Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on December 13th, 2011
"'Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house, not a creature was stirring...not even a mouse..."
The poem is a popular one. It was originally titled A Visit From St. Nick and has been a holiday staple since the 1820's. No one knows for sure who wrote it, and there are several schools of thought on its authorship. What is not in doubt is that the lines are about as familiar as Christmas itself. Over the years it has been lampooned and used as an inspiration for many films, plays and songs. In 1974 Rankin & Bass tackled the title, and it has since become a holiday staple.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on November 2nd, 2011
Every generation has had its Christmas classics, films that have become as much a part of the holiday family traditions as Christmas trees and candy canes. For me it has been the more modern A Christmas Story with ol’ Carl Kolchak himself, Darren McGavin. Kids today have taken more of a shine to even more recent films, but for more than one generation, Christmas wouldn’t be the same without Frank Capra’s It’s A Wonderful Life. Since 1947 the film became a seasonal fixture in neighborhood movie houses across the fruited plain. In the 1970’s the film temporarily fell into the public domain and was played relentlessly on local television stations as each holiday came and went.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on October 11th, 2011
It's hard to believe that one of the most popular comedy shows of the 1950's was not really a show at all, at least not in the way that we think of a television series today. The show began its life in 1951 as a segment on the popular Cavalcade of Stars. At that time only Jackie Gleason and Art Carney starred in their familiar roles. Alice was played by Pert Kelton. The series took its more recognizable look when it became part of The Jackie Gleason Show in 1955. That's also when Joyce Randolph joined the series as Trixie Norton. The series would take up a half hour of the slot.
!['Twas the Night Before Christmas (Deluxe Edition) [Blu-ray] dvd cover art](https://upcomingdiscs.com/ecs_covers/twas-the-night-before-christmas-d-large.jpg)
