Hollywood and Christmas Memories
By Mary Beth Gentle
Yes Osceola, there is a Santa Claus and he comes from Hollywood. Every year without fail he brings a whole sack full of Holiday themed movies for us to unwrap and enjoy. There are the classics, there are the funny ones and there are the heart wrenching sad ones and until we have seen our favorite ones, our Holiday’s can’t really get started. I watch my first Christmas movie on Thanksgiving Day and I don’t stop until the New Year has been rung in. I watch them on DVD, I watch them on the Lifetime Channel and I watch them in the movie theatres.
My memories are interwoven with the Holiday movies I have watched over the years. I grew up watching little Natalie Wood believe in Santa Claus for the first time in a Miracle on 34th Street. And no matter how old I got, I believed right along with her, every time. As a child, I couldn’t wait for A Charlie Brown Christmas to play on TV. It was a big night in the Gentle household when Mom and Dad would let my sisters and I stay up late to watch Charlie Brown search for the true meaning of Christmas. But, without a doubt some of my fondest memories were when the whole family would camp out in front of the television every year to watch Frank Capra’s classic, It’s a Wonderful Life.
This is the first year that I was fortunate enough to see It’s a Wonderful Life up on the big screen. I watched George Bailey as he offered to throw a lasso around the moon and pull it down, proving his love to Mary Hatch. I watched as his life grew further and further away from the life he had dreamed of, until it spiraled into a place of utter hopelessness. And I watched as angel second-class Clarence Oddbody showed George just what life would have been like had he never been born. It is truly one of my favorite movies, and there is a lesson to be learned every time I watch it. Because just like George it is good to be reminded that “No man is a failure who has friends.”
I decided to take a quick poll of my fellow Hollywood cube dwellers to see what their favorite Holiday movies were. Of course I was sure they would all say It’s a Wonderful Life and my claim that it is the best Holiday movie to ever come out of Hollywood would be proven. And I got some answers in my favor and I got a few more of the classics as responses, White Christmas, Holiday Inn and The Bishop’s Wife. But, I was very surprised to see that some of the newer films made the top of the list, in fact they were in the top three. After I recovered from my favorite not being in the running, I decided to take a closer look at the top three.
Number three on the list was Elf. Not only was it a top favorite and described as an instant classic, I was amazed at how many of my fellow cube dwellers could deliver quotes from the movie without hesitating. The favorite of Post Production Supervisor, Brent Hall, was, “ You sit on the throne of lies!” He described the movie as “heart warming and hilarious”. To him, it was a perfect Holiday movie, pure happiness. And I have to say that Elf delivered just that, Will Ferrell plays, Buddy, an orphan who was raised by Santa’s elves. The twist here, they never told Buddy that he wasn’t an elf at all, that he was human. Buddy’s journey of discovery and pure joy of everything Christmas was enough to win me over.
Number two on the list was Chevy Chase’s, Christmas Vacation. The Griswold family set out to have a perfect old-fashioned family Christmas and instead got a house full of insanity. Editor, Don Thompson, called it a Classic saying, “Everyone has or has had this kind of crazy neighbor, thinks about their Christmas bonus and has family that you wish never showed up!” And Animation Coordinator, Alyssa Mauney, said, “I love everything from the opening credits to the jelly of the month club…it’s the gift that keeps on giving.” I haven’t seen this one in years, but I do remember the hilarious twists and turns and think it’s time to add it back onto my Christmas movie list.
And finally, number one on the list was cult classic, A Christmas Story. Hands down this one came in as a favorite on everyone’s list. Of course the movie is all about Christmas lists, 9-year old Ralphie Parker’s to be exact and in his words he only wants one thing, “an official Red Ryder carbine-action 200-shot range model air rifle with a compass in the stock, and this thing which tells time.” When he makes his wish known, he gets the same response from everyone, “You’ll shoot your eye out!” Financial Analyst, Karen Alana, had this to say about the movie, “From Ralphie’s obsession with getting a Red Ryder BB Gun to the family being serenaded with Deck the Halls in the Chinese restaurant on Christmas, it’s just my cup of tea!”
A Christmas Story is such a cult classic that every year it plays on TV for 24 hours straight starting on Christmas Eve. Ultimate fan, Post Production Supervisor, Jill Breitzman, said, “I have it playing for the full 24 hours every year since it started. My Sister and I even go so far as to dress in our pink bunny suits as a special “gift” to our Mom.” And Jill was kind enough to share this Christmas memory with a photo from her Hollywood Christmas Cubical!
So, no matter what your favorite Holiday movie is, whether you happen upon it while you are flicking channels or set aside time to settle in with a bowl of popcorn and the DVD, this Hollywood Cube Dweller hopes you have a wonderful Holiday season!
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