"A Visit from St. Nicholas" Staple of Holiday Specials

"A Visit from St. Nicholas" is one of the most-beloved holiday poems ever. Also known as "The Night Before Christmas," this story published by Clement C. Moore in 1862 has been adapted to a variety of Christmas cartoon specials through the years. Only two are available on DVD.

"The Night Before Christmas - A Silly Symphony" - 1933
I grew up watching Disney cartoons and I take a certain glee in the fact that my now-grown children will fight over custody of the Disney video collection. Sadly, one not included is this 1933 short loosely based up "A Visit from St. Nicholas".

Santa visits a house full of children with barely-there stockings hanging in hopes of being filled. As Santa and his magic toy bag set about their work, the children sneak in and watch as the toys dance around the room. One child sneezes and Santa hurries up the chimney to make his escape.

"The Night Before Christmas" - 1968
A fictionalized version of the events leading up to Moore writing "A Visit from St. Nicholas" is filled with beautiful songs by the Norman Luboff Choir.

Shortly before Christmas, Moore's daughter is very sick with pneumonia and she asks for a storybook about Santa Claus as a present. Her father is unable to find any stories about St. Nick and goes about writing a book just for his daughter.

"Twas the Night Before Christmas" - 1974
The team of Arthur Rankin, Jr. and Jules Bass are synonymous with holiday cartoon specials. The creators of "Frosty the Snowman" and "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" take on Clement C. Moore's holiday classic. This cartoon is paired with "Frosty" as a DVD package at Amazon.com.

Two families, one human and the family of mice living in their house, come together to convince Santa Claus to visit their town. One of the mice wrote a letter to the editor signed "All of Us" stating that no one in the town believed in him.

"Bugs Bunny's Looney Christmas Tales" - 1979
In standard Looney Tunes format, three shorts are combined in this holiday feature. In "The Fright Before Christmas", Bugs is waiting for Santa Claus with his nephew. The Looney Tunes method of mixing up the classics brings the Tasmanian Devil instead.

"Shrek the Halls" - 2007
While Shrek tries to create a perfect Christmas, several of the characters tell the story of "A Visit from St. Nicholas" in their own way. "Shrek the Halls" is available on DVD here.

Puss in Boots' version includes a 4-pawed Santa Claws while Donkey includes visions of egg nog fountains. Shrek translates the tale to thank Ogre Claus.

If you still have a VCR in the closet, watch flea markets and thrift shops for copies of these holiday classic cartoons to add to your collection.

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