So what are your favorites?
I love Christmas Story (“Fra-ghee-lay!”) and also the Muppet Christmas Carol. Thank you, Siobhan and Jean, for introducing me to the WONDER that is the Muppet Christmas Carol!! – I also love It’s a Wonderful Life – it just GETS me every time … and also The Bishop’s Wife – the last one seems like it SHOULD be a Christmas classic – but it kind of isn’t. Strange how that happens. I love that movie.
I guess those are my personal favorites.
You all?
This Jew always liked, Miracle on 34th Street… the one with Natalie Wood.
I thought about Christmas Story last night when I bought a football for a gift.
White Christmas. I love Bing Crosby.
I love White Christmas, too!
I know I’ve put this Bing Crosby quote up on my site before – but I will do it again because I love it SO MUCH:
“A singer like Frank Sinatra comes along once in a lifetime, but why oh why did he have to come along in mine?”
My little brother and I would watch Scrooged every Christmas Eve. I still love A Christmas Story and How the Grinch Stole Christmas.
Oh man. I love the Grinch too. And I ESPECIALLY like your email address, erin!!!
All of the above, plus Scrooge with Albert Finney, and the 1938 version of A Christmas Carol with Reginald Owen, and a young June Lockhart!
The Bishop’s Wife is sitting right here beside me, on top of my CPU, because each and every day I have to watch the Mitchell Boys Choir scene. LOVE. IT.
Lisa – ohhhhh, I love that scene too!
I think my favorite is the magic ice-skating scene. I just so want to go to that outdoor frozen pond and skate around in my long woolen skirt and my fur muff and my tight-fitting girlie winter hat … and sip hot cocoa as my “beau” laces up my skates …
The whole thing is just a fantasy! Like something out of Currier and Ives.
It’s a great movie, but why doesn’t AMC show it more often? You’re lucky if you catch it during the holiday season.
I also like Holiday Inn, and wish it was on DVD. AMC always cuts the “Abraham” song during the Lincoln’s Birthday scene.
love, love “It’s a Wonderful Life.”
watched it last weekend, was bawling at the end. Why aren’t people in the real world as good as George Bailey (and as good as the people he helped, who in return have a change to help him?)
“A Christmas Story” is good too, not as ‘sweet’ but funny
I also love “Scrooged” but then I love Bill Murray.
Not movies, but I have a deep and abiding love for the goofy old Rankin-Bass “animagic” Christmas specials. (and there were a TON of them. I think they must have made one a year from the mid sixties until nearly 1980). Yes, they’re treacly and the songs are at best indifferent and at worst repellent, but there’s something about them that appeals to my inner child
I like all the above – How The Grinch… and Christmas Story especially (Dad was a longtime penpal of Jean Shepard).
And I know it’s not a movie, but the season just isn’t the same without A Charlie Brown Christmas.
Oddly, though, I’ve never seen It’s A Wonderful Life.
Maybe this’ll be the year.
I love IaWL so much, I own the ceramic houses. (I’d link to the pics, but alas, can’t.) Walgreens came out with them a couple of years ago, and I have half. I’m still missing Ma Bailey’s house, the Bailey’s house, City Hall, and the school.
I force everyone to watch in on Christmas Eve, and I too bawl like little child at the end.
I love It’s a Wonderful Life, A Christmas Story, White Christmas, the Grinch…and all the old Rankin-Bass shows…and A Charlie Brown Christmas…currently my son (who is 3 1/2) is OBSESSED with Rudolph…he would watch it on an endless loop day and night if he could…and he is memorizing it. He loves the songs – particularly the “Misfit” duet between Hermie and Rudolph (which I never saw growing up because they only showed “Fame and Fortune” but apparently the “We’re a Couple of Misfits” song was in the ORIGINAL Rudolph when it came out in 1964.)
Anyway – the song starts out as “we’re a couple of misfits, we’re a couple of mistfits, what’s the matter with misfits? That’s where we fit in.”
Alex’s version – sung with a rebellious, fist-swinging 3-year-old’s gusto – is “We’re all covered with misfits, we’re all covered with misfits, whatsamatta misfits? That’s so we can FIT in!”
So…right now…Rudolph is my favorite too.
The Muppet Christmas Carol might be the best rendition of all time. We watch it every year and laugh are buts off (Light the lamp, not the rat, not the rat)
A christmas story is also a must watch. “My father worked in profanity like other men worked in clay… – Oh fudge – getting his mouth washed out with soap – where did you hear that – the voice over – the phone call – I am laughing just thinking about it. It is so well done.
I have always liked Santa Clause Is coming to town with the burgher meister meister burgher. And of course the year w/o a santa clause with the heat meiser -
It’ll put your eye out. And I triple dog dare you
this is gonna sound crazy, but i’m gonna echo cousin tim aka pimp fu.
lethal weapon.
it is a christmas movie. a california action police buddy picture x-mas flick.
and the reason zefferelli wanted mel to play hamlet.
Bren – EXCELLENT call!!! You are so right!!
Die Hard. The character of Hans Gruber perfectly epitomizes the commercialization of the Christmas season.
Which, as an atheist, I have no good reason to object to.
I can never get into It’s a Wonderful Life ‘cus I know the evil banker is never going to be brought to justice for stealing the money from the Savings & Loan.
SNL did a great bit of an alternate ending to the movie. Uncle Billy remembers where he left the money and all the people that were at the Bailey’s house go out and lynch Potter
jfh
everytime i watch its a wonderful life (every year) I mentally insert that scene at the end. All the town beating the living crap out of potter makes it truly a wonderful life
JFH,
That’s AWESOME. I would LOVE to see that happen! I didn’t think the ending of that movie could *get* any happier! I was wrong.
A lot of mine have been named.
Love A Christmas Story, and Jean Shepherd’s since become one of my favorite short story writers….
Christmas Vacation is still a personal favorite, if only for the cousin Eddie “Shitter’s Full” scene.
March of the Wooden Soldiers was a favorite when I was a kid, and I still watch it every year.
Scrooged is another that we watch every year.
And The Nightmare Before Christmas.
don’t forget the gathering with Ed Asner. its good in that 70′s sort of way.
All the other titles mentioned here are fine by me, but allow me to throw in my two cents for The Santa Clause as well. I was pleasantly surprised–okay, durn near shocked–by how much heart there was in that movie.
When my wife and I watched it the first time, she asked me “If that were how it really worked, would you take the job?” My response: “In a hot minute.”
If one had sat me down after the first couple episodes of Home Improvement and said, “Ken, a decade or so from now you’re going to be a really big Tim Allen fan,” I would’ve replied, “The right honorable lady or gentleman is on crack.”
And I would have been wrong.
Lethal Weapon, Die Hardand Home Alone – a bit eclectic. I especially like the scene in Home Alone where he is in church with the old man and they have a lovely conversation.
Holiday Inn is always a good one and also where ‘White Christmas’ first appeared. I love “Scrooged” also although Bill Murray gets a little bit too billmurrayish at the end.
What I tend not to like are all the made for TV movies that come out every year as if they’re trying to become the next tradition. Although “A Boyfriend for Christmas” was cute. :)))
A Christmas Story by far is my favorite. I love the bully and his little minion. “Scott Farkus! What a rotten name! There he stood, between us and the alley. Scut Farkus staring out at us with his yellow eyes. He had yellow eyes! So, help me, God! Yellow eyes!” And of course that horrifying Santa scaring the crap out of those kids.
Tne Christmas special that they used to show, but stopped years ago that I LOVED was the California Raisins Claymation Christmas. It was very cool.
Michele and I used to sit next to the TV with my tape recorder, and at our favoite moments of Rudolph, I would hit play and record at the same time – ah, life before the VCR. Herbie the dentist is one of my favorites…the rebel elf.
Love scrooged…….wonderful life big time- white xmas for everybody except bing crosby…
musically- phil spector/darlene love….
Christmas in Connecticut (the real one, not the Dyan Cannon…um…unsucess) is out on DVD now. Well worth it, especially after Martha Stewart.
By the way, Holiday Inn is out on DVD as well.
Love her or hate her, Whitney Houston’s version of Joy to the World at the end of The Preacher’s Wife is what Christmas music should sound like. Denzel Washington’s Dudley is honest in a way Cary Grant’s could never be.
I too would like to voice my appreciation for SNL’s alternate ending to It’s a Wonderful Life. Mary Hatch threw Potter quite a beating, as I recall. It was really heartwarming… in a sick, sort of brutal way.
Anyone else see Nestor the Long-Eared Donkey? He was ridiculed mercilessly because of his ears but he had the last laugh since he was THE donkey who carried Mary and Joseph into Bethlehem. Damn thing makes me bawl every time.
Rankin-Bass was really big on calling out big ears and weird noses– Nestor, Rudolph, Baby New Year… Personally, I think someone who worked there had a real ax to grind.
Curly, you just reminded me of a Rankin-Bass favorite that is NEVER played anymore… Don’t think I’ve seen it in 30 years:
The Little Drummer Boy
I guess evil Arabs slaughtering the drummer boy’s parents, was either:
1) Too disturbing for young children
and
2) Very politically incorrect
-Meet Me in St. Louis(Judy singing Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas to Margaret O’ Brien is enough to make me cry like a 7 yr old girl everytime i see it)
-Bishop’s Wife..oh David Niven!
-Christmas in Connecticut-Barbra Stanwyck as Martha Stewart(but nicer, of course)..hooray
-White Christmas-…”Sisters,Sisters..never were there such devoted sisters..”…a drag queens wet dream!
Love Nester… Anyone remember “The House Without a Christmas Tree”??? The main character was “Addie Mills”. There was also a Thanksgiving special. They were wonderful.
Oh my God, the little drummer boy – that was absolutely my favorite one growing up – i am so sorry it doesn’t get play anymore.
I also loved The Night the Animals Talked.
Oh, and drlivipr: You DIDN’T just dis Cary Grant ON THIS BLOG? Oh no you didn’t.
Mitchell – Meet Me in St. Louis!! Of course! Another classic.
The Family Channel shows a lot of the old Rankin-Bass specials (plus some really dreadful new movies) during its annual 25 Days of Christmas. Here’s the schedule. Actually, I just looked and The Little Drummer Boy is on the list! You’re in luck, JFH!! Enjoy!
Christmas movies? Bah! humbug!
Except for “The Gift of the Magi” from “O.Henry’s Full House” – that always gets to me.
The Little Drummer Boy is a very dark show. I never realized it when I was little but when I showed it to my kids when they were little I found it very disturbing and they never wanted to see it again.
The Grinch and Charlie Brown are my favorite shows. As for movies~A Christmas Story is hilarious (TBS is showing it christmas eve back to back)
Its a Wonderful life-I have to watch that at least once. ( i remember the snl clip!! hahaha)
did anyone ever see the Mad TV version of Rudolph??
I love the Muppet Christmas Carol-I think i need to own that. I saw The Preacher’s wife and loved that movie..(oh Whitney…what have you done to yourself???)
the old Scrooge (musical) i love that AND the old b&w Christmas Carol. i love them both.
they’re almost as good as Mr Magoo’s CHristmas Carol.:)
I don’t like White Christmas mainly because I don’t like Bing.
Betsy- Herbie doesn’t like to make toys.
I agree with most of those already listed. About 15 of us, family and friends, get together every year to watch The Christmas Story, usually with a warm-up of A Charlie Brown Christmas. Some years we make a long night of it, and double feature with It’s A Wonderful Life or White Christmas(which my wife loves). As mere just mentioned Mr. Magoo’s Christmas Carol, I wanted to say that show was an annual event in my house. I looked forward to it every year. Last year, I found the video at our local library. My family thought it was OK, but they thought it was funny to hear me sing along with every song. I could remember every scene, line, commercial break, etc.–even after all these years. It brought back a certain feeling about my childhood, which is always nice.
Mr. Magoo’s Christmas Carol! Yes! I LOVED that when I was a kid, probably haven’t seen it in over 20 years!
I also didn’t mention (the original) version of “Miracle on 34th Street” but I actually tend to think of that as a THANKSGIVING movie because for years, it was shown right after the Macy’s parade. I have happy memories of being at my grandma’s, curled up in my Grandpa’s big chair, watching Edmund Gwenn (who was the PERFECT Santa) and Natalie Wood, as my mom and grandma made Thanksgiving dinner in the kitchen and my dad and his brothers sat and talked…
I noticed the “misfit” thing about the Rankin-Bass specials, too. I don’t know if it was a convenient plot-point that could be inserted into any particular group of characters to get the necessary conflict, or if one of the writers was ridiculed as a kid, or maybe he had a kid who was going through that at school. (I haven’t exactly kept up on the Rankin-Bass scholarly articles out there…)
Anyone else remember that live-action one with Johnnie Whittaker, I think it was? The Littlest Angel or something, maybe? It was from the late ’60s. Have to check IMDB….
I watched the Patrick Stewart version of A Christmas Carol last night, and WHAT THE HELL?!
I think I remember reading somewhere that it’s supposed to be the version closest to the book, and when I got my copy of the book out, I guess they’re right, but it totally creeped me out.
Especially Joel Grey as the first ghost. He looked like some sort of a cross between Edgar Winter and a gay Cavalier — AND HE GLOWED AND SCROOGE PUT HIM OUT WITH CANDLE SNUFFER.
See? Creepy.
Actually, I love the Patrick Stewart version…I guess I like it because it’s a little creepy.
Well, the book’s kinda creepy, too, so. . .
Actually, I didn’t mind it all that much, except for Joel Grey. Patrick Stewart seems a little young for the part — and I kept thinking “Picard!” which didn’t help — but the Crachits were perfect. Seeing Tiny Tim’s body in the bed? HEARTBREAKING.
Okay, this is a completely ridiculous memory – but I loved this TV Christmas special when I was a kid – and I have to believe someone else saw it.
Okay – member the movie Benji? This will be for people of my generation. (“I don’t have a generation.” “Then I think you should get one.”) Anyway – member Benji? The movie about the dog?
i don’t remember anything about that movie but I do remember LOVING it.
And there was a “Benji” Christmas special – with the same dog – and the same 2 kids who were in the movie – and they somehow end up going to a wacko North Pole – and Santa is played by RON MOODY (of Fagan fame) – and Ron Moody has an enormous (and, in my memory – terrific) song and dance number with all of the elves.
Please.
Does anyone else remember this?
I’m sure it was actually TERRIBLE but I loved it.
Ken, I remember that movie!!! Johnny Whitaker fell off a cliff or something and died and went to heaven. I saw it as a rerun back in the 80s because I remember Pearl the Housekeeper from the later seasons of Diff’rent Strokes was in the angel chorus or whatever. I realize her sinuses have nothing to do with Christmas but I must point out that she is very nasally. Deviated septum, much?
Sheila,
At first I thought you must have had a very bad night with some Jagermeister but:
Benji’s Very Own Christmas Story
(Okay, I admit it I saw it too…)
I remember Benji, but not that movie. Was it made for TV?
JFH is the smart.
Lisa – oh yeah. It was TOTAL TV movie. It came out the year after Benji came out – you know, riding the wave of the success of that movie …
And somehow – it was a musical – and Ron Moody had a huge production number.
hahahahaha
Curly – as I remember Johnny kind of leaped off that cliff and into heaven (at least that’s what I thought when I first saw it as a kid)
JFH -
You are unbelieavble. Truly. You saw it too?? hahahaha
I remember thinking it was so good that I couldn’t wait for it to be re-run the next year – thinking, stupidly, in my 9 year old psyche – that Benji would ALWAYS be popular. That generations to come would love Benji as I did. That my children’s children would watch the Benji Christmas Story with as much adoration as I did.
Oh – and of course – the TV special was never played again because Benji descended into the dim mists of history almost immediately.
JFH, you’re probably right about the jumping. My account is not entirely accurate since I was so fixated on Pearl’s nose…
Well, Sheila you had an excuse as you were nine. I was 16, when I saw the special! I could blame it on the viewing habits of my little brother but the truth is I wanted to see “Fagan” again in something…
“In this world one thing counts,
in the banks large amounts,
charity’s fine, but I’ve got mine,
You’ve got to pick a pocket or two”
(uh, that’s from memory so one of those lines might be wrong)
JFH – well, look, you met Mark Lester. I totally understand.
Take a tip from Bill Sikes
He can whip what he likes.
I recall, he started small
He had to pick-a-pocket or two!!
It’s a Wonderful Life makes me cry and happy to be alive and all of that, and it’s probably my favorite Christmas movie, but the movie that really gets me in the spirit and want to go out and sing Christmas carols is Gremlins.