Favorite Christmas Episodes (1 Viewer)

[DaveHof]

Love reading about everyone else's favorites. My annual must-view list includes:
The Brady Bunch - The Voice of Christmas
Bewitched - A Vision of Sugar Plums
The Donna Reed Show - A Very Merry Christmas
Petticoat Junction - Cannonball Christmas
Wings - The Customer is Usually Right
The Mary Tyler Moore Show - Christmas and the Hard Luck Kid
The Avengers - Too Many Christmas Trees
...and the Monkees Christmas show, but mainly just to enjoy their version of 'Riu Chiu'
Last season's 'Glee' Christmas show also now looks to be an annual tradition

 

[Mark Collins]

I wish we could get from the Wonderful World Of Disney the From All Of Us To All Of You which they aired every Christmas for many years.
I have the song that begins the episode and of course much of the footage which is spread out on 3 VHS and or 2 DVD's.
I also forgot to mention The Flintstone's Christmas with Alan Reed not the others that came later.
I also watch the 70s drama Family Christmas episode.
I have not seen the Lost In Space Christmas episode just bits of it. Will returns to earth in season 1 and there is a Christmas Tree in the Carson House from Peyton Place.
Dark Shadows did refer to Christmas in 1969 when Julia asks Carolyn if she has started her Christmas shopping early.

 

[Regulus]

I wish we could get from the Wonderful World Of Disney the From All Of Us To All Of You which they aired every Christmas for many years.

I wish they had the entire series on DVD!

 

[Jeff Willis]

Three episodes I watch yearly
Dick Van Dyke Show - Alan Brady Presents
Moonlighting - Twas The Episode Before Christmas
Moonlighting - Its A Wonderful Job
I did enjoy (although I haven't seen it in many years) the Christmas episode of Paradise (or Guns of Paradise - not sure of the title when this specific episode aired). It was basically a retelling of Three Godfathers, but very well done.
Of course, the Christmas specials - Charlie Brown, Rudolph, Grinch, Santa Claus - get watched every year too.
David

for the additional info. I have Moonlighting S1-2 set and didn't realize there's a Christmas episode in S2.
22 days until

 

[Gary OS]

Quote:

/t/295423/favorite-christmas-episodes/60#post_3875859
22 days until

Yep. Time sneaks up on us quickly!


Gary "there are so many episodes to choose from" O.

 

[mattCR]

I'll throw out one more:

[SIZE= 12px]In Excelsis Deo[/SIZE], Episode 10 of the West Wing's first season, as Toby gets a proper burial for a Korean War Vet who has become homeless.

 

[Gary OS]

Last night I watched the Christmas episodes from McHale's Navy, Lois & Clark (S4 one), Captain Gallant, and Fury. I really love the last one. It's a perennial favorite in my household.


Gary "22 days and counting" O.

 

[Gary OS]

Okay, I found the Paradise Christmas episode. It was entitled "The Promise" and it was from Season One. It's available on YouTube. I'll watch it sometime this week.


Gary "thanks for mentioning that one, David!" O.

 

[Jeff Willis]

Last night I watched the Christmas episodes from McHale's Navy, Lois & Clark (S4 one), Captain Gallant, and Fury.  I really love the last one.  It's a perennial favorite in my household.
Gary "22 days and counting" O.

Good eps, there. I have 2 of those in my collection, Lois & Clark and Fury.
Thanks to the posters here for 2 more additions, Family and Flintstones, both sets in my collection.
Thanks to you I have a working Christmas episode list added to my DVD file, 39 so far.

 

[Jack P]

I'm starting the Christmas episode load by easing my way in with some episodes from the 50s. Some of them new to DVD for me.
Medic S1-"Red Christmas". Series creator James Moser had written the Dragnet episode "22 Rifle For Christmas" which had its tragic story taking place on Christmas, and this one serves the same purpose, only this time the target is the senseless overcelebration of office Christmas parties that in this case result in a tragic car accident.
Loretta Young Show S1-"The Night Dad Came Home." The story's nice, the problem is the kid actor who dominates the proceedings is terrible.
Loretta Young Show S3-"Christmas Stopover". A superior story with Loretta as a lonely railroad coffee shop waitress on Christmas Day.
Dragnet 50s-The original B/W version of "The Big Little Jesus" which is on one of the PD sets. Nice to see the original, but the 60s remake is superior IMO. I'll be saving that for later!

 

[Gary OS]

Tonight I watched Christmas episodes from Amos & Andy, Bachelor Father, and the Gray Ghost. All three are memorable and enjoyable.


Gary "3 weeks from tonight is Christmas Eve" O.

 

[Gary OS]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jack P /t/295423/favorite-christmas-episodes/60#post_3876244
I'm starting the Christmas episode load by easing my way in with some episodes from the 50s. Some of them new to DVD for me.
Medic S1-"Red Christmas". Series creator James Moser had written the Dragnet episode "22 Rifle For Christmas" which had its tragic story taking place on Christmas, and this one serves the same purpose, only this time the target is the senseless overcelebration of office Christmas parties that in this case result in a tragic car accident.
Loretta Young Show S1-"The Night Dad Came Home." The story's nice, the problem is the kid actor who dominates the proceedings is terrible.
Loretta Young Show S3-"Christmas Stopover". A superior story with Loretta as a lonely railroad coffee shop waitress on Christmas Day.
Dragnet 50s-The original B/W version of "The Big Little Jesus" which is on one of the PD sets. Nice to see the original, but the 60s remake is superior IMO. I'll be saving that for later!

Even though it wasn't typical holiday fare, I liked the Medic episode, "Red Christmas." Can't say the same for that early Dragnet episode dealing with the rifle. I agree that the 60's version of "The Big Little Jesus" is superior to the 50's one. And I like both of the Loretta Young Show episodes you listed, as well as the S4 one, "Three and Two, Please."


Gary "forgot to mention I watched The Lone Ranger Christmas episode tonight as well" O.

 

[Jack P]

And the progression of Christmas episodes viewed today continues!
20th Century Fox Hour S1-"The Miracle On 34th Street". This is a bonus item in the Miracle On 34th Street DVD set from the 1955-57 series when Fox decided to produce low budget one hour versions of their recent movies. A kind of TV version of the Lux Radio Theater if you will. Thomas Mitchell, Teresa Wright and Macdonald Carey take the roles originally played by Edmund Gwenn, Maureen O'Hara and John Payne, and it's more interesting as a curio of the era. I'd note that after watching this, I then listened to the 1947 Lux Radio version that had the film's cast and even at the same truncated length, it's a superior production than this 50s TV version.
Alfred Hitchcock Presents S1-"Santa Claus And The Tenth Avenue Kid"
The Twilight Zone S2-"Night Of The Meek"
Gunsmoke S1-"Magnus". This was a pefect transition because the end of the TZ episode features a promo card for "Gunsmoke" with James Arness telling us it's a short hop from the Twilight Zone to Dodge City.
Have Gun Will Travel S1-"The Hanging Cross."

 

[NY2LA]

From the 70s, the Odd Couple episode where Oscar is too grouchy to play Scrooge in Felix's Christmas play for kids. The poker game is interrupted by a singing telegram. "Season's Greetings, Oscar boy, my alimony's due. If you don't pay up right away, I'll get the cops on you. And you'll spend Christmas in the clink, with other bums like you... - your ex-wife, Blanche." Oscar gets so mad he kicks out Felix, then has a dream where he is visited by Felix howling "Ebeneezer Madisooooon!" Oscar: "Where's Marley?" Felix: "they couldn't get Marley, this is his busy time of the year." The dream plays out on a more or less bare stage with a white cyclorama. Commentary from Producer/Director Garry Marshall: "we didn't have much of a budget, this is our only special effect: Fog!" Fun moment: big Al Molinaro as Murray the cop doing Tiny Tim. I have to watch this every Christmas eve.

 

[Gary OS]

This afternoon I watched two Beverly Hillbillies episodes ("Home for Christmas" & "Christmas at the Clampetts") along with the first season Petticoat Junction holiday outing, "Cannonball Christmas." Last night I saw the Davey & Goliath Christmas episode. Great stuff!


Gary "21 days and counting" O.

 

[Jack P]

Late last night, my final episode of the day was Voyage To The Bottom of The Sea S1-"Long Live The King" and thanks to Gary, I checked the remaining Loretta Young Show Christmas episode, "Three And Two Please" which I hadn't realized was in the set.
Going to probably work in either another Christmas movie or one of my old personally recorded Christmas specials. I still have my 1985 off-air recording of "Charlie Brown Christmas" simply because watching it isn't complete without the classic "CBS Special Presentation" opening (with its theme culled from the "Hawaii Five-O" soundtrack of all places!).

 

[Jeffery_H]

I have a few more I don't think has been listed, but are good:
MASH - "Dear Dad"
MASH - "Death takes a Holiday"
Perfect Strangers - "A Christmas Story"
Quite good and have a nice message.

 

[Jack P]

Two more watched this evening.
Wagon Train S3-"The St. Nicholas Story."
Steve Canyon-"The Gift." I have to confess, this episode is a bit of a disappointment as far as Christmas episodes go, because the episode seemed to be building itself up for a moment when we'd hear the Christmas story shared to the orphan girl, but instead it was a bit about the "gift of life" that was about as unconnected to the spirit of Christmas as you could get. I was prepared for it this time, as opposed to last year which was the first time I saw it, but even so, it comes off weak compared to the other Christmas episodes of the 50s I've been going through. It's not that I'm expecting a Nativity story moment in every episode I watch, but the dynamics of the plot seemed to be gearing toward one and then when it didn't come it left me feeling a bit empty.

 

[nostalgic TV guy]

Even "Highway Patrol" has a Christmas episode in Season 1. It's on the last disc of the 10-disc first season set, simply titled "Christmas Story". It's not a happy go lucky episode (plot has to do with a young married couple seperating on December 23, with the wife taking the 6-year old daughter and fleeing while the husband is at work. The two stop at a motel for the night on the way to one of her relatives and the little girl runs off in the early morning hours to find a Santa to give her letter to Santa to. She finds a Santa standing in front of a "salvation mission" ringing a bell, collecting donations. The ending is happy, everybody is reunited.
No, Broderick Crawford does not appear in a Santa suit and beard.
There's a close up shot of one of those old-fashioned "single date" calendars on the wall that is marked "To-Day is", with a tear off paper pad below it with the month and day on each sheet. The close-up shot shows just the calendar and Broderick Crawford's hand reaching up to tear off a sheet, revealing the date as December 24.

 

[Gary OS]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jack P /t/295423/favorite-christmas-episodes/60#post_3876493
Steve Canyon-"The Gift." I have to confess, this episode is a bit of a disappointment as far as Christmas episodes go, because the episode seemed to be building itself up for a moment when we'd hear the Christmas story shared to the orphan girl, but instead it was a bit about the "gift of life" that was about as unconnected to the spirit of Christmas as you could get. I was prepared for it this time, as opposed to last year which was the first time I saw it, but even so, it comes off weak compared to the other Christmas episodes of the 50s I've been going through. It's not that I'm expecting a Nativity story moment in every episode I watch, but the dynamics of the plot seemed to be gearing toward one and then when it didn't come it left me feeling a bit empty.

I have to agree with you, Jack. I love the episode but the ending definitely felt like it was missing something and kind of came up short when Steve was flying the little girl around. I too thought it was leading to a more significant "nativity" story than what we heard.


Gary "didn't get a chance to watch any more episodes tonight - will pick up the pace with more tomorrow" O.