Christmas in July 2018: D.X. Ferris

from 1992's Muppet Christmas Carol

Christmas in July 2018: D.X. Ferris, Suburban Metal Dad at http://checkoutmybutt.com/

1) Name your favorite Henson's Muppet Christmas program and why.

Muppet Christmas Carol really works. It hits all the notes: dejecting sorrow, oppressive fear, redemptive joy... and catchy music, too! It has it all. It's a full-on drama, featuring Muppets.

And no, it doesn't make me cry — I don't know who told you that. It airs during allergy season. It makes YOU cry. You don't know me!




2) Which decade produced the bulk of your favorite Christmas entertainment?



I have to go with the 1960s and that Big Bang of the Big Four Christmas Specials. My favorites are Charlie Brown, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, Rudolph, and Frosty. I'm not a Sound of Music fan, but John Coltrane's transcendent jazz take on "My Favorite Things" is one of the great moments in art, whether it's the three-minute edit or the 13-minute free-jazz freakout.

from 1982's The Snowman


3) Imagine the entertainment behind your ideal Christmas Eve dinner. Name the appetizer, entré, and dessert.

Appetizer: Charlie Brown. Get the Christmas magic flowing with a short program.

Entré: Scrooged. Watch the passion of the Scrooge. See a man reject selfishness and embrace the human race. "NOW MORE THAN EVER, IT IS IMPORTANT TO REMEMBER THE TRUE MEANING OF CHRISTMAS... YOUR LIFE MAY JUST DEPEND ON IT."

Dessert: Depending what the kids feel like, whether I'm watching solo, and/or how tired everybody is...

If you're sleepy and running short on time: The Snowman, which will send you into sleep with a fantastic journey into the heart of Christmas itself. I don't have to specify the original version, not the one with the Bowie intro, do I? (All respect to Bowie.)

Or if everyone's awake and the eggnog hasn't gone to your head, A Very Murray Christmas, Bill Murray's melancholy musical extravaganza.



Did you mean it literally? Then a shuffle of the Donnie Iris, Frank Sinatra, and Sia Christmas albums. Plus the record C'est Le Père Noël by Henri Des — he's a Swiss singer who performs children's music in French. But this quiet little Christmas album stands on its own, no matter how old you are.



4) What Christmas episode, special or movie doesn't exist--that you wish did? Feel free to get creative.



I think a great way to introduce my comic strip to network TV would be the Suburban Metal Dad Christmas Special. I have some plots, but I can't divulge them here.

I've never been able to track down a full copy of Bob Goulet's Cajun Christmas; I'm starting to suspect the Scrooged people made it up.

A Marvel Christmas movie, maybe a Power Man-Iron Fist teamup, "Luke Cage's Sweet Christmas Holiday Special"?

If you look online for "Christmas in Carcosa," you can see my dubious argument that True Detective, Season 1 is a Christmas special. I'd say they should run it as a Christmas marathon, but I see why they don't. I'm probably kidding about at least one part of this bit.

And I'd love to see some kind of musical special like the Bing Crosby's Merrie Olde Christmas, either from one genre, or a big harmonious crossover hosted by Rick Rubin or Bill Adler, the producer and renowned Christmas connoisseur who had the idea for "Christmas in Hollis." Have a bunch of metal guys, Sia, DMX, the Reverend Run, the Beasties, Katy Perry, Lady Gaga, some hot younger artists, and Roseanne Cash celebrate the holidays in a country cabin. Invite Cypress Hill, have them change "Hand on the Pump" from "fa la la la" to "fa la la."

Or I think Ian MacKaye, his Fugazi pals, and Henry Rollins could reunite for a sincere celebration of friendship and the TRUE meaning of Christmas -- you know, the things that don't come in a box.

from 1984's A Christmas Carol

 

5) If one Christmas movie, special or episode was to be selected for a time capsule to opened in 1,000 years, which title do you think should be included?

Some kind of Christmas Carol, probably the George C. Scott version from 1984. It hits all the right notes in the human cycle of character growth. And while it is very old-timey, it doesn't have the kind of cultural details that will be unrecognizable 1,000 years from now, like, say, Scrooged would.

D.X. Ferris is way into Christmas. He wrote books about Slayer and Donnie Iris. Set for October 2018 release, Suburban Metal Dad: Compendium Two will compile seven years of holiday funnies from his ongoing comic strip. Check out the 2017 edition of his annual Christmas music, "DXmas 2017: Snow Lightning," here: https://open.spotify.com/user/dxferris/playlist/1uPb6J4cwREvewJgQ6wSL1