Dec 18 2008
Popcultured 25 Days of Christmas: Santa Claus is Coming to Town
Can’t let the 25 Days of Christmas go by without mentioning this one. The definitive Christmas classic, in my opinion, this was THE one that I waited for every year. You know, back in my day there wasn’t cable or VCR’s or DVR’s—you had to BE THERE to see these Christmas shows. And Rankin- Bass’ “Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town” was at the top of my list!
Narrated by Fred Astaire, this Christmas special explained the whole Santa Claus story, and how some of our popular Christmas traditions started. It was an animated show, using stop motion wood puppets. Totally cool technology at the time!
And the songs, they were a plenty. From “The First Toymakers to the King” to “One Foot in Front of the Other”, I still sing these songs (with my kids) today.
You can catch “Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town” every Christmas season on TV (usually on ABC Family) but check out the DVD version—the show is restored in its entirety, without any annoying cuts.
