Christmas is likely my favorite
holiday. The opportunity to share our blessings with our friends and family,
and the needy, is a life-affirming experience — especially for those of us
living in the Northern latitudes with the accompanying short days and long,
dark, cold nights. Being a child of the 1960s and 70s, many of my Christmas memories are intertwined with the annual holiday TV specials and films from that era. Over the years, I have posted a number of articles and
uploaded various film and video clips of the holiday season. As with
Halloween (see An Aeolus 13 Umbra Halloween), all related articles and films have been compiled in one post.
All videos hosted by the Aeolus
13 Umbra YouTube channels.
1966 CBS Seasons Greetings: Animation by R.O. Blechman:
These classic CBS commercials by artist R.O. Blechman remind the viewers of the
simple and charitable meaning of the Yuletide season.
J.T.: An Urban Christmas Carol: This little-seen
1969 CBS holiday special takes a gritty look at the hard-scrabble life in New
York City ghettos, and a street cat stands in as the Christ-child.
Scrooge: A Christmas Carol (1951): The classic film
version with Alastair Sim.
The Night Before Christmas (1968): An early
animated TV version of the classic Christmas poem.
The Night the Animals Talked (1970): A rarely
shown, but fondly remembered, musical version of a Norwegian folk tale.
The Star Wars Holiday Special: Many have heard
about it, few have seen it, and probably with good reason, but definitely worth
a look for hard-core Star Wars and 1970s fans.
Two Christmas Carols: The 1970 musical version
with Albert Finney (my favorite) and the Academy Award winning 1971 animated
film short with Alastair Sim revisiting his classic 1951 film performance.
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