Every December I make it a point to watch all of the “classic” Christmas specials, either live on TV, on one of my DVDs, or, most likely, an old VHS tape I made copied for myself in 1997. This year has been especially satisfying for me, getting to watch these specials for the first time with my son.<\/p>\n
My favorite Christmas special, of course, is\u00a0A Charlie Brown Christmas.<\/em> Aired for the first time on December 9, 1965, it’s sort of the granddaddy of all TV specials, Christmas or otherwise.<\/p>\n I think few people realize that\u00a0Charlie Brown<\/em> was actually preceded by the less-heralded\u00a0Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer<\/em>.\u00a0Rudolph<\/em> first aired 50 years ago this week, on December 6, 1964.<\/p>\n I think\u00a0Rudolph<\/em> is underrated, especially the music. Everyone knows the main theme, but there are at least a half dozen other classic holiday tunes on that soundtrack.<\/p>\n And now my son understands when we get in the car and I announce:\u00a0First stop… the Island of Misfit Toys!<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Every December I make it a point to watch all of the “classic” Christmas specials, either live on TV, on one of my DVDs, or, most likely, an old VHS tape I made copied for myself in 1997. This year … Continue reading