Thursday, December 18, 2008

Christmas on TV...

As we get closer to Our Lord's birthday, I was thinking about all the Christmas shows that are out on tv now... between ABC Family and the Hallmark Channel, there's a bizillion to choose from. But I'm an old school kind of guy. Now, though I am a christian, and I believe in the REAL meaning of Christmas, I still enjoy Christmas themed shows because even though they are more secular and revolve around holiday characters and activities (santa, shopping, decorating the tree, etc...) They still take me back to a more innocent time. As tough as things are right now with the economy, I enjoy the old school movies and tv shows that highlight the joy of Christmas. Looking back, I started thinking about which of the old school shows and movies were my favorites. I couldn't pick just one of each. But I limited my picks to three of each. So I narrowed it down to my top three Christmas movies and top three Christmas shows.

Top 3 Movies:

1) A Christmas Story- Watching Peter Billingsley as Ralphie and Darren McGavin as his father, this flick is an absolute classic. The fish-net legged stocking lamp is my favorite part. That and when Ralphie inadvertently curses while his dad is changing a flat tire an ends up with a bar of Lifeboy Soap in his mouth... Priceless stuff.

2) It's a Wonderful Life- Yeah, it's a bit schmaltzy when you watch it, but hey, with the economy as it is right now, maybe we should watch this one again and pay attention to the last 45 minutes of the movie...

3) The Santa Clause- Okay, so it's not as old as the others, but I love Tim Allen in the first movie. The sequels that followed were kind of blah, but the first one is always a favorite.


Top 3 TV Shows:

1) Rudolph the Rednosed Reindeer- How can you not get a hoot out of Rudolph flying through the air screaming "I'm cute! I'm cute! She said I'm cuuute!" or Yukon Cornelius... "bumbles bounce"...

2) Santa Claus is Coming To Town- Okay, two words: Bergermeister Meisterberger

3) Charlie Brown Christmas- One of the few that actually references the Birth of Our Lord as the true meaning of Christmas. Plus, I love the tree that Charlie Brown picks out. To this day, when I see a lame looking tree, I refer to it as a "chuck tree"...

There you have it... How about you? What's your favorite Christmas movie and tv show? Let me know and I hope you all are enjoying this time of year...

3 comments:

Unknown said...

This is one of the many things I love about you. Even though you claim to at one time be a bada** it's nearly impossible for me to imagine my Mik that way. Your the sweetest most kind man I could ever imagine..............

We both know our movie tastes are entirely different lol but my one favorite Christmas movie is, bad as it is, National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation..........lol

Tv show......it's a tossup for me between Ruddolf and Charlie Brown.

Carolyn said...

As usual Mik- we like the same! I still watch Rudolph and Charlie Borwn every Christmas, because like you, it reminds me of being a kid, and now I watch them with my boy. I haven't been able to catch Santa Clause is Comming to Town in a long time though- I always seem to miss when it's on, but yeah, you gotta love Burgermeister! I love Christmas Story too. Oh, and Christmas Vacation (untangle these for me will ya Rusty?!) God Bless you Mik- always keep your inner child! ;-) Have a wonderful and Blessed Christmas brother.

Helen said...

May you and your family continue to recieve God's blessings. I very seldom watch TV anymore but I remember all the Kids show from when mine were small. Helen