A Different Kind of Christmas (TV 1996)

When you're the city attorney you don't need the kinds of problems that her father was giving her. After her mother died, her father began doing his "Santa Schick," as she called it, much ... See full summary »

Director:

Tom McLoughlin

Writer:

Bart Baker

Stars:

Shelley Long, Barry Bostwick, Nathan Lawrence

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Shelley Long	...	Elizabeth Gates
Barry Bostwick	...	Frank Mallory
Nathan Lawrence	...	Tommy Gates
Nancy McLoughlin	...	Susan
Michael E. Knight	...	Alan Schaefer
Bruce Kirby	...	Santa
Richard K. Olsen	...	Henry
Janell McLeod	...	Fran
Keith Flippen	...	Michael
Rebecca Koon	...	Marguerite
Troy Simmons	...	Lester
Wells Struble	...	Charlie
John Pontrelli	...	Homeless Father
Kelly Wilson	...	Receptionist
Barry Bell	...	Mover

Storyline

When you're the city attorney you don't need the kinds of problems that her father was giving her. After her mother died, her father began doing his "Santa Schick," as she called it, much more intensely... which meant that he turned his home into a kind of year-round Santa Claus castle where children of all ages could come to see the wonderful presents and no child ever left without a gift. But what's wrong with this kind of philanthropic generosity was that it totally embarrassed her when, as city attorney, it fell to her to make him stop his 'commercial' enterprise in an area zoned for private homes. But there's more to it than that and the outcome is not quite what you'd expect.

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Plot Keywords:

family relationships | christmas

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Taglines:

Santa Claus - A Neighbor from Heaven or Hell?

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

9 December 1996 (USA)

Also Known As:

Santa and Me

Filming Locations:

Wilmington, North Carolina, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Carroll Newman Productions, Hearst Entertainment Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

90 min

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

In the Biography Channel TV-Series, Celebrity Ghost Stories, actress Shelley Long tells a story about a behind-the-scenes haunting experience which occurred at the Wilmington Courthouse in which she filmed at for this movie.

User Reviews

It starts off well, and then the stress level increases.

Santa Claus is coming to town . . . and setting up shop.

Santa moves in. He decorates the house, and the yard (including 4-foot candy canes and a fake-snow maker). Kids come by, and are enchanted with the love Santa gives. Unfortunately, MANY kids come by to share time with Santa. This increased traffic and parking upsets some of the neighbors (who don't have that Christmas spirit). One of the kids is lonely because his mom is too focused on her career (city attorney), and has little time (or attention) to give him personally.

This part of the movie is so sweet. Imagine, a real nice guy giving warmth and love to kids, and allowing their parents to see how to be kind.

The city attorney is pushed into enforcing the nuisance statute (for the traffic and parking problems). Most of the rest of the movie is pretty stressful. Mom is adamant about her son staying away from Santa (his one fun thing in life). Then, the legal system grinds away at Santa.

I enjoy the Santa. I wish I was an attorney, so I could help him.