The Year Without a Santa Claus (1974) (TV)

User Rating:

7.9/10   

Directors:

Jules Bass
Arthur Rankin Jr.

Writers:

William Keenan (writer)
Phyllis McGinley (novel)

Release Date:

10 December 1974 (USA)

Genre:

Animation | Family | Fantasy | Musical

Plot:

Mrs. Claus tells us about the time Santa had a bad cold and decided to take a vacation from Christmas...

Plot Keywords:

Christmas | Stop Motion | Santa Claus | Reindeer | Sibling Rivalry

Cast

Shirley Booth	...	Mrs. Santa (voice)
Mickey Rooney	...	Santa Claus (voice)
Dick Shawn	...	Snow Miser (voice)
George S. Irving	...	Heat Miser (voice)
Bob McFadden	...	Jingle Bells (voice)
Rhoda Mann	...	Mother Nature (voice)
Bradley Bolke	...	Jangle Bells (voice)
Ron Marshall	...	Mr. Thistlewhite (voice)
Colin Duffy	...	Ignatius Thistlewhite (voice)
Christine Winter	...	Blue Christmas girl (voice)

Runtime:

51 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

USA:Unrated

Company:

Rankin/Bass Productions

Trivia:

Shirley Booth's last filmed acting project.

Goofs:

Plot holes: While it is evident that Heat Miser allowed snow to fall on Southtown, there is no indication Snow Miser allowed warm, springlike weather on the North Pole in return.

Quotes:

Santa Claus: All right. What are you up to?
Mrs. Santa: Up to? Do I look like I'm up to something?
Santa Claus: No, you don't look like you're up to something, but whenever you look like you're not up to ANYTHING, you're up to something.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Batman & Robin (1997)

Soundtrack:

Snow Right Here in Dixie

Love Them Misers

I find this holiday made-for-T.V. movie to be one of the more charming of its kind, maybe because it's not as well known as "Rudolph" and "Frosty" and other holiday perennials.

In this one, Santa (voiced by Mickey Rooney, who also did Santa honors in "Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town") decides he's had enough of Christmas and those who don't appreciate him and cancels the holiday. Mrs. Claus (voiced by Shirley Booth) decides it's up to her to prove to Santa how much everyone still loves and admires him, so she sends off two elves on an around-the-world fact-finding mission to compile evidence of a belief in Santa and what he stands for. From there, the plot goes all over the place and nothing makes a whole lot of sense, but it's all harmless enough. The film's biggest selling point, of course, are the miser brothers, Heat and Snow, who each get a showstopping burlesque number complete with mini back up singers. I wish these two had been given a Christmas movie of their own.

Grade: A-