It's Christmas time again... yes, I know it's only June, but we're halfway there, and the way things are right now, we could all use some Christmas cheer. This animated special is brought to us by our good friends at Hanna-Barbera, and it's all about the lengths a faithful dog and his mouse friend will go to ensure a certain little boy's letter reaches Santa Claus in time for Christmas. So, as we begin amidst a beautiful choir rendition of 'O Come All Ye Faithful', we see an average family relaxing at home on Christmas Eve. Little Sherman... I mean, Timmy is read The Night Before Christmas before being carried off to bed, excited for Santa's arrival later that night. That's when Goober, the family dog, and Gumdrop, the optimistic mouse, notice Timmy's letter to Santa Claus laying on the floor. Knowing that poor boy's heart would be broken if Santa wasn't able to bring him what he wanted, they decide the only logical thing to do was to find ol' Saint Nick and deliver the letter in person. So they set out walking along the icy streets, searching every nook and cranny. I would like to add that the very first time I saw this special was in third grade, and right at this part, the teacher turned it off and sent us out to recess, or lunch or something, but she never played the rest of it. I guess she just forgot, but I would always wonder what happened next. Luckily, I got my answer years later when this special aired on Cartoon Network. I mean, I wasn't on the edge of my seat and losing sleep over it, just one of those things. Anyway, back to the story: Goober and Gumdrop become separated, and that's also when the latter runs afoul of a quartet of sleazy cats, who would like to have our intrepid, pint-sized hero for dinner. Literally. Fortunately, he's saved from his untimely demise by the heroically clumsy Goober, who scares off the cats by slipping and sliding into a trash can. Way to go, Goob.
Good fortune comes the duo's way when they see Santa Claus flying by in his sleigh! He heads to the orphanage, even though I'm sure Grampy had already been there, giving the little tykes some nifty homemade toys. Unfortunately, our heroes are too late, as Santa hightails it out of there pretty quick. So while the orphans played with their shiny new toys, the dog and mouse head all over in town, searching for their elusive Mr. Kringle, seeing he had visited almost every house so far. Gumdrop deduces that Santa will hit the Andersons' next, as they're Catholic and therefore have lots of children. And what a relief, Santa hadn't been there yet! Now to get on the roof and deliver the letter. They find a ladder, and just as they're near the top, the letter predictably blows out of Goober's paw. Oh no, here comes Santa! What to do? Fortunately, that old ladder breaks into a pair of stilts, which Goober uses to chase after the letter. Just as he successfully grabs it, he loses control of the stilts and falls to the ground. That's when he's spotted by a kindly mailman, who assumes he got locked out of the house. He places Goober in the mail truck and goes off to deliver some special packages. When attempting to free himself, Goober accidentally bumps the parking brake and the truck takes off! He and Gumdrop hang on for dear life as they go on a wild ride around town before finally coming to a halt by way of crashing into a tree. Predictably, they also missed Santa again. It seemed like a lost cause and Goober was ready to give up, but Gumdrop encouraged him not to lose hope. But what could they do now? A couple of squirrels say they'll help, and that's when Goober has the perfect solution: use the animal relay to find Santa. It's kind of similar to the twilight bark in 101 Dalmatians. Using their own, unique ways of communicating, animals around town all search for Santa, but end up seeing so many, they're not sure which one is the real deal. Eventually, they do find the real Santa. Gumdrop folds the letter into a paper airplane and chucks it at the sleigh... only it ends up becoming a paper boomerang and comes right back. Boy, they just can't catch a break. Dejected, the dog and mouse go home, feeling their efforts were for naught. They attempt to wait up, hoping Santa will still show, only they end up falling asleep. But when they wake up Christmas morning, a miracle had occurred! Timmy got everything he wanted, even Mom and Dad got what they were asking for (peace on earth)... or so we can assume, as we only see it written in the sky, and even Goober and Gumdrop found some gifts for them too. What they didn't know was that Santa took the letter from them while they slept, meaning he already knew what Timmy wanted and still would have come. So was everything they went through that night for nothing? Well, that depends how you look at it. It showed how far they were willing to go for young Timmy to make his Christmas special. Never doubt the strength of love and devotion your pets have for you.
And that was A Christmas Story, a very underrated holiday special. Those who are familiar with The Flintstones Christmas in 1977 will recognize several songs, as they were recycled from A Christmas Story. This special also stars very recognizable voice talent from Hanna-Barbera alumni, such as Daws Butler, Don Messick, Paul Winchell, Hal Smith, John Stephenson, and Janet Waldo. And remember earlier when I called Timmy 'Sherman'? That's because Walter Tetley, who voiced Mr. Peaboy's boy, provides the voice of Timmy here. Fantastic voice acting, terrific songs, decent animation, even for H-B. This is a good one to watch around Christmas, or even before. And, if you're a teacher looking to show it to your class around the holidays, be sure you remember to show them all of it. You know, they sure don't make Christmas specials like this anymore. Something that isn't cynical, isn't commercial, tells a story without being preachy. So if this comes on TV again or you find it on DVD or some streaming service, I definitely recommend checking it out. You'll be glad you did.
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