Wishing everyone a Merry Christmas and peace on earth for all.
Tag Archives: Christmas
Christmas Interlude: Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas
For those who celebrate, here is wishing you all a Merry Christmas and to everyone Peace and Joy.
photo by John Greco
Newspaper Ads: Vintage Christmas Movie Ads
Christmas Interlude #4 – 25 Favorite Songs of the Season
Here are 25 of my favorite Christmas songs (many with links). They are in no particular order, it was hard enough narrowing it down to 25 never mind putting them in order. Still, I feel like I left many great ones off the list, like “Cool Yule” originally a hit for Louis Armstrong and later on terrific versions by Bette Midler and Brian Setzer and “Merry Merry Christmas Baby” by the Tune Weavers and Ole Santa by Diana Washington. Other artists like Sinatra, Dean Martin, Johnny Mathis and Nat King Cole have so many great holiday songs it was difficult to select just one or two. And what about The Beach Boys and Little Saint Nick which blasted on my transitor radio in middle school and Jingle Bell Rock which has been recorded by so many over the years and…well you get the idea. Anyway, here are the 25 I selected, most are the usual suspects, some not so much. Would like to here what you listen to.
1- Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas – Frank Sinatra
2 – Blue Christmas – Elvis Presley
3 – Santa Claus Is Back In Town – Elvis Presley
4 – The Christmas Song – Nat King Cole
5 – Winter Wonderland – Johnny Mathis
6 –Sleigh Ride – Johnny Mathis
7 – Holly Jolly Christmas – Burl Ives
8 – No Place Like Home for the Holidays – Perry Como
9 – The Christmas Blues – Dean Martin
10 – Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow – Dean Martin
11 – The Little Drummer Song – Bob Seger
12 – Happy Christmas (War is Over) – John Lennon
13 – Please Come Home For Christmas (Charles Brown or The Eagles versions)
14 – Run Rudolph Run – (Chuck Berry or Keith Richards – this is Chuck’s version)
15 – White Christmas – Bing Crosby
16 – It’s Beginning to look a Lot Like Christmas – Bing Crosby
17 – River – Joni Mitchell
18 -Father Christmas – The Kinks
19 – Rockin Around The Christmas Tree – Brenda Lee
20 – It’s The Most Wonderful Time of the Year – Andy Williams
21 – White Christmas – The Drifters
22 – Santa Baby – Eartha Kitt (This is Kitt’s version)
23 – Merry Christmas Baby – Bruce Springsteen (There are a lot of good versions of this song including Charles Brown, Elvis, Dion and others. The version here is by Charles Brown)
24 – Santa Claus is Coming to Town – Bruce Springsteen
25 – Christmas (Baby Please Come Home) – Darlene Love
Christmas Interlude #3 Five Traditional and Five Alternative Christmas Movies and More
FIVE TRADITIONAL CHRISTMAS FILMS
1 – Barbara Stanwyck made two Christmas movies in her career, “Christmas in Connecticut” and “Remember the Night”. While I like both (Stanwyck being one of my favorite actresses) the latter, written by Preston Sturges is a witty film with charming performances, and is now available on DVD.
2 – “Holiday Inn” introduced Irving Berlin’s yuletide classic ‘White Christmas.” While it is improbable, and economically unsound, to say the least, to run an Inn that only opens on Holidays the odd premise does nothing to take away from the many joys of this film. 
3 – My favorite film to watch on Thanksgiving Day is “Miracle on 34th Street with Natalie Wood and Edmund Gwenn, a true holiday classic. There have been various remakes of this movie over the years most of which are easily forgettable. There is the 1973 TV version with David Hartman and Jane Alexander, and a mediocre 1994 film where they could not use the name “Macy’s” because the department store refused to give them permission. There are a couple of other TV adaptations of which a live 1959 version with Ed Wynn, as Kris Kringle, was discovered a few years ago. A kinescope was donated some years back by NBC to the Library of Congress, where it laid buried, unseen and forgotten. Read more here.
4 – “A Christmas Carol” (1951) with Alastair Sims. Originally titled “Scrooge” this is generally considered the best version and I agree. Still, there are many good versions of this classic Charles Dicken’s story out there.
5 – Monty Wooley’s Sheridan Whiteside makes Ebenezer Scrooge look like Mr. Nice Guy in this classic screen version of George S Kaufmann’s play, “The Man Who Came to Dinner”.
FIVE ALTERNATIVE CHRISTMAS FILMS
1- Bob Hope’s “The Lemon Drop Kid.” Okay, I know what you thinking, “Bob Hope on an alternative list? Stop spiking this guys punch!” Well, unless you really hate Bob Hope, you will enjoy this lessor known work. Based on a Christmas themed Damon Runyon story, made in 1951, the movie is a load of fun. If you are familiar with Damon Runyon then you know the story will revolve around racetracks, gamblers, gangsters and con-artists. Also, the classic song “Silver Bells”, sung by Hope and Marilyn Maxwell, was introduced in this movie.
2 – In “The Ref” Denis Leary is a cat burglar who is holding a dysfunctional family hostage on Christmas Eve and they drive him nuts. If you ever felt like a hostage at a family function this film is for you.
3 – Anyone who has seen Woody Allen’s “Small Time Crooks” will recognize the premise of “Larceny Inc.“ Edward G. Robinson does a wonderful takeoff on his gangster image in this fun-filled comedy. The Christmas scene involves co-star Broderick Crawford who dresses as Santa to create a diversion while Eddie G. and the rest of his gang drill through the wall of his luggage store and into the bank located on the other side. When the cantankerous Santa (Crawford is flawless here) is beat up and knocked out by holiday shoppers, Robinson takes over putting on the Santa outfit.
4 – Shane Black’s idiosyncratic “Kiss Kiss Bang Bang” is a crime thriller/black comedy set during the Christmas season. Filled with in-jokes, including the film’s title, the film engages many conventional crime drama traits with its tongue firmly in cheek. If my memory serves me well, the film did not do well at the box office, despite good reviews, however it has found a following since its release on DVD. 
5- “The Ice Harvest” unfortunately came and went fairly quickly in theaters. John Cusack is Charlie a slimy mob attorney who, along with his partner Vic (Bill Bob Thornton), unburden his boss of a few million dollars during one ice ridden Christmas Eve. Only problem is they cannot get out of town due to all the ice on the roads. To avoid suspicion, they split up for the night with Vic holding the money. Charlie spends the night getting involved with a beautiful strip club owner who has her own agenda, his drunken friend who married his ex-wife and the rest of his dysfunctional family and now regretting every minute of it. Another dark moody holiday delight.
A MOST INTRIGUING YET TO BE SEEN CHRISTMAS MOVIE
When I first read about this film, “Christmas Holiday” with Gene Kelly and Deanna Durbin, I thought, sounds like a sweet happy musical filled holiday treat. Only then I looked at the credits and read “Directed by Robert Siodmak. This does not sound right. As I investigated more I found out its a crime ridden film noir with Kelly playing a murderer and the usual perky Durbin is his girlfriend who is fully aware of what he is. Siodmak made the film the same year he directed “Cobra Woman” and “Phantom Lady.” To make this film even more intriguing it is based on a novel by Somerset Maugham with a screenplay by Herman J. Mankiewicz. I just ordered the DVD the other day and will let you know more later on.
What follows is a list of 10 other favorite Christmas theme related films.
Die Hard
Christmas in Connecticut
Desk Set
Black Christmas (Original version)
Trading Places
The Shop Around the Corner
A Christmas Carol (with George C. Scott)
Bad Santa
Scrooge (the Musical)
and It’s a Wonderful Life (of course)
There are plenty of other wonderful Christmas films (and a barn full of bad ones) whether traditional or not, so feel free to submit your favorites.
Christmas Interlude #2 – Beatles Christmas
Below are some photos of The Beatles Official Fan Club Christmas Records given exclusively to fan club members only.
Before Capitol Records gained the exclusive rights for Beatles recordings in the U.S., VeeJay Records used this sleeve to release Beatles 45’s (I am not sure but probably Please Please Me/From Me to You) during the 1964 Christmas season.
In 1963 and 1964 The Beatles performed in their own Christmas Shows. They performed their latest songs and took part in comical skits. Other groups such as Billy J. Kramer and The Dakotas were also part of the show. These shows were mostly in London though one took place in Liverpool and one in Bradford. Below is a copy of a souvenir program.
The Beatles at the Astoria Cinema in Finsbury, London performing in their Christmas Show.
Original picture sleeve for McCartney’s “Wonderful Christmastime” single.
Original picture sleeve for John Lennon’s Happy Xmas (War is Over) single.
Christmas Interlude #1 – Vintage Christmas Movie Posters
Starting today and going through the holiday season Twenty Four Frames will be celebrating Christmas with, for lack of a better name, some “Christmas Interludes.” These will appear every few days and will consist of various Christmas themed (mostly movie related) posters, photos, ads, etc. that have “gathered here on my desk” (thanks Andy Rooney). Hopefully, they will spread joy and cheer or at least a smile. And don’t worry, or do worry depending how how you feel about it, I will still be posting my regular reviews and essays.
Without further ado today’s feature is a series of Vintage Christmas Posters from some of our favorite holiday films.
