Dr. Caligari's cabinet is now so crammed that he had to stow stuff in the Cupboard. Time may wound all heels but once in a while you need a cup of tea.
Another Rankin/Bass production, Frosty the Snowman, premiered on CBS-TV on this date.
This was Jimmy Durante’s final film (not counting documentaries and one short film appearance).
The original recording of Frosty The Snowman by Gene Autry was his seasonal follow-up to his successful recording of Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer in 1949.
This time he peaked at #7 in December 1950.
The Snowman in July (1944)
Frosty The Snowman (1953)
Snowman’s Dilemma (1960)
The Snowman (1982)
When this program first aired on PBS stations in the United States, the introduction featured a newly filmed introduction by David Bowie instead of Raymond Briggs on the grounds that the animation needed a star.
Before you go – I couldn’t resist this mashup of I Melt With Youand Frosty The Snowman by Les Skivvies
I should have known what the costumes for The Skivvies were going to be.
I will not play the songs featuring Olaf from Frozen (the earworms they cause has led to a UN report being issued concerning possible war crime being committed by yours truly.) Really, don’t bother to look for them if you can help yourself.
(So sorry -early version of this post aired before it was ready. Here is the completed post)
Happy Holidays to us all
Before our feature presentation, The ACME Eagle Hand Soap Radio Hour would like to start the evening with a holiday favorite the 1935 Harman-Ising short, Alias St. Nick, directed by Rudolph Ising.
The unclothed rear view of the popular Kewpie doll just made it past the censors of the time, as the Hays Code was applicable to animated cartoons as well as cinematic offerings.
Before the start of our feature presentation, iwe thought that we'd catch another quick round of a QI Christmas compilation:
We always get a smile from watching Stephen Fry.
Happy Holidays! ACME wants you to join them in celebrating the holidays with your friends at The ACME Eagle Hand Soap Radio Hour - the official soap of our nation's bald eagles. Remember if your bald eagle's talons are filthy, do we have a soap for you! So why not join us in watching one of Fred Astaire's last films, the heart warming 1979 Christmas film, The Man in the Santa Claus Suit, directed by Corey Allen and starring, Fred Astaire, Gary Burghoff, John Byner, Bert Convy, Nanette Fabray, Harold Gould, and Majel Barret.
Besides being Fred Astaire's final TV appearance, the film features a rare special appearance by Nanette Fabray who had previously worked with Fred Astaire in the MGM musical The Bandwagon in 1953. Also ironically she makes reference to Fred and Ginger in this movie.
It's the Feast of Saint Nicholas (yes, that St. Nick.)
Amongst other things, he is the patron saint of children and was known for his generosity. He's also known as the patron saint of sailors, fishermen, merchants, the falsely accused, prostitutes (Huh), repentant thieves, pharmacists and broadcasters.
Let's check out some other ways St. Nick has been portrayed:
Things We THINK We Know About St. Nicholas –
The Harvard of Santa Schools – -
Santa Claus' Workshop (1950)
Careless Santa They Might Be Giants -
'Zat You Santa Claus Louis Armstrong -
Here Comes Santa Claus – Gene Autry -
We have another Christmas video countdown today - Rudolph! Today is the 61th anniversary of the original broadcast of Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer,
Rudolph was born 86 years ago this Christmas season, at the Montgomery Ward department store headquarters in Chicago. He was the star of a humble coloring book, written by a copywriter, Robert May, who almost named the protagonist “Reginald.” The character of Rudolph was indeed born out of Robert May's personal experiences, and his feelings of isolation as a child. Even though some executives were worried about the red nose possibly implying drunkenness, it was clear that the message of acceptance and overcoming adversity had universal appeal. The story resonated deeply with people, especially during the Great Depression, when many were struggling.
The decision to pass out millions of copies of the book ensured that Rudolph became a holiday staple.
A short documentary from the Norwegian Postal Service about Reindeers
Original Rankin/Bass Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer end credits (in black and white)
Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer (1944) -
Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer Gene Autry -
Creed sings (Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer")
various commercials feature Rudolph and his friends -
Today's holiday special - Really Bad Christmas songs.
I received word from medical authorities that I should avoid posting Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer. It would be considered risky given your mental state.
Duly noted.
Rock and Roll Santa Jan Terri -
Please don't get me wrong - this is bad. Really bad. Spectacularly bad. And yet, Ms. Terri is very well known as an 'Outsider Rock and Roll' performer and there are people posting on the web that this is one of their favorite holiday songs. It's starting to have an Ed Wood, Plan Nine From Outer Space feel to it.
Christmas Cookies RuPaul -
There are certain words you never want to hear in a holiday song: "Finger-licking," "back door," "piping hot," "loving oven," and "Dutch oven." Because nothing says Christmas like a fart joke.
Don't Shoot Me Santa The Killers -
Another holiday song that no one asked for - a murderous boy pleading with Santa to not shoot him. But they, there are folks who love this one.
Spin Me a Christmas Aqua –
First Barbie Girl in 1997 then 12 years later this. It's just a Scandinavian nightmare.
Dominick the DonkeyLou Monte -
Just say no.
We'll end with our perennial favorite -
What list of cheesy holiday songs would be complete without this wretched dreck concerning a filthy child's odd foot fetish (especially since it centers around his dying mother) - always an uplifting tune.
But I will give Patton Oswald the final word on the subject.
OK bunkies, national inflation levels are on the rise, and that is reflected in the cost of celebrating Christmas in the style of the classic 12 Days of Christmas song, which has increased significantly this year. PNC Bank's annual survey reveals a 4.5% increase in the price of the items featured in the song, totaling $51,476.12 for 2025—an increase of $2,212.65 from last year. This rise in cost largely mirrors the increase in service prices, as inflationary pressures have mainly impacted services rather than goods like birds, which have remained fairly steady.
The price of gold, unfortunately, surged by a soaring 32.5% year-over-year. Interestingly, while purchasing the items online still costs more, the price gap between in-store and online shopping has narrowed compared to previous years. In 2025, buying the entire set of items online would cost $55,748.05, a $4,271.93 premium over in-store purchases. This represents a 3.1% increase from the 2024 online total of $54,073.69.
If you were to buy all the gifts from the entire song - every single repeat of all 12 items - the “True Cost of Christmas,” when doing your own shopping (as opposed to shopping online), would be a staggering $218,542.98, reflecting a 5% increase from the 2024 total.
So it stands to reason that today's holiday theme is - The Twelve Days Of Christmas
The 12 Days Of Christmas -
12 Drinks of Christmas Fay McKay -
Christmas Countdown Frank Kelly-
The 12 Days of Christmas A Tale of Avian Misery -
The 12 Gifts of Christmas Allan Sherman -
The Twelve Days of Yaksmas -
Simon's Cat 12 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS -
Tonight is the unofficial start of London’s holiday season, when the annual lighting ceremony of the Trafalgar Square Christmas tree is held on the first Thursday in December.
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The tree is a gift given to Britain by the people of Norway as a thank you for support during the Second World War. The tradition has been ongoing since 1947. The Lord Mayor of Westminster, Councillor Paul Dimoldenberg will be hosting the Mayor of Oslo, Anne Lindboe, and the Norwegian Ambassador, Tore Hattrem.
(They also light the tree in Boston Commons tonight. The tree is a gift from the city of Halifax, Nova Scotia, and has been sent every year since the 1970s. It is in recognition of the swift and sustained relief effort the people of Boston put together to aid Halifax after the explosion in their harbor in 1917. )
Thousands of poor souls will gather to see the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree be lit for the first time this holiday season tonight. Remember to bundle up and bring a polo mallet with you if you, unfortunately, find yourself in midtown.
If you think I'm bad with remembering season dates: The Rockefeller Center website can't seem to agree with or not it is the 93rd or 94th annual Rockefeller Christmas Tree Lighting.
The first tree was put up by the construction workers at the Rockefeller Center site in 1931 - the workers pooled their funds to purchase a 20-foot balsam and decorated it with a string of cranberries, a few tin cans and homemade paper garlands from their families. Another tree was put up again by the construction workers and lighting may have been involved.
According to their website: The Rockefeller Center made the Christmas tree an annual tradition and held the very first tree lighting ceremony with a 40-foot evergreen that was strung up with 700 lights.
Do you really want to be stuck in the middle of potential Darwin Award winners and their children who should be forced to play in traffic? So once again, I’m giving native New Yorkers a gentle reminder – watch last year’s lighting here.
This year, Reba McEntire, Marc Anthony, Kristin Chenoweth, Brad Paisley, Gwen Stefani, and more, as well as, the refugees from overbooked ancient hotels in the holy land are involved this year.
Exert extreme caution!
It’s the holiday season, so let’s get lit - Christmas Light Shows:
According to recent surveys, approximately 90% of Americans celebrate Christmas in some form, includes both religious and secular observances, such as family gatherings, gift exchanges, and holiday traditions that are not necessarily tied to Christian beliefs. This means there are approximately 100 to 120million households households in the United States that celebrate the holiday. While not every home in the U.S. that celebrates Christmas decorates with extravagant lighting, many of them do.
Electricity use in the United States in 2024 was more than 12 times greater than electricity use in 1950. The amount of electricity used by holiday lights is determined by the type of light used. The most common include 100-light mini lights. These lights use 0.039 kWh of electricity per hour, which is around 0.95 kWh per day. Ceramic C7 lights are also widely used. A 100-light strand uses 130 watts, which is around 0.13 kWh per hour, resulting in a daily use of around 3.15 kWh.
According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the average cost for electricity in the United States is about 17 - 18 cents per kWh, in 2024. Based on that cost and the known wattage for typical bulbs, you can do the math to determine how much it costs to power a standard 100-bulb strand. The bigger the bulb, the more juice it takes to make it sparkle. For those big old-school C9 bulbs that are used most often for outdoor displays (and popularized by Clark Griswold, you can plan on paying for 175 watts of power for a single 25-bulb strand. Run that strand 12 hours a day for a 45-day period, and you’ll pay around $16.06 per strand over the holiday season. Prefer mini lights instead? A 100-light strand of incandescent minis runs around $16 per season. Some extreme household decorators can spend an extra $2,125 to light their displays!
It’s nice to see that the public is helping support the public utilities. You know that they are barely eking out a living.
ACME commemorates the anniversary of St. Elvis' comeback with their annual tribute -
Touch but his sweat soaked leather raiments and be made whole again:
Today's holiday theme - It's an Elvis Christmas today
If Every Day Was Like Christmas -
Merry Christmas Baby -
I Believe -
Santa Claus Is Back in Town -
Oh Little Town of Bethlehem -
Christmas Duets -
If you find yourself all tingly in your bulbous naughty bits;
Along with I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus, this was one of the first Christmas novelty songs. Christmas songs written at the time tended to be nostalgic looks at the holiday or kid's songs, but this one took a different approach, with Eartha Kitt singing about how she's been good all year and expects some very expensive gifts to appear, including a fur coat, a new coat and even a yacht. This girl has expensive taste.
(There’s No Place Like) Home For The Holidays -
The song was recorded twice by Perry Como. Once in 1954, and released as a single for Christmas. The second time was in 1959 and has appeared on many compilations records.
Silver Bells
This Christmas classic was written by Jay Livingston and Ray Evans for the 1951 Bob Hope movie The Lemon Drop Kid. The song was inspired by the Salvation Army bell ringers around the city. The following year Bing Crosby, together with Carol Richards recorded the first recorded version.
I'll be Home For Christmas -
This song quickly became one of America's most popular holiday songs along with White Christmas, which Bing Crosby had also recorded. The song particularly struck a nerve with overseas GIs and their families awaiting their return from serving their country in World War II. The GI magazine said Crosby accomplished more for military morale than anyone else of that era.
It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year -
Over the years, this song has become an enduring holiday standard with covers by several artists for their Christmas albums, including Johnny Mathis, Amy Grant, Vince Gill, Garth Brooks, Paul Anka, and Chicago, to name a few.
Remember, there is no prize for guessing the theme, except for the pride you can have within yourself
Don't fear the enemy that attacks you, bad the bad family that hugs you.
Some of the most poisonous people come disguised as friends and family - (the Motown edition)
Our second Christmas countdown - A Jackson Five Christmas
Up on the Housetop -
Up on the Housetop is a Christmas song written by Benjamin Hanby in 1864. This song is the second-oldest secular Christmas song, outdone only by Jingle Bells, which was written in 1857.
Give Love on Christmas -
Give Love on Christmas Day was written by Berry Gordy, Deke Richards, Fonce Mizell, and Freddie Perren for the Jackson 5 in 1970.
This is one of the first Christmas songs with a social and political message. This was written by Motown songwriters Ron Miller and Bryan Wells, the team that also wrote Stevie Wonder's songs A Place in the Sun and Yester-me, Yester-you, Yesterday.
Little Drummer Boy -
We here at ACME are wishing you time to enjoy the simple pleasures of this holiday season.
And if don't enjoy yourself, Joe will be coming by to give you the beating of your life.
