Christmas Special Countdown (Full Results up)

[King Boo]

I adore Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas. Such a sweet movie.

[Widow's Peak]

#17 & #18 later tonight. Here are your clues:

* This movie has a current thread on Off-Topic devoted to it.
* The third episode of this long-running series to make the countdown.

[Brandon Walsh is Insane.]

Jingle All the Way? It had TWO threads devoted to it yesterday... heh.

And the second one could be the Simpsons.

I hope it's the Simpsons; if my vote for a Beverly Hills 90210 Christmas meant something, then my other votes must have as well.

[Matt]

I was hoping Emmit Otter would finish higher but still a pretty good showing.

[Widow's Peak]

Dec 16, 2008 18:01:37 GMT -5 Brandon Walsh is Insane. said:

And the second one could be the Simpsons.

I hope it's the Simpsons; if my vote for a Beverly Hills 90210 Christmas meant something, then my other votes must have as well.

There are two long running tv series with three episodes in this countdown. This is the other one:


18. South Park: Woodland Critter Christmas


www.southparkstudios.com/guide/814

TV.com Plot Summary: It's Christmas in South Park once again. This year Stan, the boy with the red poof-ball hat, finds himself helping out a group of adorable critters that live in the forest. They ask him to help protect their pregnant friend, who will give birth to their Lord's son. Everything is going well until Stan learns who these critters worship.




17. Jingle All the Way



IMDB Plot Summary: Howard Langston (Arnold Schwarzenegger) is often busy at his job, and has a hard time finding time for his wife, Liz (Rita Wilson) and his young son, Jamie (Jake Lloyd)- especially when compared to next door superdad divorcé, Ted Maltin (Phil Hartman). After breaking his word again by missing Jamie's karate match, Howard resolves to redeem himself and his marriage by fulfilling Jamie's ultimate Christmas wish, a Turbo-Man action figure.

Unbeknown to Howard, Turbo-Man toys are the must-have gifts of the season, and stocks of Turbo-Man toys are quickly drying up all over the country. Desperate not to disappoint his family again, Howard embarks on an epic city-wide quest to find the toy everyone's looking for. Along the way, Howard encounters Myron Larabee (Sinbad), a postal worker dad with a rival ambition.

The search climaxes with both dads masquerading as live action stuntmen in a department store parade. Posed as the "real" Turbo-Man, Howard uses the opportunity to present a coveted Turbo-Man doll to his son in the crowd. But before he can recognize his dad, Jaime is chased around the parade by Myron (dressed as Turbo-Man's enemy, Dementor) and ultimately saved by Turbo-Man, who reveals himself as his father.

Touched by Myron's undying dedication to his own son, Jamie relinquishes the doll to him and confesses that his dad is the only superhero he needs. In the final scene, Howard happily opens presents with Jamie until he realizes that he forgot to get Liz a gift.

[Widow's Peak]

#16 and #15 up later tonight. Here are your clues:

* Enjoy dried fruit, waffles and a Christmas concert from Quasimodo.

* "Whoever invented Christmas Trees should be dragged out into the street and shot."

[Matt]

The second one is Garfield, don't know the first one.

[Widow's Peak]

Hey, remember The California Raisins? Me neither, but many of you did remember the fantastic Christmas special they guest starred in. This and a surprisingly sweet turn from everyone's favorite gluttonous, sarcastic tabby make up tonight's entry.


16. Will Vinton's A Claymation Christmas Celebration



Wikipedia Plot Summary: Will Vinton's A Claymation Christmas Celebration is a 1987 CBS Christmas television special featuring stop motion clay animation, in this case under the Vinton trademark Claymation.

In this television special, anthropomorphic dinosaur hosts Rex and Herb introduce several segments featuring clay animation and Christmas music.

Throughout the program, Rex attempts to clarify the true pronunciation and meaning of the term "wassail," his own definition being challenged by several other characters, including Herb, his co-host. As the program progresses, Rex encounters many strange interpretations of the word; for instance, a troop of dogs is seen singing "Here We Come a Waffling," offering delicious waffles to Herb, who is enchanted on account of his gluttony. As Herb happily accepts several distortions of the Christmas carol, Rex finds himself dismayed, thoroughly convinced that the word is "wassail." However, at the end of the program, a large group of townsfolk arrives on the scene, singing a version of the carol that agrees with Rex's theories. Rex is overjoyed; in celebration, the entire cast of the television special dances and sings to "Here We Come a Wassailing," giving the program a festive ending as it closes with "We Wish You a Merry Christmas."
This special was released on the Henstooth Video DVD Will Vinton's Claymation Christmas Plus Halloween & Easter Celebrations in 2003.

Musical Segments:

• "We Three Kings" sung by the Three Wise Men and their beboping camels
  
• "Carol of the Bells" performed by anthropomorphic church bells and directed by Maestro Quasimodo
  
• "O Christmas Tree" and various scenes taking place inside of
• Christmas ornaments
  
• "Angels We Have Heard On High" and ice dancing walruses
  
• "Joy to the World" and various Christmas scenes
  
• "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" sung by the California Raisins (with a pastiche of The Temptations' version of the song)
  
• "Here We Come A-Wassailing" sung by the entire Claymation cast
  
  
  

15. A Garfield Christmas




Wikipedia Plot Summary: On Christmas Eve, Garfield, Jon, and Odie travel to the countryside to celebrate Christmas with Jon's farm family. Making their animated debuts are the sweet and always cooking Mom, hard working farmer Dad, mischievous younger brother Doc Boy, and the tough as nails Grandma. As we get to know the wacky members of Jon's family, Odie is busy working on something secretive. Grandma and Garfield eventually grow a special bond. That night Garfield finds out about Odie's suspicious activity and follows him into the barn. While there he stumbles upon some old letters. The next morning is Christmas and just when it seems like all the presents have been opened, Garfield gives Grandma the letters he found in the barn. These letters were love notes written to Grandma by her late husband from when they first met and courted. Garfield finds out that Odie had been busy making Garfield the ultimate Christmas gift: a homemade back scratcher. This is a rare glimpse at Garfield's other side, as he learns one of the true meanings of Christmas.

Songs in A Garfield Christmas:

• "Gimme, Gimme, Gimme, Gimme" performed by Lou Rawls
  
• "Can't Wait Till Christmas" performed by Thom Huge and Lorenzo Music
  
• "O Christmas Tree" performed by Pat Carroll
  
• "Christmas in Your Heart" performed by ensemble and Desirée Goyette
  
• "You Can Never Find an Elf When You Need One" performed by Lou Rawls and Desirée Goyette
  
• "A Good Old-Fashioned Christmas" (ending song) performed by ensemble
  
  
  
  

[Widow's Peak]

Inching closer to the top ten with #14 and #13 tonight. Here are your clues:

* The birdhouse is an ornament, I swear. And the gunpowder smell just adds to the authenticity...

* Really, what kid wouldn't want a severed shrunken head for Christmas?

[Drillbit Taylor]

I know one of those is the Simpsons.

[Widow's Peak]

The first Christmas episode (actually, first episode period) of a beloved animated series and modern classic that has spawned thousands of Hot Topic items makes up tonight's entry:

14. The Simpsons: Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire



www.hulu.com/watch/29528/the-simpsons-santas-of-many-lands

www.hulu.com/watch/29526/the-simpsons-santa-training

www.hulu.com/watch/29530/the-simpsons-mall-santa

www.hulu.com/watch/29531/the-simpsons-santas-little-helper


Wikipedia Plot Summary: Homer, Marge, and Maggie attend Bart and Lisa's Christmas pageant at Springfield Elementary School. At home, Marge asks the children what they want for Christmas and Bart asks for a tattoo. When Marge, Bart, and Lisa go Christmas shopping the next day, Bart sneaks away and starts getting a tattoo reading "Mother". Discovering this, Marge interrupts the process at "Moth" and immediately takes him to a laser removal clinic and spends the family's Christmas money getting Bart's tattoo removed. Meanwhile, at the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant, Homer learns that he will not be getting a Christmas bonus.

When Homer returns home and hears about the loss of the Christmas money, he decides not to tell Marge his bad news. Instead, he does the shopping himself, buying cheap presents from a dollar store. At Moe's Tavern, Homer meets Barney dressed in a Santa outfit. On Barney's advice, he secretly takes a job as a mall Santa. Bart discovers his secret after he rips off his fake beard on a dare by his friend Milhouse, but agrees not to tell the rest of the family.

Homer receives his paycheck and is dismayed to see it is only for $13. Barney, who has received a check for the same amount, suggests betting it at the dog track. With encouragement from Bart, Homer decides to gamble his paycheck and takes Bart with him to the dog track. Although Barney recommended they bet on a dog named Whirlwind, Homer decides to bet on a last-second entrant named Santa's Little Helper, believing it to be a sign. Santa's Little Helper, however, comes in dead last (supposedly for the 25th time) and his owner abandons him. The dog follows Homer and Bart, who decide to keep him. When they return home, Homer is going to tell his family about his misfortune, but they think he brought the dog as a gift and everyone has a merry Christmas. In the ending credits, the family sings Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, but Bart adds words, so Homer strangles him.




13. Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas




Wikipedia Plot Summary: "Halloween Town" is a dream world filled with citizens such as deformed monsters, ghosts, ghouls, goblins, vampires, werewolves, and witches. Jack Skellington ("The Pumpkin King") leads them in a frightful celebration every Halloween, but he has grown tired of the same routine year after year. Wandering in the forest outside the town center, he accidentally opens a portal to "Christmas Town". Impressed by the feeling and style of Christmas, Jack presents his findings and his (somewhat limited) understanding of the holiday to the Halloween Town residents. They fail to grasp his meaning and compare everything he says to their idea of Halloween. He reluctantly decides to play along and announces that they will take over Christmas.

Jack's obsession with Christmas leads him to usurp the role of Santa Claus. Every resident is assigned a task, while Sally, a rag doll woman who is created by the town's mad scientist, begins to feel a romantic attraction towards Jack. However, she alone fears that his plans will become disastrous. Jack assigns Lock, Shock, and Barrel, a trio of mischievous children, to abduct Santa and bring him back to Halloween Town. Against Jack's wishes and largely for their amusement, the trio delivers Santa to Oogie Boogie, a gambling-addict bogeyman who plots to play a game with Santa's life as the stake.

Christmas Eve arrives and Sally attempts to stop Jack, but he embarks into the sky on a coffin-like sleigh pulled by skeletal reindeer, guided by the glowing nose of his ghost dog Zero. He begins to deliver presents to children around the world, but the gifts (shrunken heads, Christmas tree-eating snakes, etc.) only terrify the recipients. Jack is believed to be an imposter attempting to imitate Santa, and the military goes on alert to blast him out of the sky. The sleigh is shot down and he is presumed dead by Halloween Town's citizens, but in fact he has survived the crash. Although he is depressed by the failure of his plan, he quickly regains his old spirit, having come up with new ideas for next Halloween. He then rushes back home to rescue Santa and put things right.

Meanwhile, Sally attempts to free Santa but is captured by Oogie. Jack slips into the lair and frees them, then confronts Oogie and unravels his outer covering to spill out all the bugs that live inside him. With Oogie gone, Santa reprimands Jack before setting off to deliver the right presents to the world's children. He makes snow fall over Halloween Town to show that there are no hard feelings between himself and Jack; the townspeople are confused by the snow at first, but soon begin to play happily in it. Jack reveals that he is attracted to Sally just as she is to him, and they kiss under the full moon in the cemetery.

[Lupin the Third]

I'm kinda disappointed in you people that A Garfield Christmas isn't higher on the list.

Shame on you ALL!

*shakes fist*

[Deleted]

Dec 18, 2008 23:27:18 GMT -5 Lupin the Third said:

I'm kinda disappointed in you people that A Garfield Christmas isn't higher on the list.

Shame on you ALL!

*shakes fist*

My thoughts exactly

[Widow's Peak]

There's nothing else to do tonight except shovel snow, so I'll have #12 and #11 up after Smackdown. Here are your clues:

* Watch out for that last...*crash*...step.

* The best way to travel to Chicago is in the back of a Budget rental truck. It even comes with its own live musical entertainment.

[Lupin the Third]

Dec 19, 2008 16:33:33 GMT -5 Widow's Peak said:

There's nothing else to do tonight except shovel snow, so I'll have #12 and #11 up after Smackdown. Here are your clues:

* Watch out for that last...*crash*...step.

* The best way to travel to Chicago is in the back of a Budget rental truck. It even comes with its own live musical entertainment.

Mickey's Christmas Carol and Home Alone

[Widow's Peak]

Dec 19, 2008 17:24:26 GMT -5 Lupin the Third said:

Dec 19, 2008 16:33:33 GMT -5 Widow's Peak said:

There's nothing else to do tonight except shovel snow, so I'll have #12 and #11 up after Smackdown. Here are your clues:

* Watch out for that last...*crash*...step.

* The best way to travel to Chicago is in the back of a Budget rental truck. It even comes with its own live musical entertainment.

Mickey's Christmas Carol and Home Alone

I need to come up with harder clues.


12. Mickey's Christmas Carol (1983)



Wikipedia Plot Summary: While all of Victorian England is in the merry spirit of Christmas, along with collecting for the poor, all on the mind of Ebenezer Scrooge (Scrooge McDuck, voiced for the first time by Alan Young) is all his money he makes in the town counting house and making more of it for himself (apparently, Scrooge charges people 80% interest, compounded daily). While Scrooge's selfish and greedy thoughts cascade in his head, Bob Cratchit (Mickey Mouse, voiced for the first time by Wayne Allwine) continues to work long and hard for him, though he is overworked and underpaid (a mere two shillings and a hay penny a day), and collectors Ratty and Mole (from the "Wind in the Willows" segment of The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad), along with other beggars on the streets, are kindly asking of a simple donation to the poor. Scrooge insists however, that he should not make a donation as he tries to convince them that if he does, the poor won't be poor anymore and they will be out of work.

Even his cheery nephew Fred (Donald Duck, voiced for the final time by Clarence Nash, making Donald the only character in the film voiced by his original actor) invites him for a wonderful Christmas dinner (which includes plump goose with chestnut dressing, candied fruits, and lemon sauce), but Scrooge rejects the invitation. However, the night before Christmas, the ghost of Jacob Marley (Goofy), Scrooge's once-greedy-and-cruel counting house partner, enters Scrooge's home and warns him that if his greedy and selfish behavior continues, he will be forced to carry heavy chains for all eternity when he dies, just as has happened to Jacob himself as punishment for the way he treated people when he was alive (In Scrooge's case they would be even heavier than Marley's chains!).

Horror-stricken, Scrooge pleads him for assistance, and he learns from the ghost that three spirits would visit him later that night and he must do everything they say, or his chains would be heavier than Jacob's. At the end, as Marley is still Goofy, he prevents himself from tripping on Scrooge's cane, which is on the floor, but falls down the stairs after going on a busted step.

That night, while Scrooge is asleep, the Ghost of Christmas Past (Jiminy Cricket) arrives in Scrooge's bedroom and takes him back in time to his early adult years, when he enjoyed Christmas, had many friends and a girlfriend named Isabelle (Daisy Duck). However, after ten years, Scrooge had become more caring towards his money than Isabelle. When she asks if he was still willing to marry her after waiting for many years in a honeymoon cottage, Scrooge's greed breaks her heart and her relationship with him with, "Your last payment on the honeymoon cottage was an hour late! I'm foreclosing the mortgage!" Shortly after, Jiminy Cricket takes Scrooge home, leaving him feeling dreadful for his actions after saying "Remember, Scrooge, you fashioned these memories yourself".

Not long after the first visit, the Ghost of Christmas Present (Willie the Giant) pulls Scrooge in his hand. He arrives with wonderful things to eat, like Turkey, Mince Pies, and Suckling Pigs. Willie visits scrooge to show him all the misery Scrooge has caused. That is, Scrooge sees that Bob and his family are living in poverty, and that Bob's young son, Tiny Tim, is ill and that if this hapless life of the Cratchit family does not change, Tiny Tim will not live to see another Christmas. However, just when Scrooge is desperate to know the truth, the Ghost of Christmas Present leaves him alone, and Cratchit's house vanishes.

Within seconds, however, the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come (Black Pete) appears and takes Scrooge to a cemetery, revealing that Tiny Tim has died. Scrooge then realizes he can no longer treat others around him with a heartless disposition. Along with Tim's death, the ghost also reveals Scrooge's grave, which has just been dug and is soon to be filled. When it seems Scrooge is already about to die by being thrown in his soon-to-be-grave (at that moment the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come reveals himself to the viewers as Pete), he pleads for his life, and promises he will change his ways while hanging on the rope that is on the edge of the grave and looking down into his soon-to-be-coffin that looks like the gateway to Hell. Then as the rope snapped, he apparently falls into the coffin.

The next thing he knows, he's back in his house, opens the windows and sees that it is Christmas morning, believing the spirits have given him another chance. He hugs a pigeon that was at the window, gets dressed (with his pajamas underneath) and cheerfully goes about town generously donating money to the collectors for the poor (100 gold pieces to be exact after twice thinking what he just donated was not enough), and greeting all with a friendly disposition, as well as telling Fred that he will go to his Christmas Dinner after all. At first, when he visits the Cratchits, he tries to psych them out that he hadn't changed at all, but then offers toys for Bob's children, and gives Bob a raise and a promotion in the counting house. The entire Cratchit family is overjoyed, "God bless us, everyone!" (the famous quote from Tiny Tim), including Scrooge. At that rate, Scrooge becomes Tiny Tim's second father and treats him well.

11. Home Alone



IMDB Plot Summary: It is Christmas Time and the McAllister family is preparing for a vacation in Paris, France. But, the youngest in the family named Kevin got into a scuffle with his older brother Buzz and was sent to his room, which is on the third floor of his house. Then, the next morning, while the rest of the family was in a rush to make it to the airport on time, they completely forgot about Kevin who now has the house all to himself. Being home alone was fun for Kevin, having a pizza all to himself, jumping on his parents' bed and making a mess. Then, Kevin discovers about 2 burglars, Harry and Marv about to rob his house on Christmas Eve. Kevin acts quickly by wiring his own house with makeshift booby traps to stop the burglars and to bring them to justice.



We're down to the top ten starting tomorrow night.

[Brandon Walsh is Insane.]

Sweet. This is going to be interesting.

[Lupin the Third]

God, I loved Mickey's Christmas Carol. Such a good telling of the classic story.

[tigermaskxxxvii]

Dec 6, 2008 21:36:48 GMT -5 Widow's Peak said:

Tonight we have the only Hanukkah themed special in the countdown and an all time classic:











39. The Hebrew Hammer


(LANGUAGE WARNING)

Wikipedia Plot Summary: The Hebrew Hammer is a film that was released in 2003. It stars Adam Goldberg, Judy Greer, Andy Dick, Mario Van Peebles, and Peter Coyote. The plot concerns a Jewish superhero known as The Hebrew Hammer who must save Hanukkah from the evil son of Santa Claus who wants to destroy Hanukkah and make everyone celebrate Christmas. The film parodies blaxploitation films; and features Melvin Van Peebles in a cameo as "Sweetback". Director Jonathan Kesselman has jokingly dubbed it the first "Jewsploitation", or the first Jewish exploitation film ever.

The film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, and appeared at several other film festivals, Jewish and otherwise, during 2003. It had a limited theatrical run in late 2003, but the majority of its viewings came from a series of showings on Comedy Central in December of that year. This version of the movie was edited for television: all profanities were bleeped, and some scenes were cut. The DVD, released on November 16, 2004, contains the uncut version, which is rated R.









38. The Year without a Santa Claus


Wikipedia Plot Summary: The show is set in the 1920s and is narrated by Shirley Booth (as Mrs. Claus). Santa Claus (voiced by Mickey Rooney, as he did in the previous Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town, of which this special is a semi-sequel) wakes up with a cold and is told by his doctor that he should make some changes to his routine on Christmas.

He decides to take a holiday, and it becomes up to the elves, Jingle and Jangle, to search the world, finding people who still believe in Santa Claus. The elves, however, run into trouble along the way, when they get lost in South Town, a small town in the Southern United States and the baby reindeer Vixen is mistaken for a dog and sent to the pound, where she sickens in the heat. The incredulous Mayor of South Town agrees to free the reindeer if Jingle and Jangle prove they are Santa's magical elves by making it snow in South Town on Christmas Day.

Figuring into the storyline are two of the most well-remembered Rankin/Bass characters, Heat Miser (George S. Irving) and his stepbrother Snow Miser (Dick Shawn). Kind Mrs. Claus comes to ask both of them to work out a compromise to permit a Christmas snow in South Town, Heat Miser's territory; he agrees only if Snow Miser will surrender the North Pole to his control. When they refuse to cooperate, Mrs. Claus goes to their mother, Mother Nature, who forces them to compromise.

Meanwhile, Santa dresses in "civilian" clothes in order to find and rescue Vixen and ends up finding that some people still believe in him and in the spirit of Christmas, especially when the world's children decide they will make him presents if he plans on taking a holiday. The children's decision sets off headlines around the world.
One little girl, however, is sad to miss Santa on Christmas Eve, and she writes that she'll have a "Blue Christmas." Touched by all the evidence he has seen of caring and generosity, Santa decides to pack the sleigh and make his Christmas Eve journey after all, including a public stop in a snowy South Town.

The special premiered in 1974 on ABC, and still airs on the ABC Family cable network. Warner Bros. Television is the show's current distributor, through their ownership of the post-1974 Rankin/Bass TV library.

"you want I should talk dirty to you?" The Hammer's "dirty talk" has got to be the best part of the film. That and "attention K-Mart shoppers, there are Jews in aisle 12" is a classic line that my friend and I constantly quote when discussing this film. Also I mark for the Kwanzaa Liberation Front ;D

[Widow's Peak]

#9 and #10 are up later tonight. Your clues:

* An Upstate New York town has a yearly festival dedicated to this movie. (*Its not Scrooge*)

* Is it actually possible to write something a hundred billion times without your hand falling off?