Going from memory, Christmas Is was the story of a little boy who was a shepherd in the school Christmas pageant. He grumbled and complained (I would have to say if it wasn't a Charlie Brown voice in usage, it was an excellent-ripoff-sound alike) and would finally engage in a strange 'learning the true meaning of Christmas' bit where he and his beloved sheepdog were transported (was it by a dream? I don't recall him being hit in the head) to the city of Bethlehem and the birth of Jesus.
What made the character of this child most distinctive was he wore his school clothes and had the shepherd shawl on his head and held the staff the entire time, merging the two time periods.
The cartoon stood out for its 'Christmas Is' song (none of which I can type now. Been too long) and for the child's voice, sounding too much like Charlie Brown, for whatever reason.
I would be willing to guess whoever made this cartoon was also responsible for Yes, Virginia, There Is A Santa Claus, in which Virginia's voice sounded incredibly like Sally, Charlie Brown's sister.
Both cartoons had strong Peanuts influenced animation and artwork.
I have seen Virginia in the past ten or fifteen years. One year I thought Christmas Is was going to air on the religious network, but the tivo didn't get it.
Eventually someone will get Christmas Is, Yes, Virginia and The Night The Animals Talked and start airing them again.
The Rankin-Bass ones are masterpieces, but there were others shown and to show.
I kept hearing about the Mr. Magoo Christmas show being outstanding, but no one ever aired it, until finally Cartoon Network did a couple of years, and it was stunning.
Maybe they should do the same with these guys.
What made the character of this child most distinctive was he wore his school clothes and had the shepherd shawl on his head and held the staff the entire time, merging the two time periods.
The cartoon stood out for its 'Christmas Is' song (none of which I can type now. Been too long) and for the child's voice, sounding too much like Charlie Brown, for whatever reason.
I would be willing to guess whoever made this cartoon was also responsible for Yes, Virginia, There Is A Santa Claus, in which Virginia's voice sounded incredibly like Sally, Charlie Brown's sister.
Both cartoons had strong Peanuts influenced animation and artwork.
I have seen Virginia in the past ten or fifteen years. One year I thought Christmas Is was going to air on the religious network, but the tivo didn't get it.
Eventually someone will get Christmas Is, Yes, Virginia and The Night The Animals Talked and start airing them again.
The Rankin-Bass ones are masterpieces, but there were others shown and to show.
I kept hearing about the Mr. Magoo Christmas show being outstanding, but no one ever aired it, until finally Cartoon Network did a couple of years, and it was stunning.
Maybe they should do the same with these guys.