Christmas movies and TV episodes (1 Viewer)

[Ron1973]

By late August I am usually ready (I told y'all I'd decorate now if I could!) for Christmas. I dunno, I guess I'm a kid at heart. I have so many memories of Christmas with family, but I guess the thing is I can remember in school how we started our Christmas program practice in August, and a lot of retailers used to start putting out Christmas stuff in August.


I generally try to keep the decorations up and the music going until the 19th of January. A friend of mine explained the meaning behind the 12 days of Christmas, and as David just mentioned there is Ukrainian Christmas on the 7th of January, so 12 more days makes the 19th.


I just ordered two Christmas CD's from Amazon last week and they came in this weekend: Bobby Darrin and the cast of Bonanza. If you've never heard "Merry Christmas, Neighbor" by Lorne Greene, Michael Landon and Dan Blocker, you should look it up. It will warm your heart!

 

[davidmatychuk]

My group NO FUN played "Merry Christmas Neighbour" from the "Christmas On The Ponderosa" LP at the end of a Canadian national radio broadcast of a Christmas show we recorded back in 1988. We also had Michael Landon's "Santa Got Lost In Texas" in our Christmas repertoire. The CD was made from a nice clean vinyl record, and it is tremendous fun. Even long-gone-to-Saint-Joe Adam sings a lovely Christmas song AS A FLASHBACK! Great Christmas album!

 

[KPmusmag]

On September 1 I allow myself the Julie Andrews Christmas albums, but no videos or TV shows yet. I love Halloween movies and sit-coms and will start with them mid-Sept but on Nov 1 it's holiday all the way. I can feel Fall in the air and I am ready!

plus a few alternate covers:

 

[davidmatychuk]

Are the albums with the alternate covers straight reissues of "A Christmas Treasure"? It's a beautiful, classy Christmas album.

 

[KPmusmag]

Are the albums with the alternate covers straight reissues of "A Christmas Treasure"? It's a beautiful, classy Christmas album.

The reissue with the photo from Sound of Music is a straight reissue. The one with the green cover has about half the songs from ACT, alternating with choral versions of other carols.


The "Greatest Christmas Songs" reissue is all of ACT, including an extended version of "Bells of Christmas" (no extra vocal, but a long orchestral interlude), and much improved sound as compared to the 1990 CD release. It also, just to tease us, contains three songs from the 1958 Living Stereo album "Julie Andrews Sings" in glorious re-mastered stereo sound. JA Sings has never been released on CD except in Japan, but that release has rather flat sounding monophonic sound. For anyone who is a fan of A Christmas Treasure, I highly recommend this reissue. It is currently only $8.00 on amazon. BEWARE OF FOREIGN REISSUES - there are a lot of them and they have terrible sound; make sure you are getting the official BMG (Sony) release.


Greatest Christmas Songs track list:



1. Joy To The World 2. Irish Carol 3. O Little Town Of Bethlehem 4. Deck The Halls 5. Angels From The Realms Of Glory 6. The Lamb Of God 7. Away In A Manger 8. Sunny Bank 9. It Came Upon A Midnight Clear 10. Greensleeves 11. The Bells Of Christmas 12. God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen 13. Wexford Carol 14. Jingle Bells 15. It Might As Well Be Spring 16. Falling In Love With Love 17. Cheek To Cheek


http://www.amazon.com/Greatest-Christmas-Songs-Julie-Andrews/dp/B003O5MOLQ/ref=sr_1_sc_1?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1441301396&sr=1-1-spell&keywords=julie+angdrews+greatest+christmas

 

[Rodney]

Thanks for the information and link, Kevin.

I am definitely going to snag "Greatest Christmas Songs" from Amazon. Cannot beat $8.10 for some wonderful singing by Julie Andrews!

 

[streeter]

I have one tree I keep up ALL YEAR. I put the toys I purchase using the "Dealer Cards" under this tree. All of these toys will be donated to charities come December.

 

[cajunhillbilly]

I am watching "The Liberians and Santa's Midnight Run" a sort of Christmas themed episode of the new series The Liberians

 

[cajunhillbilly]

Today I watched

"The Blessed Midnight" with Maureen O'Sullivan (1956)

"A Christmas Carol" Narrated by Vincent Price (1949) (I will watch several more versions of this before I am done watching Xmas movies)

"Babes in Toyland" with Keanu Reeves and Drew Barrymore (1986) (Liked the Disney version better)

 

[Regulus]

I don't know if you missed this but I got some "News from the North Pole" last week.


Santa Claus will no longer give lumps of coal to all the kids on his "Naughty" list.


Instead he will be giving them something FAR WORSE. A Cable TV Subscription!


The first 12 months will be free, but then they will have to pay at least $159.99 a month for the next three years, or pay a "Penalty" of $6,000.00.

 

[cajunhillbilly]

I just finished "A Christmas Carol" (1951) with Alistair Sims. One of my favorite versions of this great story

 

[davidmatychuk]

I just finished "A Christmas Carol" (1951) with Alistair Sims. One of my favorite versions of this great story

I think it's the very best version, and like the title of the featurette on the Blu-Ray says, it's "too good to be shown only at Christmastime". It's among the very best Dickens adaptations as well as being among the very best Christmas movies.

 

[Dr Griffin]

I start every Holiday season with Miracle on 34th St. on Thanksgiving (US) morning, and then maybe Christmas in Connecticut (food theme ). I try to watch a few episodes/movies every week leading up to Christmas. The SCTV Christmas episodes are an annual favorite. I'm usually burned out come New Year's.

 

[davidmatychuk]

I watch "The Nightmare Before Christmas" on Hallowe'en night, but I don't really get going with the all-Christmas-all-the-time until after Remembrance Day. Because I do Christmas concerts here in Vancouver every year (30th Anniversary of the series this year!), I think of it as preparation for my concerts, as well as just a really fun lead-up to Christmas.

 

[Dr Griffin]

I watch "The Nightmare Before Christmas" on Hallowe'en night, but I don't really get going with the all-Christmas-all-the-time until after Remembrance Day. Because I do Christmas concerts here in Vancouver every year (30th Anniversary of the series this year!), I think of it as preparation for my concerts, as well as just a really fun lead-up to Christmas.

Gives us more information on the concert series you mentioned.

 

[davidmatychuk]

Gives us more information on the concert series you mentioned.

Here's the initial "Coming Soon" poster for this year's Christmas concerts:

Poking around on the Facebook page "No Fun: The Beatles Of Surrey" for more information about my many years of Christmas shows might be of interest as well.


Just to prove my bona fides as a Christmas guy, here's a 1976 "A Photo With Santa" from Woodward's Department Store (Guildford Town Centre), which once dominated Vancouver retail. That's a very young professional swing-shift Santa there, with my laughing mother on his professional-Santa lap.

 

[cajunhillbilly]

Yesterday I watched "A Very Merry Muppett Christmas Movie" Sort of the Muppett version of "It's a Wonderful Life" Very entertaining

 

[Peter M Fitzgerald]

Like many people, I don't start watching specific Christmas material until just after Thanksgiving, but I did catch a Christmas episode, by accident, a couple of weeks ago. I've been watching an episode a week (in order) of Yancy Derringer, and it turned out the episode, "Old Dixie", was the one-season wonder's Christmas episode. Like the series as a whole, it's quite good and underrated, and pretty much all the regular and semi-regular characters from the show make an appearance, and Yancy trims a tree.

 

[Regulus]

Here's how I observe "The Holidays". On the Friday before Thanksgiving I commence with what I call my "Pre-Thanksgiving Family Week". Back when I was growing up there were some Family-Friendly movies that one station or another would invariably play on the days leading to Thanksgiving. Among them were The Hideaways, Namu My Best Friend, The Sea Gypsies, Lad, a Dog, A Dog's Life and The Greatest Show on Earth. On Thanksgiving Day (after the festivities end) I watch the Spencer Tracy Movie Plymouth Adventure. All of these movies used to be staples in the days leading up to Thanksgiving, these days thank goodness for home video. This year will mark the tenth anniversary of a Tradition I started on Black Friday. In 2005 Among the bargains I procured were a 53-Inch HDTV Set and a copy of The Polar Express which I picked up somewhere for a buck. From that day on this movie kicks off my official holiday viewing. Once I get started, I don't stop until January 6.

 

[Harry-N]

Christmas movie viewing doesn't start for us until after Thanksgiving, and usually starts with MIRACLE ON 34th STREET, since it also fits the Thanksgiving theme. Then it's a hodge-podge of Christmas movies through the month leading up to the holiday itself. The Alastair Sim SCROOGE is generally saved for Christmas Eve after all of the packages are wrapped and under the tree.


In between, we'll play the other versions of A CHRISTMAS CAROL that we have, Reginald Owen, George C. Scott, Patrick Stewart, Seymour Hicks, Mickey Mouse, Mr. Magoo... along with things like the first two HOME ALONE movies, the SANTA CLAUSE movies, CHRISTMAS WITH THE KRANKS, and I like to throw in some of the more warped Christmas movies too like DIE HARD or THE SILENT PARTNER.


For Christmas music, that too starts on the day after Thanksgiving, and for the last number of years, I always start it off with a rare tune, "Let The Season Take Wing" by Amy Grant. The recording was only ever released on a bonus cassette at Target stores when they were selling her second Christmas album, HOME FOR CHRISTMAS in 1992, and the song is all about wonderful beginning to the season. To date, the song has never been released on any digital media or the many compilations since 1992. I first heard a copy of it and finally snagged one on eBay.





I usually continue playing virtually all Christmas music between Thanksgiving and Christmas.


Harry