My Top Ten Holiday Movies »
By Larry JohnsongravatarcloseAuthor: Larry Johnson Name: Larry Johnson
Email: larry_johnson@earthlink.net
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http://NoQuarterUSA.netSee Authors Posts (903) on December 25, 2008 at 3:54 PM in Current Affairs | 46 Comments
Merry Christmas and Happy Chanuka. Part of the holiday tradition, at least for me and my family, are the holiday movies. I have been thinking about my ten favorites in this category and came up with the following. You will note that the movie, A Christmas Story–directed by Bob Clark, written by Jean Shepherd, and shown 24 hours straight on TBS every Christmas in recent memory–is a faux midwestern childhood memoir about a nerd before there were nerds (Ralphie Parker) who wanted a Daisy Red Ryder BB gun for Christmas. My definition of a great movie is one I would enjoy watching repeatedly. A Christmas Story was okay once, but I can’t stand it in repeated doses. I find myself thinking Scrooge thoughts, hoping Raphie shoots himself in the head with the BB gun. Sorry, but I wanted to be honest about this. I hate that movie.
So, in reverse order here are my top ten:
Number 10: White Christmas. This movie was made in 1954 and features Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye. It is a buddy movie of sorts. Crosby and Kaye, who play Broadway/nightclub entertainers, take their show to a Vermont Christmas Inn, which is owned and operated by a retired Army General who has fallen on hard times. It is a fun movie and ends with the singing of White Christmas, Crosby’s signature song. Crosby originally introduced the song in the 1942 movie, Holiday Inn. That movie will give you a bit of the creeps, when Bing Crosby does a black face number along with two actual black children.