad for Kodak Instamatic Camera. This was way before digital photography but was popular because of the easy loading of film. My mom had one of these when I was a kid and it lasted forever.

Enjoy!

The Judy Garland Christmas Show (1963)

2010-09-22T14:21:00.006-05:00

This was part of a series of specials Judy did for CBS television.

This particular special features Jack Jones and Mel Torme'. It also features Judy's children - Liza Minelli and Lorna and Joseph Luft. This is pretty cool business as it was I think broadcast live.

Here is the opener to that special with all of it's pomp and circumstance.

The Little Drummer Boy, Book II (1976)

2010-09-22T12:33:00.004-05:00

In 1976, Rankin/Bass made a sequel to The Little Drummer Boy. They subtitled it "Book II" in a biblical style reference.

The story follows Aaron right after the birth of Christ as he helps one of the wise men, Melchior, recover silver bells that were cast to ring at the birth of the Messiah. The bells were stolen by greedy Roman soldiers.

This is a very good sequel and it features a version of the 1963 Bing Crosby Christmas song, "Do You Hear What I Hear?".

Here is a number from the show

Nestor, The Long-Eared Christmas Donkey (1977)

2010-09-16T14:44:00.003-05:00

Rankin/Bass were never a group to shy away from the true meaning of Christmas. They tried to present it in a way to kids that would not confuse them, but show that even someone like Santa Claus had a reason beyond himself for doing what he does.

One such special is Nestor, The Long-eared Christmas donkey. Taking from the same type of story as rudolph, this is the tale of a donkey named Nestor who has a physical "deformity" - Long Ears. It's a story that teaches children that just because someone is different doesn't mean you should make fun of them or that they are not important. In the end, Nestor serves a great purpose to mankind and takes his place in The Greatest Story Ever Told.

Here is part one of this fantastic, but often unplayed special featuring the voice talents of country music legend, Roger Miller.

Billie May Richards, the voice of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer has died at the age of 89

2010-09-12T13:30:00.005-05:00

Billie May Richards, the voice of Rankin Bass' Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer has passed away in her sleep at the age of 89. Click here for the rest of the story.

Thanks to

Matthew for the heads up on this story. She will be missed in our world.

Holiday Albums I recommend for this year.

2010-09-09T14:58:00.010-05:00

This blog is mostly about the television/movie medium at Christmas time, but I wanted to share a few musical treasures that you should look into getting this year.

First on the list:

The Many Moods of Christmas featuring The Robert Shaw Chorale and Orchestra. This is a great classical take on Christmas. Recorded in 1963 for RCA/Victor records.

Merry Christmas Johnny Mathis

This is a great album. Johnny's voice is incredible and romantic and the arrangements lend themselves to Christmas in a truly magical way. From his rendition of A Christmas Song to Oh Holy Night, this is a must for any Christmas Music collection.

Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer featuring Burl Ives

Now, aside from a great cartoon special, this show features some great music featuring the great Burl Ives. All of the songs are featured in this album and there are some great instrumental pieces that were featured as well along with some

new ones. This is nostalgia at it's best.

Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass Christmas Album

This is a great album. The boys at A&M records didn't try to make a junk album. This record captures the magic of Christmas with the funky late sixties jazz stylings of Herb and his band. If you don't have this one, get to Amazon or find a thrift store now.

Slacker Radio

2010-08-09T17:25:00.002-05:00

Thought I would share this with you.

Most of us have used internet radio like Pandora, etc. I use slacker. I like it better because it's easier to create a station. They have premade stations and they have a lot of holiday channels. My favorite of course is holiday classics and this is available year round.

Check it out and see at www.slacker.com

Holiday at Pops

2010-07-28T12:45:00.003-05:00

Had to share this.

Many of you may be from the Boston area while many of us are not.

All of us are familiar with the holiday tunes presented by the Boston Pops Orchestra and late conductor Arthur Fiedler. Every year, the Orchestra puts on Holiday at Pops and it features great musical guests. This concert is broadcast on local television and at one time was simulcast on A&E.

Sadly, A&E no longer carries the concert. But, here is a little clip featuring John Williams as conductor playing the Pops signature Christmas piece.

Holiday Inn (1942)

2010-07-28T12:23:00.007-05:00

Holiday Inn is a film based on composer Irving Berlin's idea of an Inn that only opened on holidays. Berlin signed an exclusive contract with Paramount Pictures to write songs expressly for that project.

The film stars Bing Crosby and Fred Astaire with support from Marjorie Reynolds and Virginia Dale. The film tells the story of one Jim Hardy and his crazy but successful idea to run an Inn that only opened for the Holidays. After meeting and hiring Linda Mason (Reynolds), he falls in love with her only to lose her for a time to his former partner Ted Hanover (Astaire).

The film has songs for most of the major holidays including Easter, Valentine's day and even the 4th of July.

It was believed that the big number for the film would be "Be Careful, It's my Heart" but "White Christmas" became a smash hit. That became the most difficult song for Irving Berlin to compose. He had first composed the tune in 1935 on the set of the film Top Hat. He had thought he would use the music for a future Astaire/Rogers film. He hummed the tune for Fred Astaire and director Mark Sandrich but Sandrich passed on the tune.

Later, the song was used to create a psuedo-sequel, White Christmas starring Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye.

Here is an excerpt featuring Crosby singing the perennial hit to Marjorie Reynolds.

Enjoy!

The Lewis Lights

2010-05-13T17:24:00.002-05:00

To bring you a little local flair, I'm embedding this video shot in 2008 of what is a famous attraction in South Mississippi - The Lewis Lights.

If you are ever around the Hattiesburg/Purvis area at Christmas, you can find this spectacular display at the Lewis home.

Hello Again!

2010-05-07T17:25:00.005-05:00

Now that Summer is almost here, I felt it was time for me to start up the blog again. I thought I might start off a little light considering the kids are still in school for another week or two.

How about some Christmas commercials?

Here's one from 7up.

And another from McDonald's

Please support Susan's blog at Christmas Forever Favorites. She has a wonderful site dedicated to classic christmas albums and has been going through alot with her blog due to internet trolls causing trouble. Encourage her to continue her fantastic blog that gives us all joy.

Merry Christmas!

2009-12-24T08:25:00.002-06:00

Just wanted to wish all of you a Merry Christmas! I hope you are able to enjoy your families and friends today and tomorrow.

I know many of us will be watching our favorite movies and specials. Here is a little holiday cheer to remind us of what Christmas is all about while the hustle and bustle all around us tries to wear us out today.

Enjoy!

Merry Christmas!

2009-12-01T11:16:00.002-06:00

Well, it's December 1st. Already, the folks in my fair city are decorating their houses and it's time for the annual Christmas parades and parties.

So far, the clear favorite for my Scrooge poll is Alastair Simm. A favored second is Albert Finney.

I hope everyone takes time this season to spend with family and friends and not get caught up in what ole' Charlie Brown calls "commercialism".

Joyus Noel!

Scrooge (1951)

2009-11-27T11:22:00.005-06:00

This is considered by most to be the definitive film version of A Christmas Carol and I would have to agree. This version stars Alastair Sim as Ebeneezer Scrooge and features a cast of some of England's best character actors such as Kathleen Harrison.

The film was directed by Brian Desmond Hurst and the film itself was approved by one of the granddaughters of Charles Dickens. The film was not widely known in the US until the early 1970's when it had begun to be played on PBS. Until then, the most widely popular version was the 1938 MGM adaptation starring Sir Reginald Owen.

The film represents the much bleaker vision that the original story had. Sim's Scrooge also represents a real man as opposed to a cookie-cutter "baddie" who shows no reason for being bitter and unkind and then suddenly changes his ways. This Scrooge has a past with bad circumstances and choices made along the way. His redemption at the end is understood and even The Ghost of Christmas present acknowledges that Christmas itself is about the birth of Christ and that Scrooge has refused to seek him in his heart.

This movie is the epitome of what is considered a "Dickensian" style Christmas setting.

Miracle on 34th street (1947)

2009-11-19T15:09:00.004-06:00

This movie was ironically shown in May of 1947 as head of Fox studios Daryl F. Zanuck reasoned that more people went to the movies in the summer.

In fact, the trailer did everything it could to hide the fact that it was a Christmas movie. It was directed by George Seaton and starred Edmund Gwenn, Maureen O'Hara, John Payne and a very young Natalie Wood.

The movie was indeed a showcase for Macy's department store as well as Gimble's. The backdrop for the movie was the annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade which had just come off of hiatus during WWII.

It's A Wonderful LIfe (1947)

2009-11-13T09:54:00.005-06:00

What else can you say about this movie? Directed by Frank Capra and starring Jimmy Stewart and Donna Reed, this perennial favorite was shown every year on just about every station in America about 100 times every Christmas and people never grew tired of it.

The story for this movie was originally a short story written by Phillip Van Doren Stern. He had about 200 printed up as Christmas cards and sent to family and friends. RKO pictures got a hold of the idea and bought the rights for $10,000. They had writers work on the story but nothing ever really developed out of the three of four scripts. Frank Capra heard about the idea and decided he wanted a crack at it. So, he bought the idea from RKO for the same $10,000 they paid. He even got the scripts thrown in for free. Capra began work on the film and came up with "It's a Wonderful Life". He wanted Jimmy Stewart right away and also wanted his co-star from two previous Capra films, Jean Arthur. Jean was already committed to a Broadway show and had to turn the role down. So Capra settled on a fresh-faced MGM contract player named Donna Reed. The rest, as they say, is history.

The story of George Bailey is a story that resonates within each of us. If you've ever felt useless or unimportant to people, then you can appreciate George as he sees what life would really be like without him. We never realize how we affect the people and, thereby, the world around us for good or evil. Each person is important and makes a difference.

From horrible old Mr. Potter to ZuZu's petals, this is probably the favorite Christmas movie of all time.

White Christmas (1954)

2009-11-05T13:54:00.003-06:00

White Christmas was supposed to be a sequel of sorts to Irving Berlin's Holiday Inn which starred Bing Crosby and Fred Astaire. In fact, the set for General Waiverley's Inn is an exact remake of the Inn from Holiday Inn.

After reading the script, Astaire turned down the role. Donald O'Connor was originally tapped to replace him but had to bow out due to illness.

So producers at Paramount turned to Danny Kaye and so was born White Christmas. The cast also included Vera-Ellen and Rosemary Clooney. It also had great character actors like Dean Jagger and Mary Wickes.

White Christmas was produced by Paramount Pictures and was directed by Michael Curtiz who directed such classics as The Adventures of Robin Hood and Casablanca. It features a musical score written by Irving Berlin including the perennial favorite, White Christmas. This was the first movie to be released in Paramounts VistaVision™ which was a new wide screen filming process at the time. This movie is filled with vibrant colors which were an integral part of musicals in the 1950's and adds to the holiday theme of the picture.

Here is a number from the film featuring Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye, Vera-Ellen, and Rosemary Clooney.

Enjoy!

I almost forgot.....

2009-10-28T13:52:00.011-05:00

I almost forgot to mention some cartoons that were not part of the classic camp but were, in fact, Christmas Specials of some favorite characters.

Whether you were a fan of Scooby Doo or of Yogi and Boo Boo, each cartoon at one time or another had a Christmas special. From Mr. Magoo to The Flintstone's Christmas Carol, there are plenty of obscure cartoons that we look forward to each year.

My personal favorite is Bugs Bunny's™ Looney Christmas Tales. It originally aired on CBS television on November 27th, 1979. It featured Bugs and the gang in three shorts with Holiday themes intercut with Bugs trying to get the group to sing Carols properly.

I've included a short with Bugs Bunny™ and Yosemite Sam™ doing their version of A Christmas Carol©.

As always, Enjoy!

The Bishop's Wife (1947)

2009-10-26T12:32:00.004-05:00

The Bishop's Wife stars David Niven, Lorretta Young, and Cary Grant. It centers around the story of the angel, Dudley. Dudley is sent to earth to help Niven's character deal with building a new cathedral and the stresses involved as well as his wife (Young) and the toll Henry's work has taken on their marriage.

This is a great movie. It's simple and never leaves the Christmas background. David Niven's rousing sermon at the end can even rival those of well known clergymen today. It's underlying tones of human frailty and the tendency of human beings to focus on the less important things in life while ignoring the most important ones is brought out in Dudley's relationship with Julia (Young).

The movie was released by RKO in 1947. Niven was originally cast as the angel, Dana Andrews as the bishop, and Teresa Wright as his wife. However, Wright had to bow out due to pregnancy. According to Robert Osborne, Andrews was lent to RKO in order to obtain Loretta Young. Koster then brought in Cary Grant, but he wanted to play the angel, so the role of the bishop was given to Niven.

from Wikipedia™

Arthur Ferrante dead at 88

2009-10-24T19:52:00.005-05:00

I am reprinting this via one of my blog followers as I think many of us missed this one. This happened last month. Thanks to The Blue Carbuncle for this story. Please check out his blog.

Arthur Ferrante, one half of the piano duo Ferrante and Teicher whose lush orchestral recordings of 1960s movie themes propelled them to popular and commercial success, has died. He was 88.

Ferrante died of natural causes early Saturday at his home in Longboat Key, Fla., his manager, Scott W. Smith, said Sunday. Lou Teicher died in August 2008 at age 83.

"Although we were two individuals, at the twin pianos our brains worked as one," Ferrante said last year after Teicher's death. ... (continued...)

Operation Christmas Child

2009-10-20T10:35:00.004-05:00

I just wanted to encourage you to participate in Operation Christmas child this year. This is a great organization that ships Christmas gifts around the world to war torn countries.

Here is a brief video of the fun we had last year building these shoeboxes.

A Christmas Story (1983)

2009-10-16T14:08:00.006-05:00

Now a cult classic in it's own right, A Christmas Story was released in 1983 by MGM/UA and was based upon the short stories from the book In God We Trust, All Others Pay Cash by Jean Shepherd.

It starred child actors Peter Billingsley and Scott Schwartz as well as seasoned actors Darrin MacGavin and Belinda Dillon who most remember from her role in Close Encounters of the Third Kind.

The movie is a depression-era story about a 9 year old boy's quest for what he deems to be the perfect Christmas Present: A Red Ryder 200 shot range model air rifle. The movie is a farce of sorts and wasn't that well received when first released. It has since gained cult classic status with constant airings every holiday season on TBS and TCM (Turner Classic Movies).

The movie was directed by Bob Clark who up until that point had been famous for directing the Porky's© movies.

Here is one of the most famous clips from that movie: The tongue on the lightpole scene, enjoy!

Scrooge (1970)

2009-09-23T16:30:00.004-05:00

Scrooge is a musical adaptation of A Christmas Carol starring Albert Finney and Sir Alec Guinness.

It was directed by Ronald Neame and musical score by Leslie Bricusse and Anthony Newley who also brought us the score for Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory the next year. In 1971, Albert Finney won a Golden Globe award for best actor in a musical/comedy.

Here is a number from that movie.

Enjoy!

Frosty the Snowman (1969)

2009-09-10T12:33:00.005-05:00

In 1969, Rankin/Bass produced an animated feature based on the song written by Steve "Jack" Rollins and Steve Nelson and recorded by Gene Autry. Frosty the Snowman featured the talents of comedians Jackie Vernon and Jimmy Durante.

The story tells of Frosty coming to life and the children's quest to get him to the North Pole before he melts. Frosty and Karen, one of the children, board a train bound for the North Pole and are chased by the owner of Frosty's magic hat, Professor Hinkle - a magician who threw it away because he thought it defective.

The special has remained popular over the years and has spawned a few sequels including Frosty's Winter Wonderland with Andy Griffith and Rudolph and Frosty's Christmas in July.

Blog Updates

2009-08-25T15:45:00.001-05:00

As it is slowly winding down to the end of the classic specials, I'm going to move into classic Christmas movies. I would love to hear what you think of each one and what they mean to you.

I have also added a couple of polls just to see what people think of various things so look for them as well. By official count, it's only 97 more days until December.

Little Drummer Boy update

2009-08-24T13:11:00.002-05:00

I uploaded some video to The Little Drummer Boy post, so enjoy!

The Brady Bunch - The Voice of Christmas

2009-08-22T15:31:00.004-05:00

Every television show has a Christmas episode every year. Probably the most favorite of all is an episode of The Brady Bunch called "The Voice of Christmas".

In the episode, Carol loses her voice and can't sing at Church on Christmas morning. Cindy goes with Mike to see Santa Claus and in a moment of selflessness, asks Santa to bring her mommies voice back. It's a perennial favorite and people watch it over and over again every year.

I have uploaded the entire episode here for you to enjoy.

The Donny and Marie Christmas Special

2009-08-21T11:01:00.005-05:00

Now, I know some people out there may not think of this as something that should be put up here. But I grew up watching this show and the Christmas shows were just as much a part of it as Bing Crosby.

The Osmonds were first playing at Disneyland in California when they were discovered by Andy Williams. They then appeared on his show for the duration and on all of his Christmas shows. Donny and Marie Osmond then branched out into their own TV show in the late '70s. Their Christmas specials were reminiscent of the Andy Williams shows Donnie had appeared in for years.

This is the opening to the 1978 special which was filmed entirely in Utah where the Osmond family had built a TV studio to produce the Donny and Marie show during it's final run.

Enjoy!

The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade

2009-08-18T12:27:00.007-05:00

Touted as the "unofficial" start of the holiday season, The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade is watched by millions every year on Thanksgiving Day. The parade itself began in 1924 at Bamberger's in Newark, New Jersey and then transferred to Macy's in Manhattan. The employees, most of whom were new immigrants to the US, wanted to show their love for their new country.

The parade continued to grow through the '30's where the use of balloons first began. The parade was suspended during WWII to use the rubber for the war effort and resumed in 1945.

In 1947, the parade was the backdrop for a Christmas favorite - Miracle on 34th Street. The movie is a perennial favorite and starred Maureen O'Hara, Edmund Gwen and a young Natalie Wood.

The parade first began its' network coverage on CBS in 1948. NBC became the official broadcaster in 1955. At first, the broadcasts were only one hour long. In 1961, it expanded to two hours and, by 1969, all three hours were broadcast. Lorne Greene hosted the show with Betty White from '63-71. Ed McMahon took over with various co-hosts and from '87-'97 Bryant Gumble and the great Willard Scott hosted the parade along with various co hosts that included McMahon and Katie Couric. Al Roker joined in 1995 and since 1998 Matt Lauer took over duties after the depature of Willard Scott.

Since 2006, Matt Lauer, Meredith Viera and Al Roker have been the hosting team for NBC. I have uploaded the opening for the 1981 Macy's Parade and it features Ed McMahon as host.

Enjoy!

Les Paul 1915-2009

2009-08-14T09:57:00.002-05:00

Joining my fellow bloggers in mourning the passing of a guitar legend, Les Paul. Les was single-handedly responsible for the modern electric guitar. We would've never had Jingle Bell Rock if it hadn't been for Les.

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1965)

2009-08-06T10:47:00.013-05:00

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer is a stop-motion animation special produced by Rankin/Bass for NBC. It first aired on December 6, 1964 and was based on the song by Johnny Marks and loosley based on the short story by Robert L. May who, incedentily, was the brother-in-law of Marks.

The special began airing on CBS television in 1972 and is currently only one of four original CBS 1960's specials still airing annually.

The show's featured star was folk singer Burl Ives who voiced Sam the talking Snowman. It featured a musical score by Johnny Marks and a list of memorable songs by Burl Ives and chorus:

Jingle, Jingle, Jingle
We're a Couple of Misfits
*Fame and Fortune (which replaced Misfits in later versions)
There's always tomorrow
We are Santa's Elves
We're on the island of misfit Toys
Holly Jolly Christmas
Rudolph the Red nosed Reindeer

Holly Jolly Christmas became a hit for Burl Ives while Mark's other standard, Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree was used as a background instrumental piece for the show. Rudolph spun off a few sequels including Rudolph's Shiny New Year and Rudolph and Frosty's Christmas in July.

Here by request, is the opening 10 minutes of this show. Enjoy!

Coca-Cola Season's Greetings

2009-07-16T19:15:00.005-05:00

The now famous commercial featuring singers on a hillside. This is the Christmas version that they played every year when I was a kid. I wish Coca Cola would play this one instead of the overly commercial one with the trucks.

Enjoy an ice cold Coca Cola while watching this one!

Kmart commercial (late 70's)

2009-07-16T16:01:00.005-05:00

Here is a holiday commercial from Kmart. I really remember this jingle very well. I am trying to find other commercials from companies such as Coke, Sprite, and McDonalds that had their own holiday jingles.

Enjoy!

How the Grinch Stole Christmas (1966)

2009-07-16T10:11:00.006-05:00

How the Grinch Stole Christmas originally aired on CBS television on December 18, 1966. It was an MGM animated feature created by Chuck Jones. The special was narrated by Boris Karloff and featured a musical soundtrack that included the voice of Thurl Ravenscroft who was famous for creating the voice of Tony the Tiger for Kellog's frosted flakes commercials.

The music for the special was composed by Albert Hague who many may remember as the demanding music professor from the movie and television show Fame

The cartoon was based on the book by Theodore "Ted" Geisel aka Dr. Suess. Here is the opening for that special as it appeared on CBS television. Included is a short bumper from a local CBS affiliate.

Enjoy, this one gave me goose bumps!

The Bob Hope Christmas Show sponsored by Texaco

2009-07-14T13:11:00.004-05:00

Bob Hope hosted his Christmas special every year on NBC since the inception of television. His specials were sponsored by Texaco and ran up until Christmas of 1994. Here is the opening to the 1983 special. I apologize for the bad start, but I made up for it by adding a little something special at the end.

If you've ever wondered who the first person to sing "Silver Bells" was, here's your answer!

Enjoy!

Miller Brewing Co Ad (circa mid 70's)

2009-07-14T00:20:00.003-05:00

This is a holiday ad from the Miller Brewing Company. It seems to be a clone to the famous Budweiser Clydesdale commercials but it's still a nice spot.

Enjoy!

CBS Bumper (circa 1977)

2009-07-14T00:10:00.006-05:00

This is an ad for two upcoming specials on CBS. It follows a bumper for the movie White Lightning with Burt Reynolds. I tried to edit that part out but it reduced the quality.

CBS Special Presentation

2009-07-11T14:03:00.005-05:00

Any of us who are fans of Rudolph, Charlie Brown, or Frosty the Snowman will remember little things about watching those specials. For instance we remember that during the 70's and 80's Dolly Madison snack cakes sponsored the Charlie Brown specials. One little thing that is gone now is the lead in that proceeded all of our favorite holiday specials on CBS.

Here for your enjoyment is that lead in.

NBC Holiday Bumper

2009-07-11T13:57:00.004-05:00

As I said in the earlier post, I have a few bumpers (lead-ins) that give a peak into our culture during Christmases past. This is an NBC bumper that, judging from the content, was probably from 1979.

I hope you enjoy these.

Bumpers

2009-07-09T12:47:00.001-05:00

In the future I will be posting some bumpers that appeared on various networks during the holiday season. They help give a peek into Christmas past and give you an idea how things have changed over the years.

I also plan to try and post the opening to the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade from 1981 featuring none other than Ed McMahon.

I don't have any of these available for download. I am leary of doing so because of trademark infringement issues. But I wanted to put them here as a sort of vault for everyone to enjoy.

Bing Crosby Christmas specials (CBS Television)

2009-07-02T19:34:00.001-05:00

Bing's Christmas shows first began on the radio with his hosting of the Kraft Music Hall and the Philco Radio Time amongst all of the radio shows he hosted over the years.

From 1962 through to his death in October of 1977, Bing hosted his annual Christmas show on CBS. The first featured Andre' Previn and Mary Martin, the star of the broadway production of Peter Pan (and who was also the mother of Larry Hagman who would go on to star with Bing's daughter Mary Francis in Dallas). Later, the specials featured his second wife, Kathryn and their three children Harry, Mary Francis, and Nathaniel. The shows were a big hit every year and always showcased a cross-section of show business talent.

In October of 1977, Bing filmed what would be his final Christmas show entitled Bing's Merrie Olde Christmas. It featured the talents of Twiggy and, to show Bing's appreciation for all musical talents, David Bowie. Shortly after filming ended, Bing flew to Spain to hunt and do a little golfing. Bing suffered a heart attack on the course just after he and his partner defeated another duo at 18 holes. He died on October 14, 1977 at the age of 74. Here is what has now become a perennial favorite perfomance featuring Der Bingle and David Bowie singing The Little Drummer Boy (Peace on Earth).

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'Twas the Night Before Christmas (1974)

2009-06-30T12:58:00.001-05:00

In 1974, Rankin/Bass produced an animated special for Television based on the Clement Moore poem. 'Twas the Night Before Christmas tells the story of Joshua Trundle, a local clock maker who tries to entice Santa Claus to come back to the small town of Junctionville after a letter questioning his existence appears in the local paper.

The special stars Joel Grey, star of such movies as Cabaret and comedian George Goebel, whom some may remember from a series of mattress commercials for Sealy posturpedic. The special ran on CBS until the early 90's and currently appears on ABC family television. ABC family was originally CBN, a christian broadcasting network owned by Pat Robertson. The version I have uploaded here is the one edited by CBN because they felt the song "Give your Heart a Try" held too many references to other fairy tales such as leprechauns and the Easter Bunny. They felt since Santa Claus was based on St. Nicholas, that would still be appropriate. As a christian, I think it's silly because kids can distiguish between fantasy and reality and why show it at all if you deem it inappropriate?

Anyway, I have uploaded the entire cartoon here for your enjoyment.

Santa Claus is Coming to Town (1970)

2009-06-26T11:27:00.004-05:00

One of the "Big Four" in the Rankin/Bass stable, Santa Claus is Coming to Town tells the story of the origins of Santa Claus and includes the voice talents of Mickey Rooney, Keenan Wynn, and Fred Astaire.

At the start of the film, a brief newsreel (narrated by Paul Frees) is shown, depicting kids worldwide awaiting Santa Claus. Then, Special Delivery "S.D." Kluger (Astaire) is introduced. His mail truck breaks down, so he begins to tell the story of Santa Claus, in order to answer children's letters to Santa. The show presents a bleak world where children aren't allowed to play with toys until Kris Kringle (adopted son of the Kringle family, a group of elves) brings his toys to the children upsetting the Burgermiester Miesterburger who then makes Kris an outlaw. Kris then changes his name to Claus, a name he had with him when found by the Kringles. The burgermiesters sort of "die off" and Kris, now Santa Claus, is free to distribute his toys to all of the children. But, he has to pick one night of the year due to the amount of requests from children. So, he picks the holiest night of the year, Christmas Eve.

The film ends as S.D. Kluger reflects on what Santa's real meaning is all about. Just then, though, S.D. remembers that he still has a load of letters to deliver to Santa. Then, joined by a parade of children, S.D. begins to sing Santa Claus Is Coming to Town. The film's closing scene has Kris and Jess (Mrs. Claus now) in silhouette, as he puts his old hat back on his head. Then, Santa steps out of his Palace, revealing himself in full splendor.

The special airs on ABC television and currently on ABC Family during it's 25 Days of Christmas.

A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965)

2009-06-25T13:30:00.001-05:00

Bringing the Peanuts characters to television was not an easy task. The strip's creators, with funding from sponsor Coca-Cola, presented the CBS network with an idea for a Christmas television special starring Schulz's characters.

At first, the CBS big-whigs didn't like the special. They felt it needed a laugh track or else the audience wouldn't know where the jokes ended and began. They also felt the jazz soundtrack by Vince Guaraldi wasn't right for a children's program. They finally felt that Linus' speech from the gospel of Luke wouldn't sit well with audiences as they wouldn't want to sit through a reading of the passage. Charles is said to have responded "If we don't tell the true meaning of Christmas, who will?".

The special first aired on December 9, 1965. It was soley sponsored by Coca Cola and, to the surprise of Network executives, was a smashing success. 50% of TV viewers tuned in to watch the special. It went on to win the prestigous Peabody Award and an Emmy.

The track "Linus and Lucy" has become synonymous with the Peanuts characters and the soundtrack album by Vince Guaraldi continues to be a success.

Trivia

The main titles have Linus crashing into a Coca-Cola sign after Snoopy has spun both him and Charlie Brown around with Linus' blanket. In the versions currently available, the viewer never sees where Linus' trajectory lands him. Instead, they see Charlie Brown landing towards a pine tree which causes more snow to fall on top of him.
In the "fence" scene, where several of the Peanuts gang are attempting to knock cans off a fence with snowballs, Linus is seen knocking down a can with his blanket. In the original airing, this was a Coke can, but it was later replaced with a nondescript can.
The final end credit originally had a voice-over saying, "Brought to you from the people in your town who bottle Coca-Cola." This is why the "Hark!" chorus sung at the end trails off oddly before the song would normally end, as an announcer originally did a voice over at this point in the credits to repeat and reemphasize the local bottler's well wishes to the TV audience (watch clip here: Clip 1 ).

Happy Holidays with Bing and Frank sponsored by Bulova watches. (1957)

2009-06-24T15:54:00.002-05:00

In the fall of 1950, The Frank Sinatra Show joined CBS' schedule. At the time, Sinatra was at the top of his career, so the show's success was practically a given. CBS saddled the series with tough timeslots against the hits Your Show of Shows and Milton Berle's Texaco Star Theater, though, and the series was cancelled after only two seasons.

Sinatra was lured back to television in 1957 by ABC. With his film career in full swing, Sinatra decided that his new The Frank Sinatra Show would follow a loose format. Some weeks it would be a variety show, other weeks a dramatic show, and some weeks he would simply introduce episodes in which he would not appear. This show, too, was a failure, and was cancelled after one season

When the special was recorded, Bing felt that he sang better in the evening while
Franks sang better during the day. So, Bing recorded his part of the duet separately while Frank sang it live as the scene was recorded. The style of the show gives the viewer the feeling of two hep cats sharing a bit of Christmas cheer with each other and the audience. The show ends with Frank and Bing singing a rousing duet of Crosby's most famous hit, White Christmas.
In 2001, Sinatra's daughter Nancy, herself a pop veteran with the variety special Movin' with Nancy under her belt, began to examine old film canisters as part of her role as family archivist. While trying to determine which parts of the family's large film library were in danger of decomposition, she stumbled upon a theretofore unknown color print of Happy Holidays with Bing and Frank, the 1957 series' Christmas special. Happy Holidays was broadcast for the first time in over forty years on the cable channel Trio in December of 2001, and now it is available on DVD.

Here is an excerpt from that special. Keep your eye out for the carolers as one of them is Don Williams, older brother to Andy Williams.

Rankin/Bass

2009-06-24T11:48:00.001-05:00

Before we get started down this road exploring all of our favorite Christmas Cartoons and Specials, I thought it would be important to start out by writing a little about the team that is foremost responsible for bringing us some of the greatest memories from Christmas Past.

That team is none other than Arthur Rankin, Jr and Jules Bass. They started their production company in the early 1960's as Videocraft International. They were famous for creating productions using "Animagic", a stop-motion animation technique. Amongst the stable of contributors throughout the catalog of shows were people such as Romeo Muller who contributed to many of the specials as a screenwriter and Maury Laws, who served as musical director for almost all of the animated films.

Their first holiday special production was Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, produced for NBC and sponsor General Electric in 1965. Based on the song by Johnny Marks, the special featured Burl Ives as Sam, the talking snowman and contained an orchestral score also written by Marks. Rankin/Bass then began producing a string of holiday hits starting with The Cricket on the Hearth (1968) featuring Danny Thomas.

Others that followed were:

The Little Drummer Boy (1968) -featuring Greer Garson and Jose Ferrer
Frosty the Snowman (1969) featuring Jimmy Durante and Jackie Vernon
Santa Claus is Comin' to Town (1970) featuring Mickey Rooney, Keenan Wynn, and Fred Astaire
The Year Without a Santa Claus (1974) - featuring Shirley Booth and Mickey Rooney
The Little Drummer Boy, Book II (1976)- featuring Miss Greer Garson
Nestor, The Long-Eared Christmas Donkey (1977) - featuring Roger Miller
Jack Frost (1979) - featuring Buddy Hackett
Rudolph's Shiny New Year (1976) featuring Red Skelton
Rudolph and Frosty's Christmas in July (1979) - featuring Mickey Rooney and Ethel Merman
'Twas the Night Before Christmas (1974) - featuring Joel Grey and George Goebel
Frosty's Winter Wonderland (1976) - featuring Andy Griffith
The First Christmas (1975) - featuring Angela Landsbury
Pinocchio's Christmas (1980)
The Leprechaun's Christmas Gold (1981)- featuring Art Carney

Mickey Rooney appeared as Santa Claus in three Rankin/Bass productions making him the most used popular actor of the genre. Two of the most recognizable voices from the specials were voice actors Paul Frees and June Foray. June may be best known as Rocket J. Squirrel from the adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle. She also portrayed Cindy Lou Who in How the Grinch Stole Christmas.

It was in those days that no matter how big a star you were, if Rankin/Bass asked you be in a Christmas special, you did it.

The team of Rankin/Bass are honored here for the tremendous contribution to all of our childhood Christmas memories.

The Andy Williams Show

2009-06-23T16:52:00.003-05:00

The series, The Andy Williams Show won three Emmy Awards for outstanding variety program. Among his series regulars were The Osmond Brothers. He gave up the variety show in 1971 while it was still popular and retrenched to three per year. His Christmas specials, which appeared regularly until 1974 and intermittently from 1982 into the 1990s, were among the most popular of the genre. Andy's specials were famous because it featured his three brothers; Bob,Don,and Dick whom he sang with in the early part of his career. It also featured his wife,Claudine and their three children Noelle, Christian, and Bobby. Andy Williams has recorded eight Christmas albums over the years and has been penned as Mr. Christmas - an obvious rival for Bing Crosby.

Here is the opening to the 1966 show.

The Little Drummer Boy (Rankin/Bass 1968)

2009-06-23T16:15:00.004-05:00

In 1968, Rankin/Bass produced a stop motion animated feature based on The Little Drummer Boy. The film names the drummer boy Aaron and expands the song's storyline to include events before the birth of Jesus. It stars the voices of Greer Garson as "Our Storyteller" and Jose Ferrer as Ben Haramad; it also features the Vienna Boys Chior singing the title song.

It aired for many years on NBC (under original sponsorship of the American Gas Association(AGA) before entering syndication). It currently airs in the U.S. on the ABC Family cable channel. A television sequel, titled The Little Drummer Boy, Book II, premiered in 1976, also on NBC, again sponsored by the AGA, again narrated by Greer Garson, and also currently airing on ABC Family.

My First Post

2009-06-23T16:10:00.001-05:00

This is my first post. This is a blog about the numerous Christmas Cartoons and specials that most of us have known since our childhood. Some you may remember and some you may not.