It’s the home stretch before Christmas, so we had to make this Friday a Christmas Flick Friday.
But why would we stop there when we can do a full marathon of favorite Christmas movies leading up to the big day itself?
And what better way to start it than with those stop-motion classics, the Rankin/Bass holiday specials.
I know, I know, it doesn’t seem fair to make them all share a day. With classics like Santa Claus is Coming to Town, and Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, and The Year Without a Santa Claus, and the list goes on and on, they could easily have had their own Christmas countdown (and then some).
If you have never seen one of these movies you have my pity and my strong recommendation that you remedy that problem immediately.
These movies contain traditional holiday messages and valuable life lessons. For example:
- Adults don’t believe in Santa Claus period (unless you’re the father of the protagonist)
- Magic only works if you’re pre-nice list conversion (Winter Warlock) or Santa Claus.
- Mother Nature can fix anything, including sibling rivalries.
Of course they don’t answer all of the questions, for instance:
- Why did The Little Drummer Boy need a sequel?
- Why did Mrs. Claus give up her totalitarian teaching position ( I don’t recall any other school teachers in Sombertown) for a man?
- Why was Jack Frost not even a little bit sad about having to sacrifice his mortal form and perhaps true love in order to save the woman he loved?
Ah well, sometimes difficult choices must be made, a lesson that these classics have taught us, even if certain underlying plot points are a little dated.
Love them or hate them, but you can’t deny these gems have become a permanent part of the holiday season.
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….bi-daily smiles…
…it’s not exclusively Christmas, but it’s surprisingly poignant:
