As our SCI-FI Christmas in July celebration continues, Christmas TV History would like to welcome guest blogger Jeff Fox. Have you seen his website NameThatChristmasSpecial.com? There's so much good stuff there--I could spend hours and hours looking through it! How good are you at recognizing Christmas TV specials? find out at his site. Jeff shares with us an episode ofthe new Twilight Zone. Though this story is more of a fantasy one, I think this is a fantastic addition to our celebration this month because this series certainly has quite a few science fiction fans. Thanks again to Jeff and everyone else who is participating. Merry Christmas in July!
The Twilight Zone
Night of the Meek (1985)
by Jeff Fox
When Rockne S. O’Bannon began the first reboot of the Twilight Zone, way back in 1985, it just made sense to go with a few classic Rod Serling stories to keep the spirit and the flavour of the original series. One of the first of these stories remade was the 1960 Christmas classic ‘Night of the Meek’.
In this new version, Richard Mulligan (of Soap and Empty Nest fame) plays Henry Corwin, a down-on-his-luck Store Santa who carries with him sadness for all the less-fortunate kids who won’t be receiving gifts this year. After drinking away his dinner break, he returns to work only to be fired, but not before getting the chance to tell the store’s owner, Mr Dundee, how the kids in the store don’t really need a Santa Claus because they’re all going to get everything they want for Christmas anyway.
Corwin goes home to his apartment to continue drinking, but when all the bottles are done, he takes out the bag of empties only to discover that, after a special flyover from above, the bag is now full of toys! What’s more, when he reaches into the bag, he finds he can pull out any gift that people desire, so he immediately starts handing out gifts to everyone in his neighbourhood.
When Dundee finds out, he tries to have Corwin arrested, sure that all the gifts were stolen from his store. Luckily the bag can also produce receipts, letting Corwin off the hook. Later, Corwin finds Dundee and produces gifts that finally start to melt his Scrooge-like heart. Now everyone’s gotten what they wanted, including Corwin who reveals that this experience was the perfect gift for him, and the only thing that could make it better would be if he could do it every year. Soon enough he discovers that his beard is no longer a fake, and that he’s now able to fly up the chimney, ready to do it all over again!
Even though it’s a remake, this retelling has several noticeable variations from the original. For one, Richard Mulligan makes a very different Corwin. While he doesn’t play a particularly convincing drunk (he’s a bit too goofy to match the darker edges of Art Carney’s original), this certainly shouldn’t be considered a bad performance. It’s actually one of my personal favourites. While Mulligan may not be as effective at the darker aspects, he positively shines when it comes to Corwin’s joy when he finally has the power to make a difference to the people around him. His excitement is infectious and lights up the screen; this is a man who has been transformed by a Christmas miracle, and this performance never fails to make me smile.
Though I’m sure there are those who probably consider it blasphemy to suggest that Rod Serling’s original script could be remade and possibly even improved upon, I found watching this updated version made Corwin’s external focus clearer, where Carney’s version seemed to be more about him internalizing the children’s suffering, almost making him one of the Meek needing saving, Mulligan’s version took greater efforts to show Corwin’s empathy to those suffering and how he wished he was able to help them. It always seemed to me to be a wonderful acknowledgment of, and a counterpoint to, the decade of greed that produced it.
But both tellings are great versions, and both bring something different to a great story. If you haven’t yet seen this version, I highly recommend it. It may not be the classic that the original is, but it is a no less worthy a tale of finding the Christmas spirit and sharing it with others. It’s one of my ‘go-to’ Christmas specials whenever I need to be reminded of a little Christmas joy.
Christmas TV History welcomes guest blogger Kiki Howell. Kiki is a good friend of the blog--she even wrote a post during last year's Christmas in July about the TV movie A Season for Miracles. Click HERE to see that again. Kiki works as a paranormal erotic romance book author--check her out: http://www.KikiHowell.com. She also runs the book review website,Authors By Authors. One of the things we both have in common is a passionate love for Christmas TV entertainment.
Kiki has generously written about two Christmas episodes of the sci-fi series Roswell. Anyone remember being addicted to this sci-fi teen romance series? Roswell is currently streaming on Netflix and is available for viewing on DVD as well. Merry Christmas in July!
Roswell
by Kiki Howell
When a special-genre TV series has a holiday special, I think there would be some unique circumstances that would make writing the episode difficult in a way. I’ve dealt with this a little writing paranormal holiday short stories, so I can only assume it would be the same with writing a TV episode.
First, you have to think about what constitutes a holiday special, what about the show has to be present to get the viewer into the holiday spirit? Second, you would have to consider how those holiday “things” could be placed appropriately into the genre of the series. I’m going to use the example of the Roswell TV series, a sci-fi, alien among us series with deep teenage romances and a complicated otherworld mythology that often translates into violent and dark themes of war and betrayal and a planet so damaged that the royalty must be hidden on another planet. How did they make their two Christmas episodes Christmas-y?
For me, one of the reasons I am addicted to holiday programming is how they depict more desirable qualities in the world, in our fellow man, over the holidays, more goodwill, more selflessness, more giving of oneself, more sharing on all levels, etc. I was thrilled to see in Roswell (a sci-fi television series about teenage aliens who live among us on earth) Season 2, Episode 10, "A Roswell Christmas Carol," these same qualities, especially since during Season 2, and a lot of Season 3, the show had become one where none of the established couples could get together. Honesty, I start to get frustrated with shows not only when the angst between the main coupled gets carried on far too long, but also when what splits them apart is more hurtful that most. For example, I’m good when it is a different species thing that keeps getting in the way, but with Roswell’s Second Season, the main character, Max’s heart literally gets broken to pieces when the main character, Liz, pretends to be with someone else in order to end the relationship for good. So, not being thrilled with that part of the storyline is how I got to the Christmas episode. I will admit the sap in me hoped that Max would find out his girlfriend had never been unfaithful, but that did not come to pass.
Max's reflection in the window as he gazes at Liz.
So, my big disappointment aside *giggles*, wanting that issue resolved as some kind of Christmas miracle, never happened. But, you still get miracles, and I’m talking the healing sick kids kind of miracles. In fact, you get those in both the second and third season Christmas episodes. Of course, this all happens as kind of a redemption thing, another Christmas show favorite theme. Max doesn’t save one man, so he goes on to redeem himself by saving a sick child. Thing is, with Roswell, each of these warm and fuzzy events come with very negative events, I guess in the spirit of A Christmas Carol (my personal favorite movie at Christmas time), you have a death to get to the redemption of another. Only, in A Christmas Carol, in the end, you get the boy healthy, a man’s soul redeemed; but in Roswell, you get Max being reminded in the end that he can’t be God, he can’t save them all, rather than leaving the audience to bask in the glow of the many he had saved. I likened this to if the original Christmas Carol would have ended with Scrooge carrying a now healthy Timmy through the streets, both all smiles, and a friend stops Scrooge to remind him that many other children are still sick these days, and he didn’t help them. I don’t know, that moment at the end of the episode, when you remind the hero that there is more to be helped, but he can’t do it, well that was a Christmas downer I didn’t need. So here you have a typical sci-fi theme which is hard to reconcile to the Christmas genre. Don’t get me wrong, I liked the show, but I just like the holiday shows for the spiritual uplifting they give us, the hope for this fallen world, and I didn’t like being reminded of any reality in the mist of it. Give me my moment LOL
I did like the episode too, even if my couple didn’t mend their relationship. The final moments of the episode with carols being sung, and everyone seated together and happy at a church service was a nice moment. This brings me though to something else I rate holiday movies by, and that is scenery. This episode did have Christmas decorations everywhere, in every scene a Christmas tree and lights type of thing. The fact that they called Isabel the “Christmas Nazi” through both episodes lead to a lot of Christmas tree buying and decorating, plus there was present buying, Christmas meal preparations, etc. The best was the alien decorated Christmas tree though that is in the restaurant.
Katherine Heigel plays Isabel, the Christmas Nazi.
The Season 3 Christmas episode, "Samuel Rising," wasn’t as serious, it seemed to me. It had more of Isabel, the infamous Christmas Nazi, getting her friend to help her in her holiday charity efforts, and some lightly comedic moments when the couples, still apart, get to work together. There wasn’t as much of the alien theme in this episode, aside from the main character Max thinking his son on another planet was speaking to him through an autistic child. So here, in the end, Max helps the boy and his parents, uses his powers to just provide a selfless Christmas miracle. So with the absence of the alien plight of the show, it seemed lighter, easier to incorporate the Christmas stuff I crave.
The Roswell aliens-decorated Christmas tree.
Combining any genres comes with its pluses and minuses. I enjoy sci-fi shows like Roswell, and I am thrilled when they keep with the seasons I’m watching the show in. Any show in December, I want it holiday themed no matter what it is :)
Merry Christmas in July! This whole month we're celebrating our favorite science fiction-themed Christmas entertainments. I've updated a post that originally appeared on Christmas TV History in May 2010. I'm re-posting it WITH PHOTOS and added commentary! I hope you like the improvement. Happy SCI-FI Christmas in July! (I love that it rhymes! Who's with me?)
"A Bionic Christmas Carol" is a fourth season episode on the sci-fi/adventure series, The Six Million Dollar Man. Col. Steve Austin is asked to cut his Christmas vacation in order to check on a company developing a life support system for a landing on Mars that is plagued with problems. Austin meets the company’s owner Mr. Budge (played by Ray Walston) and learns that the equipment testing problems are not sabotage but a greedy company owner who is going by the lowest equipment specification recommendations--the equipment fails because it’s too cheap.
Mr. Scrooge...er..ah..Mr. Budge (Ray Walston).
Steve also meets Bob Crandall (played by Dick Sargent), Budge’s nephew and chauffeur that Budge had demoted from his accountant when Crandall desperately stole company money to pay his wife’s medical bills. Steve spends the holiday with Crandall’s impoverished family--even getting them a Christmas tree and promising gifts from Santa Claus that they weren’t expecting.
Steve Austin as Santa Claus shows a drug-induced Budge visions of his Christmas Past, Present and Future.
Conveniently, Mr. Budge over-medicates himself on Christmas Eve, going in and out of consciousness with hallucinations. Under doctor’s orders, Steve Austin is instructed to keep Mr. Budge from falling asleep until the medication wears off--so Steve gives Budge the Dickens’ treatment! Disguised in a Santa Claus suit and without speaking a word, Steve spends Christmas Eve showing the groggy Budge the consequences of his greedy actions.
(l to r) Adam Rich as Bob Jr., Quinn Cummings as Elsie, Dick Sargent as Bob Crandall and an uncredited child actress as the young Sissy.
This adaptation of Dickens’ A Christmas Carol may play fast and loose with the spirit of Christmas but it is fun none the less. Two of Crandall’s young children are played by child actors Adam Rich (Eight is Enough) and Quinn Cummings (Family). Who doesn't love seeing actor Ray Walston--that's Mr. Hand (Fast Times at Ridgement High) to some, and Uncle Martin (My Favorite Martian) to others--getting scared straight at Christmas? And, actor Dick Sargent (Darren #2 on Bewitched) plays the down-trodden Bob Cratchit role of Bob Crandall.
I love that sound effect that came with every use of Steve Austin's bionic abilities.
One of my favorite scenes is when Steve Austin jumps to the top of a fir tree in the Crandall’s back yard in order to rip the top off for the family’s Christmas tree.
Cue the bionic sound effect as Steve Austin creates a tombstone for Budge to later scare him as the Ghost of Christmas Future.
Another favorite scene: Steve uses his bionic hand to chisel a tombstone to help scare Budge into reconsidering his life!
Don't cha love how Majors always lifts his left eyebrow?
If you need more Lee Majors in your Christmas diet, don't hesitate to watch him in 1965's The Big Valley Christmas episode "Judgment in Heaven," The Fall Guy's holiday episodes, 1984's "The Winner" and 1985's "Escape Claus," and in the 1986 TV movie A Smoky Mountain Christmas with Dolly Parton.
Since I first posted this piece, the series has been released on DVD. If you watch it, you may want to look for a few details you may only spot with access to a pause button on your DVD player.
Mr. Budge's home--"A boy's best friend is his mother." Notice the wrap-around porch?
Does Budge's home look familiar? It should--it's the facade of the building used for Norman Bates' home in the Alfred Hitchcock movie Psycho.
Still from the movie Psycho.
The facade had been altered many times since the original 1960's Psycho but here, in this Six Million Dollar Man episode, it still looks like the changes made for the 1976 TV miniseriesCaptains and the Kings.
Still of same house altered for mid-70s TV miniseries.
And, in another scene, Steve Austin is shopping in a toy store. Can you see what's hiding-in-plain-sight on the shelf behind the cash register?
Can you see the box on the left within this shot--with the shiny clear plastic?
It's the action figure of The Six Million Dollar Man! Did you have this toy in the 1970s?
Christmas TV History would like to welcome guest blogger Caffeinated Joe. (You can also follow him on Twitter: @Wings1295). Joe is a good friend of the blog--he even wrote a post during last year's Christmas in July about The X-Files. Click HERE to see that again. If you would like to watch this installment of MST3k, Joe provided the video below. Merry Christmas in July!
MST3K: Santa Claus Conquers the Martians
by Caffeinated Joe
Tom Servo - decked out for Christmas with a water globe in his head - and a red-nosed Crow are browsing outrageous Christmas shopping catalogs. Gypsy wants a pony, but that doesn't seem likely in outer space, dear.
In the invention exchange, the mad scientists invention turns fun gifts into the unwanted and boring stuff no one wants. Joel and the bots take inspiration from the Island of Misfit toys and show off their Misfit gifts for Christmas, including an Easy-Bake-Foundry and Mr. Mashed Potato-Head!
The movie the gang is forced to watch this week is the Pia Zadora 60s "classic," Santa Claus Conquers the Martians. Oh boy! Let's dive in, shall we?
Kimar (left) with his two Martian children.
Two martian kids are watching an Earth news broadcast, with a special report directly from the North Pole and Santa's workshop. We even get to see C. Everett Koop's children aka the elves at work making toys. The martian kids' dad, Kimar, isn't happy that they have been constantly enthralled by these programs and become depressed and unhappy with their Martian life. Nor is he happy with the laziest Martian, Dropo!
A Martian elder warns his people that the Martian children aren't children, really. They are adults in child bodies. The kids need to be kids again and to help them, they need a Santa Claus on Mars. He then pulls a David Copperfield and vanishes. So, Kimar, who also happens to be the Martian leader, decides that they will go to Earth and take our Santa! Of course, this is easier said than done, since upon viewing Earth from their spaceship, they see dozens, nay, hundreds of men dressed as Santa! Which is the real one? Does it matter? Earth mobilizes their stock footage, er... defenses at the arrival of the Martians.
Groovy martian space crew on the flight deck.
On a break, Joel and the bots prepare to go caroling, with Crow's original Christmas tune, "Let's Have A Patrick Swayze Christmas." Good stuff, this is.
Back in the movie, Kimar and his cronies come upon two Earth kids, Billy and Betty, and question them about the whereabouts of the real Santa Claus. Voldar, the not-so-nice Martian, grabs the kids and convinces Kimar they have to keep them from talking to the authorities. Yes, this mission has now degraded into child abduction.
Back on their ship, the Martians locate Santa's workshop. The Earth kids, having heard of the plan, decide they need to do all they can to stop their captors. Seeing the "futuristic" Martian ship and their not-well-thought-out plan, I can see these kids succeeding. Easily.
Voldar informs Kimar that the kids have escaped the ship and heads after them while Kimar summons Torg, the Martian robot, to aid in the search. The kids hide in a snowy cave and then encounter a *ahem* scary polar bear who lives in said cave. I guess he wants them to leave his stash of Coca-Cola alone. No sooner do the kids evade this menace, then they run into Torg, who, while cumbersome and slow moving, manages to grab both children. Kimar has them sent back to the ship, then gets his diabolical plan back on track. Remember, they are here to get Santa! Concentrate, people. I mean Martians.
Another break, the bots are lamenting the horror that is this week's experiment, so Joel shows them a bunch of tapes he has gotten his hands on, including Frosty the Snowman, Mr. Magoo's Christmas Carol, the Marlo Thomas It's a Wonderful Life and a bunch of movies where a curmudgeonly person learns the true meaning of Christmas! Ho Ho Ho!
The Martians and their robot arrive at the North Pole to seize Santa Claus!
Back at the North Pole, Torg confronts Santa and his elves. Santa thinks Torg is just a big toy. Another well thought out part of this Martian plan. Kimar and crew head in to take over, with Voldar "zapping" the elves with an air gun, sort of freezing them in place. Mrs. Claus comes in, upset over the lack of toy-making, so she is also frozen. The Martians leave with Santa, forgetting their ace-in-the-hole robot Torg in the process. Yeah.
The news people talk with a space expert - he talks with an accent, so he has to be smart - about what is being done to save Santa. He gives them lots of technical jargon and we see the rocket launched to get Santa back. Meanwhile, Santa's jovial attitude is rubbing off on his Martian captors. All except for Voldar, that is! Santa tries to cheer up Billy and Betty, but they feel guilty for leading the elite Martian task force to the North Pole. Pshaw, Santa says.
The Martians realize the people of Earth are mounting a rescue. Voldar, with his best tour guide face on, offers to show Santa and the kids around the ship. They aren't buying his act, they know he's a bad dude. But they go anyway, of course. All of these people deserve each other. Billy completely sees through all of Voldar's scheme - he wants to suck the trio out the airlock and into the void of space! Like all Batman villain traps, their is a timer above the airlock door, counting down the seconds until ... the door opens. Naive Santa thinks Voldar just left them there for a moment, he didn't mean to subject them to their doom. Even though Billy just explained it all. And the door has warnings, conveniently written in English, for them to read.
Kimar realizes Voldar's plan to kill Santa and the kids, but he is too late. Fisticuffs then ensue between the two Martians until Santa and the kids come into the room! Seems Santa used his special chimney resizing power to save them through a spaceship airduct. Voldar passes out, presumably from the absurdity of it all.
Landing on Mars, Kimar orders Voldar to be taken to trial. But when the martians go to retrieve him, they find he is gone, leaving Dropo in his place! That can't be good! Kimar's wife, Momar, assures her children that their dad will be back soon. And she is right, he comes back with gifts for them - Billy, Betty and Santa Claus! All the kids meet, and Santa gets everyone laughing hysterically for... no apparent reason. Kinda creepy. Really creepy.
Meanwhile, Voldar and his equally anti-Santa pals hide out, huddle and scheme to stop this new Martian Christmas. Dropo works with Santa and the kids to make toys in an electronic workshop. Santa is more suprised with this automatic, button-pushing toy making machine than he is with oh, being kidnapped by aliens and held prisoner on their planet so he can save all of their children from gloom and despair. Whatever gets him through the night, I suppose.
Kimar and Momar are dumbfounded to find Billy and Betty are depressed. Seems they aren't happy being held on Mars, made to work in a robotic toy factory and kept from their family and friends. Seems Martians have a very hard time learning a lesson. Meanwhile, Dropo dreams of becoming Santa. Donning an extra suit - and an extra beard that just happens to be laying about - he pretends he is Santa. Mars has a lot of problems.
Another break and it is Christmas essay time. Crow reads an editorial about Santa's elves and how we never see them building a computer. Tom reads a piece about Christmas and the dangers of Santa going into space. Joel talks about the 70s and office Christmas parties. Gypsy ends it with a nativity scene in her mouth. All this makes as much sense as the movie, so it's all good.
Voldar and his stooges break into the workshop and he goes crazy on the control panel. Crazy, I tell you! A shockingly NOT stoned Dropo pops in, dressed as Santa, and is kidnapped by the villainous trio, who believe he is the real St. Nick. Even with all his Martian head gear. How the hell did this civilization develop space travel?
Santa, Kimar and Momar wonder what happened to Dropo and the extra suit and beard. And I can't believe I actually wrote that sentence. Santa and the kids start up the workshop for a new day of forced labor, but soon realize things are askew with the machine - it is pumping out misfit toy after misfit toy! Oh no!
Voldar heads out to continue his nefarious scheme, leaving the Dropo-Santa behind with one of his goons. Kimar checks out the machine and slowly puts all the pieces together. Hell of a leader, Kimar is. He runs smack into Voldar amd his accomplice and gets an earful of Voldar's demands. He pretends to cave in, only to show Voldar that Santa is here, at the Martian toy shop. Voldar and his Jamie Farr pal are dumbstruck!
Voldar wants to get rid of Santa--permanently.
Dropo switches the advanced Martian light bulbs in the cave, tricking his captor into thinking the nuclear door is intact, thus enabling his escape. I didn't write this, people, I am just recapping. Voldar manages to escape from Kimar, but Billy hears them and alerts Santa, who has a scheme of his own. And he has time to implement this scheme with the kids before Voldar can cross the hallway. See, time moves differently on Mars, I guess. Anyway, Santa and the kids use toys and bubbles to beat the crap out of Voldar, who decides it is better to just wave his arms frantically than use his freezing zap gun. His Jamie Farr pal stays in the hall, preferring to mug for the camera.
Kimar escapes from the closet, finally, and gets Voldar and his goon taken back into custody. Santa tells Kimar that they have their own Martian Santa now - Dropo! Kimar decides to send Santa and the kids back to Earth, not because it is the right thing to do, but because of the meaning of Christmas and the fact they now have Dropo willing to do all the Santa stuff to keep the kids on Mars happy. Good luck with that, Martians.
We get the credits and the theme music, complete with words on screen! Not a classic, that's for sure.
Joel and the bots, free from the film, then sing Christmas carols, sort of, and open their stockings. Some odd gifts are shown and Joel has a letter from a viewer in his stocking. The scientists also exchange awkward gifts, and wish everyone a Merry Christmas.
So, yeah. A typically bad movie made watchable only by sharing the experience with Joel and the bots. The sci-fi elements in Santa Claus Conquers the Martians are subpar, even by 60s standards. I mean, Lost in Space was a documentary compared to this movie! But any time spent on the Satellite of Love is a good time.
Happy Christmas in July, and remember: let's all have a Patrick Swayze Christmas this year!
To begin our SCI-FI Christmas in July celebration, Christmas TV History would like to welcome guest blogger Ronda Roxbury. She's sharing one of her favorite sitcom alien Christmas episodes from the second season of Alf. This episode is currently streaming on Hulu.
Alf's Special Christmas
by Ronda Roxbury
Christmas is not about getting something from others, but about giving of yourself. That seems to be the theme of Alf’s Special Christmas from 1987.
The Tanner family questions why they brought Alf along on their Christmas trip.
This charming episode starts out with the Tanner family driving to a remote cabin up in the mountains where electricity, running water and indoor plumbing are non existent. Of course Alf complains…AND manages to get himself stuck in the outhouse in normal Alf fashion. Alf has a way of finding mischief in everything he does. Right from the start of the show, Alf has opened everyone's presents, blabbed about what the gifts or just switched the tags so that they say the gifts were from him. In his defense, when was he going to shop? He managed to bring some holly into the cabin only to have it be poison oak. Trying to do good but again causing mischief, Willie Tanner has told him to remove the poison oak and himself from the cabin.
George Foley played by actor Cleavon Little.
That brings us to George Foley, the owner of the cabin whose wife Margaret passed away two weeks before Christmas. His world has ended as he's known it and he is trying to make others happy for one more holiday season. George Foley appears to be distant and unhappy and makes one wonder if he is thinking his end is near as well. Mr. Foley stopped by the cabin on his way to the children’s hospital to play Santa Claus and deliver toys. Alf, in his alien wisdom, decides to check out what is inside of the truck as its driven away.
Santa Claus distributes toys at the children's hospital while Alf hides in plain sight.
At the hospital, Alf is loaded onto a “sleigh” with the other toys and one by one the sick children receive a toy from Santa. One of the last toys to be given away is Alf. He is given to a dying 8 year old girl named Tiffany. Through the night he talks to her and she tells him about how she is alone at the hospital and soon she will be going to a new world.
Alf is emotionally touched by the terminally ill Tiffany.
Alf explains he too is from a different world. He did fine and found new friends and she will too. It is Tiffany that tells Alf that Christmas is not about getting gifts its about giving of yourself. Alf is a true gift to this frighten little girl. He’s starting to get a grip on the meaning of Christmas.
While trapped in an elevator in the hospital, Dr. Gordon Shumway assists in the delivery of a baby on Christmas Eve.
When Tiffany falls asleep, Alf tries to find a way out of the hospital so he can try to find his way back to the cabin only to encounter a woman trapped in an elevator about to deliver her Christmas Eve baby--a girl--to which he asked her to name her baby Tiffany. The new mom thanks Alf for giving of himself and helping her to deliver her baby. Alf replies that she has given him the gift of gratitude and he is now understanding that Christmas is not about presents--it is about giving something of yourself to others no matter how big of small.
Once again Alf manages to find himself back on the “sleigh” and over hears the doctor telling George Foley that Tiffany is dying and won’t see another Christmas and that she told him this was the best Christmas Eve ever. Alf knows its because he listened to her and spent time with her. He also hears George gave his life savings to the hospital as if he is planning to die soon himself.
George Foley has his own 'George Bailey' moment, ala "It's A Wonderful Life."
Tucked back into the truck Alf is listening to the radio that George is playing Christmas music on when it starts to heavily snow. George stops on a classic bridge over a river and in true “It’s a Wonderful Life” moment, George decides to jump. Alf appears in a Santa suit and tries to talk to George into coming off the bride. Alf’s argument to George is that he has more people to make happy and that he can’t do that if he jumps. Alf tells him that a very young girl told Alf it's not about getting something--it's about giving and George still has a lot more giving to do. George steps down and precedes to take Alf to the cabin since Alf tells George that he wants to make Willie his next Santa helper.
Alf talks George down, convincing him that his selfish act will leave behind people who still need him.
Alf arrives early Christmas morning down the chimney head first and stuck “HA” as Alf says. Alf proceeds to tell the Tanner family of his hospital adventure and the Tanner family makes a visit to the hospital to visit the dying Tiffany and also find George Foley there as well. All is well with the world….at least for the time being in Alf’s world.
Alf brings the Tanner family together with Mr. Foley and Tiffany.
Alf has always been a favorite sitcom of mine. Back in the day watching Alf with the two boys that I babysat for on Thursday’s nights we would be glued in front of their television. Alf is the inner being of all of us or so it seems. We all have our moments when we try to do good and well, it is not perceived as such. Bringing a branch of poison ivy thinking it was holly or mistletoe. Switching tags so it looks like he has a gift for everyone not realizing that being together as a family is more important then receiving a new sweater or bath robe.
Being with family brings no greater joy to me. To me, it's not about the Christmas gifts, it’s the birth of our Savoir and passing along family traditions of being together on Christmas. Sure the gifts are nice….but it is so much better to give than receive and giving of yourself is easy for anyone to do. Giving of yourself should not just be for Christmas it should be all year round. Just think what a wonderful world it would be if we all were givers instead of takers?
So if you want to take a trip down memory lane, sit down at your computer and pull up Alf’s Special Christmas and enjoy a classic heart warming Christmas tale of giving of yourself enjoy a few laughs as only Alf can provide and for Pete’s sake, keep your cat close by! HA!
Merry Christmas in July! There are many things going on here at the blog during the month of July:
--All month I'll be featuring discussions about science fiction-themed Christmas entertainments. We'll have guest bloggers as well as posts written by me. I'm calling it SCI-FI Christmas in July because I like how it rhymes. This will be a lot of fun!
--My publisher 1701 Press has made my first book The Christmas TV Companion (2009) available as an e-book. Starting July 2nd, you can purchase the book in digital form from Amazon.com, Barnes&Noble.com, and OmniLit.com.
--I will also be giving away some fun DVDs throughout the month. Who doesn't love free stuff?
Did you know I provide daily updates on holiday programming currently airing on television? You can receive these updates if you follow me on Twitter (@TistheSeasonTV) and on Facebook page: Tis the Season TV. I also host a Facebook page which is a link from this blog: Christmas TV History, and another Facebook page for fans of my first book The Christmas TV Companion. So much opportunity for holiday TV discussions, all the time. Please consider following all of them as there are different things happening between each of them.
So crank up the air conditioning and enjoy the season--Merry Christmas in July!!
In the 2011 Christmas episode "Holidays of Future Passed" on The Simpsons you'll find one of my favorite holiday jokes. Homer finds himself contemplating what his life would be like if he'd never seen the movie It's A Wonderful Life. Not only have we all seen the classic Jimmy Stewart movie umpteen times, but many of us have seen the endless re-makes, adaptations, and re-tellings of the familiar story told each year on television episodes, specials and movies. Some of them are done creatively and inspire viewers to re-visit the original meaning of the movie. And, some of the re-makes are done so poorly, it inspires viewers to change the channel. Were you aware that it all began with a short story entitled The Greatest Gift?
cover of deluxe edition from Penguin Books
The Greatest Gift is a short story written by Philip Van Doren Stern. It was originally given out as a Christmas card by the author in 1943 and then he sold the movie rights. Several years later, director Frank Capra read it and saw the potential for a movie he'd like to make. The rest is Hollywood history. The original short story has since become a book. If you get a copy of the deluxe edition from Penguin Books published in 1996 on the 50th anniversary of the release of the movie It's A Wonderful Life, you'll be able to read an afterword by Marguerite Stern Robinson, the daughter of the author, who provides some history behind her father's great short story and its legacy.
George Bailey on the edge of the bridge contemplating life.
Fans of It's A Wonderful Life will surely love to read the original inspiration for the movie. It's also quite interesting to see how efficient the short story is compared to the full-length movie that is filled with many small details and more characters. The short story begins on the bridge on Christmas Eve with our character George contemplating killing himself when he meets his guardian angel. When George confesses he wished he'd never been born, the stranger helps him by making his wish come true. Then George is sent on his way, no longer having to worry about his troubles, his responsibilities, his wife or his children any longer. The stranger also hands him a bag filled with cleaning brushes from The World Cleaning Company (think door-to-door brush salesman)--to help make it easier for George to start conversations with a town full of people who no longer know him. Obviously, what George discovers is that his life meant something to those whom he met and worked with. George learns he made a difference in the world and everyone's life touches everyone else's whether we recognize it or not. It is essentially the same story as the much-beloved Christmas movie.
Clarence gives George a book
But there are a few differences. Besides being boiled down (you can easily read it less than an hour), the short story also has a few structural differences. The long back history in the movie of George Bailey's life growing up in Bedford Falls is gone. The story starts with George standing on the edge of the bridge wanting to jump. But another difference is worth noting--the brushes he's given by his magical stranger seem to replace Clarence's gift of the book from the movie. Even if you're not a big fan of It's a Wonderful Life, it's still fascinating to read the story that started it all.
Have you read this short story before? What other Christmas books do you like to read?
