donnamariejones

This episode is amazing!!! Wonder if the storyline really happened because it was brilliant!!! Although touching on the very religious aspect of the holiday which is the real reason for the season; if this episode were made today there's be objections probably that it was too religious. But I can't imagine anyone criticizing this beautiful story. But that was TV way back and for many people like me bring back so many childhood memories and days of simpler times.

The story is set on Christmas Eve and a very mild story for this show and for Jack Webb who looked like a very tough guy. It was actually the only episode I understand remade twice for the original radio version. This is the second remake in the 60's with Harry Morgan playing Bill Gannon. Here the story is titled "The Christmas Story" and in the 1950's episode it was titled "The Big Little Jesus". The story begins with Joe and Bill getting a call from a priest that the statue of Baby Jesus from the Manger was stolen. The priest explains it doesn't have much monetary value but has a lots of sentimental value as the people of the parish whom are poor had saved and bought it 30 years earlier. So the story goes into Joe and Bill are not on usual duty but on robbery and their swathe t is hesitant about them spending time on this case when there's bigger fish to fry but he gives in and tells them to continue in the case as they had explained the statues non monetary value to the people of the church. Not to give any secrets away but the cast was great - the priest, pawn store clerk and hotel clerk along with Jack Webb had played the same characters in the 1950's episode. You'll recognize the priest as the jewel robber from I Love Lucy on the train home from their trip episode. The alter boy is played by a young Greg from Brady Bunch and Dr. Early from Emergency is playing a bum very well. Very good job of playing a very different character. But anyway see fir yourself as others said - you won't be disappointed and as one reviewer said it's a lovely story but especially probably if you see it in the Christmas season which I did.

Interestingly I told my brother who is a Catholic priest about this touching story and he chuckled. We being too young to have watched this when it was first broadcast and saw episodes in repeats but never saw a lot of them and neither one of us as far as I remember saw this story - unless we forget although I can't imagine we could. He laughed because I was watching it on my iPad and it was very close to Christmas and a parishioner at church had just told him about watching this sane episode the night before as I believe the person saw it on a channel with old tv Christmas episodes marathon. Obviously being that person felt same as i abd commenters and I'm sure ma y other people were touched by the sincerity and poignant touching story and shared it with a priest like I thinking he would appreciate the touching point of the story considering it was from an old police tv show. I told my daughter and we are going to watch it one day because she was excited to see it but we forgot after the holiday but you can be sure we'll watch it numerous times as I did last year. I didn't know till after Christmas last year that this story was fine twice on this show. This is the episode I originally saw then watched the other to compare but the dialogue was almost identical but with other actors except the 4 I mentioned before. Extremely notable was the little boy in this episode was more believable and played the character so well of his part in fact better than the little boy in the 1950's story.