Christmas in July 2022: Richie Rich's Christmas Wish (1998)

 

Merry Christmas in July! It is Day #21 of the month-long celebration of Christmas entertainment. Each day this month I will be sharing brief reminisces about Christmas TV episodes, specials, and movies with a IT'S A WONDERFUL SUMMER attitude. Yes--this month I'm sharing brief essays about TV adaptations of the 1946 movie "It's a Wonderful Life" along with TV programs with significant references to the movie. Just a little something different and a way for me to show off the diversity of holiday stories I've collected in the encyclopedia Tis the Season TV (the updated and expanded 2nd edition being released soon).  

This is a feature-length children’s movie that was released directly to video in 1998, and eventually made its TV debut on Fox Family channel in 1999.  The story centers around the immensely wealthy character Richie Rich who was first introduced in Harvey comic books in the 1950s. This holiday story is a follow-up to the 1994 movie Richie Rich starring Macaulay Culkin. Here, the character is played by David Gallagher--who was then also appearing in the TV family drama series 7th Heaven.

 

In this live action holiday story, Richie’s attempts to deliver Christmas gifts to the orphanage by a remote controlled sleigh are sabotaged by his nasty rival Reggie Van Dough. Frustrated, Rich asks Professor Keenbean’s latest invention, the Wish Machine, what life would be like if he were never born. What follows is a plot taken straight from the movie It’s A Wonderful Life--Richie wakes up to discover that no one in Richville recognizes him any longer and Reggie is now the Rich’s son. 

 

 

 

As Richie wanders this new world that exists without him, he learns that Reggie has closed the local factory, charity hospital, and orphanage while threatening to cancel Christmas! Richie decides to help make things right, however Reggie orders the police to throw Richie in jail. It becomes a race against time for Richie to convince his former butler Cadbury and his former friends to help him get Professor Keenbean to re-invent his Wish Machine so Richie can return the world to its proper order before Christmas is canceled altogether.

This movie’s story also references O.Henry’s popular short story “The Gift of the Magi.” Mr. and Mrs. Rich exchange gifts for which they have sacrificed their precious yacht and golf course in order to buy a solid gold anchor and a high-end golf cart for each other.

The metal band members of Root Canal include Broadway’s Rex Smith as Rudy and Fleetwood Mac’s Billy Burnette as Nigel.

The cast includes David Gallagher as Richie Rich, Martin Mull as Mr. Rich, Lesley Ann Warren as Mrs. Rich, Keene Curtis as the butler Cadbury, Michelle Trachtenberg as Gloria, Jake Richardson as Reggie Van Dough, Marla Maples as Mrs. Van Dough, Richard Fancy as Mr. Van Dough, Richard Riehle as Sgt. Mooney, Kathleen Freeman as the orphanage director Mrs. Peabody, and Eugene Levy as Professor Keenbean. 

 

This is another example of an adaptation of It's a Wonderful Life aimed at young viewers. Did you see the 1946 movie It's a Wonderful Life or an adaptation first? Please feel free to leave comments below. Merry Christmas in July!

Joanna Wilson is a TV researcher and book author specializing in Christmas entertainment. More about the TV programs mentioned on this website can be found in her book "Tis the Season TV: the Encyclopedia of Christmas-themed Episodes, Specials, and Made-for-TV Movies." Her latest book "Triple Dog Dare: Watching--& Surviving--the 24-Hour Marathon of A Christmas Story" was released in 2016. She is currently updating and expanding the encyclopedia for an upcoming release. Her books can be found at the publisher's website: 1701 press.com

*Support this website and its research by purchasing the books at 1701 press.com

Christmas in July 2022: Moonlighting (1986)

 

 

Merry Christmas in July! It is Day #20 of the month-long celebration of Christmas entertainment. Each day this month I will be sharing brief reminisces about Christmas TV episodes, specials, and movies with a IT'S A WONDERFUL SUMMER attitude. Yes--this month I'm sharing brief essays about TV adaptations of the 1946 movie "It's a Wonderful Life" along with TV programs with significant references to the movie. Just a little something different and a way for me to show off the diversity of holiday stories I've collected in the encyclopedia Tis the Season TV (the updated and expanded 2nd edition being released soon). 

Today's discussion is on the third season episode "It's a Wonderful Job" from the detective series Moonlighting starring Cybill Shepherd and Bruce Willis. This episode departs from the style and tone of a typical Moonlighting episode--its wisecracking irreverence and flippancy is absent in this emotional Christmas story.

Maddie's guardian angel Albert is played by actor Richard Libertini.

In this tender re-telling of It’s a Wonderful Life, detective agency owner Maddie Hayes comes to regret her life and work when the employees of Blue Moon Investigations are angry with her for making them work over Christmas. Maddie feels unappreciated and regrets her own sacrifices to keep the business open. She's sad enough to contemplate suicide on the rooftop of a high-rise building when her guardian angel Albert comes to her, willing to make her wish that she'd never opened the agency come true. 

 

Jonathan and Jennifer Hart are not seen, but Maddie bumps into their chauffeur Max and the Harts' dog Freeway in the office.

Albert shows her what life would be like if she had never taken over the agency. Maddie sees that Blue Moon would now be Hart Investigations--the detective agency run by Jonathan and Jennifer Hart, as in the TV series Hart to Hart. Hart to Hart ran on the ABC network from 1979-84 and Moonlighting also ran on ABC starting in 1985. The implication here is a pop culture/TV reference and inside joke that if Maddie never started the Blue Moon Agency, then Hart to Hart would have lasted longer!

 

 

Agnes DiPesto in this alternate life--cue the theme song to TV series "Dynasty."

Miss DiPesto would be a cold-hearted corporate executive, a business-focused person Maddie unhappily recognizes as someone like herself.

 

1980's Model Cheryl Tiegs appears here as herself.

And, David Addison is marrying model Cheryl Tiegs. This is meaningful when viewers remember that Maddie used to be a model too and in a world where David and Maddie never work together, he chooses to fall in love with another model--just not her. Albert and Maddie overhear David speaking with his brother Richard about how he's not really happy even though he's marrying a beautiful woman like Cheryl Tiegs. Although Maddie feels jealous, this news breaks Maddies' heart.

 

Without the agency, Maddie's life would be meaningless too.

In this emotional story, Maddie sees how her friends' lives are all effected for the negative if she had never opened Blue Moon. But she's overwhelmed with regret when she learns her own life would be meaningless without the agency too--she wouldn't have any friends and she would be suicidal at the holidays. Maddie begs her guardian angel to take her back to her own life and she awakens in the bar where she first met Albert. She returns to the agency and apologizes to her staff.

 

David and Maddie embrace in a kiss and look into the camera saying "And to All a Good Night!"--the final line from the Moore poem "Twas the Night Before Christmas."

The cast includes Cybill Shepherd as Maddie Hayes, Bruce Willis as David Addison, Richard Libertini as Albert, Lionel Stander as Max, Allyce Beasley as Miss DiPesto, Curtis Armstrong as Burt, Cheryl Tiegs as herself, and Charles Rocket as Richard Addison.

 

This TV adaptation of It's a Wonderful Life is especially emotional and touching considering the series is usually far less serious. However, the quirky pop culture references are still abundant. Do you have a favorite TV adaptation of It's a Wonderful Life? There are so many--and there are more discussions coming all month long during this Christmas in July marathon. Merry Christmas in July!

Joanna Wilson is a TV researcher and book author specializing in Christmas entertainment. More about the TV programs mentioned on this website can be found in her book "Tis the Season TV: the Encyclopedia of Christmas-themed Episodes, Specials, and Made-for-TV Movies." Her latest book "Triple Dog Dare: Watching--& Surviving--the 24-Hour Marathon of A Christmas Story" was released in 2016. She is currently updating and expanding the encyclopedia for an upcoming release. Her books can be found at the publisher's website: 1701 press.com

*Support this website and its research by purchasing the books at 1701 press.com

Christmas in July 2022: Roseanne (1992)

 

Merry Christmas in July! It is Day #19 of the month-long celebration of Christmas entertainment. As announced before, each day this month I will be sharing brief reminisces about Christmas TV episodes, specials, and movies with a IT'S A WONDERFUL SUMMER attitude. Yes--this month I'm sharing brief essays about TV adaptations of the 1946 movie "It's a Wonderful Life" along with TV programs with significant references to the movie. Just a little something different and a way for me to show off the diversity of holiday stories I've collected in the encyclopedia Tis the Season TV (the updated and expanded 2nd edition being released soon).

 

Darlene and David are watching "It's a Wonderful Life" at his house.

Today's discussion is on the episode "It's No Place Like Home for the Holidays" from the sitcom Roseanne. In this fifth season story, Christmas Eve delivers a snow storm that prevents the Conner family from being home to watch the movie It’s A Wonderful Life on TV together. Becky and Mark are snowed-in out of town. Roseanne and her sister Jackie are stuck at the restaurant with their mother Beverly and grandmother Nana Mary. 

 

Roseanne, Jackie, Beverly, and Nana Mary are watching "It's a Wonderful Life" at the Lunch Box restaurant.

 

Dan is at home with his son DJ, awkwardly entertaining family friend Nancy and her new girlfriend Marla. And, Darlene is forced to stay at her boyfriend David’s house where she witnesses the Healy family’s dysfunction firsthand. Although everyone is miserable, the family members bond with those they are with, while watching the emotional 1946 Christmas movie.

 

Marla, Nancy, DJ, and Dan are stuck alone at the Conner house.

One of the highlights in this episode is how Roseanne and Jackie “decorate” Nana Mary after she falls asleep in a chair. They wrap her in Christmas lights and place a star upon her head!

Under the closing credits, viewers can see a sleeping Nana Mary "decorated" for Christmas.

The cast includes Roseanne Barr as Roseanne Conner, John Goodman as Dan Conner, Laurie Metcalf as Jackie, Sara Gilbert as Darlene, Michael Fishman as DJ, Johnny Galecki as David Healy, Estelle Parsons as Beverly, Shelley Winters as Nana Mary, Sandra Bernhart as Nancy, Morgan Fairchild as Marla, and Sally Kirkland as Barbara Healy. 

 

It's a Wonderful Life--always on in the background.

While this episode's story in NOT an adaptation of the 1946 holiday movie, it does center around the Conner family's experiences of watching It's a Wonderful Life--their annual Christmas tradition. In most of the scenes, viewers can hear the movie playing on television in the background, while the characters are talking to each other. It's a Wonderful Life is the glue that holds the whole episode together.

Merry Christmas in July!

Joanna Wilson is a TV researcher and book author specializing in Christmas entertainment. More about the TV programs mentioned on this website can be found in her book "Tis the Season TV: the Encyclopedia of Christmas-themed Episodes, Specials, and Made-for-TV Movies." Her latest book "Triple Dog Dare: Watching--& Surviving--the 24-Hour Marathon of A Christmas Story" was released in 2016. She is currently updating and expanding the encyclopedia for an upcoming release. Her books can be found at the publisher's website: 1701 press.com

*Support this website and its research by purchasing the books at 1701 press.com

Christmas in July 2022: Providence (1999)

 

 

Merry Christmas in July! It is Day #18 of the month-long celebration of Christmas entertainment. As announced before, each day this month I will be sharing brief reminisces about Christmas TV episodes, specials, and movies with a IT'S A WONDERFUL SUMMER attitude. Yes--this month I'm sharing brief essays about TV adaptations of the 1946 movie "It's a Wonderful Life" along with TV programs with significant references to the movie. Just a little something different and a way for me to show off the diversity of holiday stories I've collected in the encyclopedia Tis the Season TV (the updated and expanded 2nd edition being released soon).  

 

 

Today's discussion is on the 2nd season Christmas episode "Home for the Holidays" from the family drama Providence. In this episode's story Sydney wants to create a traditional holiday for the family just like the ones her mother used to organize, but no one seems willing to cooperate. Her sister Joanie is distracted trying to include her baby’s irresponsible father into her holiday plans, brother Robbie is busy making money selling the hottest toy of the holiday season, and their father Jim is going to a neighbor’s holiday party. 

 

Don't stand on a ladder while decorating the Christmas tree alone!

While watching the movie It's a Wonderful Life on TV,  Syd attempts to decorate the Christmas tree alone and she questions why she ever moved back home to Providence in the first place. After she falls and hits her head, Syd finds her wish come true, courtesy of her guardian angel mother. Sydney awakens to live out her own version of It’s a Wonderful Life seeing what the Hansens’ lives would have been like if she hadn’t helped them through the hard times.

Syd learns that if she hadn't come home to Providence, she would be married to her former boyfriend Jerry and still living an unsatisfying superficial life as a plastic surgeon in California. In Providence, the medical clinic wouldn't offer the quality affordable care that she has worked hard to bring to the neighborhood--instead it would be a managed care facility. Her father Jim would have retired early and sold the family home. Joanie wouldn't be running the Barkery (doggie treats bakery), and Robbie would be in jail for attempting to sell stolen toys at Christmas. Syd finally comes to see how she is needed by her family and the community in Providence.

 

Syd's mother's ghost also serves as her guardian angel in this adaptation of It's a Wonderful Life.

This story opens with Syd dreaming of her mother Lynda “directing” a Hanson family traditional Christmas as if it was a film production.

The cast includes Melina Kanakaredes as Dr. Sydney Hansen, Paula Cale as Joanie, Seth Peterson as Robbie, Concetta Tomei as Lynda, Mike Farrell as Jim, and Patrick Fabian as Syd’s ex-boyfriend Jerry.

Wouldn't it be great if this series was fully released on DVD or available on a streaming platform? Syd's ex-boyfriend Jerry is played by Patrick Fabian--who is currently starring as Howard in the series Better Call Saul. More adaptations of It's a Wonderful Life coming up. Please feel free to leave comments below.

Joanna Wilson is a TV researcher and book author specializing in Christmas entertainment. More about the TV programs mentioned on this website can be found in her book "Tis the Season TV: the Encyclopedia of Christmas-themed Episodes, Specials, and Made-for-TV Movies." Her latest book "Triple Dog Dare: Watching--& Surviving--the 24-Hour Marathon of A Christmas Story" was released in 2016. She is currently updating and expanding the encyclopedia for an upcoming release. Her books can be found at the publisher's website: 1701 press.com

*Support this website and its research by purchasing the books at 1701 press.com

Christmas in July 2022: A Dream of Christmas (2016)

 

Merry Christmas in July! It is Day #17 of the month-long celebration of Christmas entertainment. As announced before, each day this month I will be sharing brief reminisces about Christmas TV episodes, specials, and movies with a IT'S A WONDERFUL SUMMER attitude. Yes--this month I'm sharing brief essays about TV adaptations of the 1946 movie "It's a Wonderful Life" along with TV programs with significant references to the movie. Just a little something different and a way for me to show off the diversity of holiday stories I've collected in the encyclopedia Tis the Season TV (the updated and expanded 2nd edition being released soon).   

Today's discussion is on the Christmas TV movie A Dream of Christmas which made its debut on Dec. 3, 2016 on the Hallmark Channel. In this feature-length story, Penny is feeling frustrated when she considers how changed her life would be if she had made different decisions. When she slips on the ladder placing the angel on top of the Christmas tree, Penny awakens to find her wish come true--she’s not married and she has a more senior position at the advertising company where she works. As a single woman with a better career, Penny re-evaluates her life, in this story inspired by the 1946 holiday movie It's a Wonderful Life.

The cast includes Nikki DeLoach as Penny Atwell, Andrew Walker as Stuart Fischer, and Cindy Williams as the angel Jayne.

 

 

A Dream of Christmas fulfills the romance formula of Hallmark Christmas movies while also paying homage to the narrative structure of It's a Wonderful Life by giving a character a glance at an alternate life guided by a guardian angel.

Are you familiar with this 2016 Hallmark movie? Have you seen this one before? Please feel free to leave comments below.

Joanna Wilson is a TV researcher and book author specializing in Christmas entertainment. More about the TV programs mentioned on this website can be found in her book "Tis the Season TV: the Encyclopedia of Christmas-themed Episodes, Specials, and Made-for-TV Movies." Her latest book "Triple Dog Dare: Watching--& Surviving--the 24-Hour Marathon of A Christmas Story" was released in 2016. She is currently updating and expanding the encyclopedia for an upcoming release. Her books can be found at the publisher's website: 1701 press.com

*Support this website and its research by purchasing the books at 1701 press.com

Christmas in July 2022: Quantum Leap (1992)

 

Merry Christmas in July! It is Day #16 of the month-long celebration of Christmas entertainment. As announced before, each day this month I will be sharing brief reminisces about Christmas TV episodes, specials, and movies with a IT'S A WONDERFUL SUMMER attitude. Yes--this month I'm sharing brief essays about TV adaptations of the 1946 movie "It's a Wonderful Life" along with TV programs with significant references to the movie. Just a little something different and a way for me to show off the diversity of holiday stories I've collected in the encyclopedia Tis the Season TV (the updated and expanded 2nd edition being released soon).   

 

Scott Bakula plays the time traveling Sam and Dean Stockwell is the hologram companion Al.

Today's discussion is on the 4th season episode "It's a Wonderful Leap" from the hit sci-fi/fantasy series Quantum Leap starring Scott Bakula and Dean Stockwell. This episode's story is not set at Christmas and it's not a Christmas story either. Instead, it's about a guardian angel. This may be the TV program most loosely associated with It's a Wonderful Life in the Christmas in July marathon, however this episode's story clearly draws upon the 1946 holiday movie for inspiration. Let's take a closer look.

 

Sam finds himself in the body of cab driver Max Greenman and he accidentally hits a woman claiming to be a guardian angel!

In this episode, Sam leaps back to May 10th, 1958, where he finds himself in the body of Max Greenman, a taxi cab driver trying to earn a precious taxi medallion to run his own cab company. Driving his cab, Sam/Max meets a woman named Angela when he accidentally runs her over! When Sam pulls her out from under the cab, she is completely unharmed and explains that she is a guardian angel. Sam is hesitant to believe that Angela is an actual guardian angel but when she reveals she can see and talk with Al too--Sam comes to believe that they are both on the same mission. Sam and Angela are both looking to protect the cab driver Max from an armed robber who may take his life.  

 

Sam is skeptical that Angela is an actual guardian angel but he acknowledges his own time travel situation also defies reason!

 

Liz Torres is a delight as the guardian angel Angela.

Angela the guardian angel is played by the great character actor Liz Torres. Here, Angela is a Puerto Rican New Yorker from the 1920s who used to be a professional singer. She's charming and knowledgeable, making it difficult for Sam to doubt her when she says she's a guardian angel. Adding another layer of meaning to her character, Angela sings the Gershwin tune "Someone to Watch Over Me" while keeping Sam/Max and his father Lenny company.

Although this fourth season episode does not take place at Christmas, the episode's title references the movie It's a Wonderful Life, it centers on a guardian angel character, and Angela even talks about the guardian angel Clarence from It's a Wonderful Life movie.

The cast includes Scott Bakula as Dr. Sam Beckett, Dean Stockwell as Al, Liz Torres as Angela, and Jerry Adler as Max’s father Lenny.

 

A reboot of Quantum Leap is going to start airing on NBC in the fall of 2022--will you be watching? Merry Christmas in July!

 

Joanna Wilson is a TV researcher and book author specializing in Christmas entertainment. More about the TV programs mentioned on this website can be found in her book "Tis the Season TV: the Encyclopedia of Christmas-themed Episodes, Specials, and Made-for-TV Movies." Her latest book "Triple Dog Dare: Watching--& Surviving--the 24-Hour Marathon of A Christmas Story" was released in 2016. She is currently updating and expanding the encyclopedia for an upcoming release. Her books can be found at the publisher's website: 1701 press.com

*Support this website and its research by purchasing the books at 1701 press.com

 

Christmas in July 2022: The O.C. (2006)

 

 Merry Christmas in July! It is Day #15 of the month-long celebration of Christmas entertainment. As announced before, each day this month I will be sharing brief reminisces about Christmas TV episodes, specials, and movies with a IT'S A WONDERFUL SUMMER attitude. Yes--this month I'm sharing brief essays about TV adaptations of the 1946 movie "It's a Wonderful Life" along with TV programs with significant references to the movie. Just a little something different and a way for me to show off the diversity of holiday stories I've collected in the encyclopedia Tis the Season TV (the updated and expanded 2nd edition being released soon). 

Earlier this month, I discussed an episode adapted from It's a Wonderful Life from the teen drama series Beverly Hills, 90210. Here's that essay again. The teen drama The O.C. also created an adaptation of It's a Wonderful Life--in the series' fourth season. Let's look at it closer.

 

Taylor is played by actor Autumn Reeser, and the character Ryan by Ben McKenzie.

In this episode, Ryan and his girlfriend Taylor are arguing while hanging Chrismukkah lights on the roof when they both fall from the ladder and sustain head injuries serious enough to place both into comas. "Chrismukkah" is the Cohen family holiday started by Seth, a combination of Christmas and Hanukkah traditions--the result of being raised by a Jewish father and a Protestant mother. Chrismukkah, of course, is celebrated in the first three season of The O.C. in the episodes "The Best Chrismukkah Ever" in 2003, "The Chrismukkah That Almost Wasn’t" in 2004, and "The Chrismukkah Bar Mitz-vahkkah" in 2005.

 

 

Back to the season 4 episode. Family and friends surround Ryan and Taylor in the hospital while they go through a dream-like experience of a parallel world as if they were never born! In a loose, Southern California-style adaptation of the 1946 movie It’s A Wonderful Life, life looks different for the Cohen family, as Sandy is mayor and married to Julie. Julie is sleeping with Che, Summer was about to marry Che, and Kirsten is married to Jimmy. Marissa is still dead but she died much earlier.

Ryan and Taylor work to fix the problems of their friends and family made by their absence. Taylor confronts her own brutal mother and Ryan tries to save the broken relationships, hoping to right the wrongs. Ryan and Taylor also need to pull themselves out of this alternate Orange County universe where nobody knows or recognizes them. In his coma-fever dream, Ryan resolves his guilt for blaming himself for Marissa’s death and comes to appreciate that his efforts had actually extended her life. 

 

 

This supernatural experience allows Ryan to let go of the past, say goodbye to Marissa, and move forward with his feelings for Taylor in the present. Recognize actor Autumn Reeser who plays Taylor? In more recent years, she's become a regular leading lady in Hallmark holiday movies in Love at the Thanksgiving Day Parade (2012), A Bramble House Christmas (2017), Christmas Under the Stars (2019) and A Glenbrooke Christmas (2020).

The cast includes Ben McKenzie as Ryan, Adam Brody as Seth, Peter Gallagher as Sandy Cohen, Kelly Rowan as Kirsten Cohen, Rachel Bilson as Summer, Melinda Clarke as Julie Cooper, Autumn Reeser as Taylor Townsend,  Chris Pratt as Ché, Tate Donovan as Jimmy Cooper, and Willa Holland as Caitlin.

I'm endlessly entertained by the creative ways TV writers draw upon the classic story in It's a Wonderful Life to find ways to express something new. Feel free to add a comment below. We're about half through Christmas in July--lots more references to Frank Capra's 1946 movie coming up.

Joanna Wilson is a TV researcher and book author specializing in Christmas entertainment. More about the TV programs mentioned on this website can be found in her book "Tis the Season TV: the Encyclopedia of Christmas-themed Episodes, Specials, and Made-for-TV Movies." Her latest book "Triple Dog Dare: Watching--& Surviving--the 24-Hour Marathon of A Christmas Story" was released in 2016. She is currently updating and expanding the encyclopedia for an upcoming release. Her books can be found at the publisher's website: 1701 press.com

*Support this website and its research by purchasing the books at 1701 press.com