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Dec 3, 2007
Favorite Holiday TV Specials
I remember waiting anxiously for the issue of TV Guide that listed when all of the holiday specials would be on. It came out the week after Thanksgiving. Yes, that's right there was a time when we would wait until after Thanksgiving to start celebrating Christmas. This year I was in target 2 weeks before Halloween and they had already begun stocking Christmas decorations. Oy veh! But I digress ...
The issue would arrive and I'd study it from cover to cover eventually knowing the complete schedule of holiday shows throughout the month of December. I was a walking encyclopedia of Christmas entertainment trivia. I even knew the schedule of the holiday episodes of weekly TV shows. You haven't lived until you've seen the Christmas episode of Barney Miller where Fish goes undercover as a sidewalk Santa to stop a mugger who's been targeting the Santas. Abe Vigoda in a Santa suit? Now that's the good stuff. And at age 7 I knew when it was on. But, again, I digress ...
Here are my Top 10 Holiday TV Specials (listed from 10 to 1)
- The Annual Bob Hope Holiday Special
- "Ladies and gentlemen, let's have a big hand for Miss Joey Heatherton ... Miss Lola Falana ... Miss Ann-Margeret ... Miss Loni Anderson ... Miss Ann Julian ... Miss Brooke Shields. Grrrroowwwll!" What a horn dog old Bob was. But what a wonderful Christmas card he sent us every year from the 1950s through the 1990s. Bob Hope was a little cheesy, but he was a tireless entertainer who never stopped making people laugh. Whether because of his magnificent work for the USO, his celebrated film career, or these star-studded holiday variety shows, Bob Hope deserved his title of Mr. Entertainment.
- Frosty the Snowman - This is the first of many entries by holiday powerhouses Rankin/Bass and their Video Craft International production company. This duo along with songwriter Maury Laws made over a dozen holiday shows between 1964 and 1985. In this one Frosty comes to life after a magic hat lands on his head. Kids love this song and they love this show. Me too.
- Rudolph's Shiny New Year - In an attempt to fill the gap between Christmas and New Year's Rankin/Bass put together this less than stellar story of how Rudolph helps to save time by rescuing Baby New Year from the clutches of the evil Eon, a giant bird that wants to live forever. It's a bit of a clunker, but a must see for all of you Rudolph and Rankin/Bass fans.
- Mr. Magoo's Christmas Carol - You may have guessed from the last list, Top Ten Holiday Movies, that I like Charles Dickens's A Christmas Carol. Well, you're right. It is my most favorite holiday story of all time. I watch every version that I can every year. I even watch the bland but watchable An American Christmas Carol, starring Henry Winkler. This one is a joy because of the wonderful Jim Backus's take on Mr. Magoo's take on Ebenezer Scrooge. Confused? Don't be. Just watch this if you get a chance.
- Santa Claus is Coming to Town - The songs in Santa Claus is Coming to Town are some of the best work by Rankin/Bass songster Maury Laws. One Foot in Front of the Other and No More Toy Makers to the King are magic, and quite catchy. You'll be singing them for hours after viewing.
- Emmett Otter's Jug Band Christmas - What's a list of fun holiday TV without the Muppets, right? Not a big budget film like later Jim Henson efforts The Muppets Take Manhattan or another favorite The Muppet Christmas Carol, but Emmett's heart is in the right place. A good take on O Henry's The Gift of the Magi, Emmett and his mother each want to win 1st prize at the talent contest so they can get the other a wonderful gift, but the desire to give comes with a cost.
- The Year Without a Santa- "I'm Mr. Green Christmas. I'm Mr. Sun. I'm Mr. Heat Blister. I'm Mr. Hundred and One." If you know these lyrics and those for Snow Miser, then you know why this show is on the list. "Friends call me Snow Miser; whatever I touch, turns to snow in my clutch. I'm too much."
- A Charlie Brown Christmas - This is probably the most depressing holiday show ... ever! The famous song Christmas Time is Here is, by itself, enough to throw one into a full-blown attack of seasonal depressive disorder. But I have to put A CB Christmas on the list because, well, it's a classic. Charlie Brown's search for the real meaning of Christmas among rampant commercialism is a tough road for Charles Shulz's existential hero. But with Linus's help and some unexpected beauty from an unlikely source, he finds it.
- Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer - Burl Ives as Sam the Snowman starts off the show by asking that famous line, "But do you recall the most famous reindeer of all?" He shows up later to sing the classics Silver and Gold and Holly Jolly Christmas, while keeping the story going as our yeoman narrator. Not only are the songs and holiday magic worth watching, but it's actually a good story too. Rudolph and Hermey set out to find a place where they won't be such misfits and undertake an adventure that has them helping others, saving Christmas, and finding a new job for a toothless Bumble.
- Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas - The classic Dr. Seuss story How the Grinch Stole Christmas is one of his best. But Immortal animator Chuck Jones takes it and makes it even better along with the help of composer Albert Hague and the voice of Tony the Tiger, Thurl Ravenscroft. (Is that an amazing name or what?) Boris Karloff's wonderful narration rounds out what is the most magical combination of whimsy and holiday cheer on the list. I watch this show several times every holiday season and I smile like Max as he gets ready for the sleigh ride down into Whoville.
The next and final holiday list will be Top Ten Christmas Songs. That should be sure to create some arguments.
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| Link to this post posted by Teddy 2:56 PM
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