I am thinking of having a TV Christmas special marathon open-house in December, where I’ll show Christmas shows (and movies) all day and friends can drop in and watch with us and have snacks.
I guess my question is primarily for US Dopers, because I suspect I won;t be familiar with non-US Christmas specials, but don’t let it hold you back if you aren’t USAian!
Tell me about your favorite Christmas TV specials!
I own most of the Rankin & Bass shows (including The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus- whooo!) but I’m sure there are some I am forgetting about.
Stroker and Hoop Christmas Special - the most warped and twisted take on Dickens ev-ah! Good times!
Bernard and the Genie - a very sweet Xmas tale from our Brit friends. I watched it because it had Rowan Atkinson in it. After a few minutes I didn’t care that his was essentially a cameo role. Good flick, and pretty family friendly.
Most of my DVD collection is made up of Christmas movies. All of Rankin & Bass, The Grinch (I even own an original animation cel from The Grinch) and the rest from that era.
My favorites though, are: The Grinch, Miracle on 34ths Street (the original) and Mr. Magoo’s Christmas Carol.
Mr. Magoo’s Christmas Carol (the very first animated Christmas Special that wasn’t an episode of a regular series). Not shown much anymore, but I have it on VHS and DVD
How the Grinch Stole Christmas – Dr. Seuss, Chuck Jones, Boris Karloff, and Thurl Ravenscroft. What more could you want?
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer – the only Rankin-Bass thing I’ve ever liked
a Christmas Carol – the animated one Chuck Jones produced, based on the original illustrations for Dickens’ story. VERY rarely seen, but a friend got me a copy.
I thought Stephen Colbert’s special, A Colbert Christmas: The Greatest Gift of All is REALLY well done. I watched it 3 times the year it came out, and hope it becomes regular yearly holiday viewing.
My must-sees are The Grinch and A Charlie Brown Christmas. I’m pretty meh about the rest of them.
I did once attend a Christmas special party when I was in college. There was hot chocolate with peppermint scnapps, which was wonderful, and I met a guy that I ended up dating for a while, so it stands out as one of the better parties I have ever been to.
If I don’t see the animated Grinch, it’s not allowed to be Christmas yet.
I also love It’s a Wonderful Life, and both Mickey’s and the Muppets Christmas Carol.
People used to look forward to The Wizard of OZ and The Sound of Music ever year at Christmas time before VCR’s became common. I don’t want to watch them now, but they will always be associated with Christmas for me.
I never got to watch the whole Grinch that Stole Christmas after I started school, because it was shown every Christmas Eve starting just as we had to leave for the school Christmas service with all the kids doing their parts.
