#1 - It's a Wonderful Life

December 22, 2000. I'm in my third grade class the last day before Christmas break. My teacher brought in a TV earlier in the day and had left it there while we did some work. After we were done he asks us "Have you ever wished you were never born?". Some of us say yes and begins to say "Well, I know a great Christmas movie about a man who wishes he was never born and we're gonna watch it right now." He puts on the TV and we begin to watch It's a Wonderful Life.

At the time, I recognized the ending clip of George Bailey running through Bedford Falls wishing everyone a "Merry Christmas!" from seeing it play on TV's in movies like Gremlins but the movie did strike a cord with most of us. For the rest of the year, we would occassionally use the "Hee-haw" greeting and "the George Bailey movie" stuck in my memory for years without actually watching It's a Wonderful Life.

Last year, I began to come into a severe depression which temporarily blocked me from the outside world. In hopes of a movie to light my spirits, I turned to It's a Wonderful Life. Watching the movie on Google Video, I nearly broke down sitting at my computer watching every scene, it's just that powerful a movie to get you back up on your feet. George Bailey is a man with a heart of gold and gives so much sacrifice but rarely gets thanks for it. In the end, he discovers how much the town really does love him for what he has done for them. Being one of the very few movies that can get me to cry, It's a Wonderful Life is a masterpiece and is not only the greatest Christmas movie of all-time, but one of the greatest movies of all-time.

Remember for the rest of the holiday season and all year round, as Clarence told George Bailey... "remember no man is a failure who has friends." Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night.

(and a very special thanks to my third grade teacher, Mr. Richard Friedman, for helping me discover this wonderful movie earlier than I would have otherwise. It's rare you find a man with as good a soul as George Bailey himself as you will in Mr. Friedman. Wherever you are, god bless you and thank you for being one of the very best teachers I ever had.)

#2 - The Muppet Christmas Carol

As children, we all have one of those Disney movies we adore and have down memorized. For my era, it was usally The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin or The Lion King. Another one for me was The Muppet Christmas Carol.

Being born in 1991, The Muppet Christmas Carol was one of the first forays the Muppets did to mainstream media after the death of their creator Jim Henson. I was obviously too young to see the movie in theaters but once it came out on home video, it became a big staple of the holidays in the BobThePizzaBoy household. Of all the adaptations of Dickens' A Christmas Carol out there, this is one of the very best. Not only do we get the original Dickens prowse, given to us by Gonzo, but we get direct text right from the novella making this one of the most very accurate versions of the book.

I finally read A Christmas Carol in 5th grade when my teacher had it in his classroom amoung other classic novels. I didn't actually get to finish it but I was left in awe of how accurate all the lines were, the movie was practically playing out in my head.

It's also one of the Muppets' finest hours and probably the very best thing they've done since Jim Henson's death. It's strange... it seems the farther they've gotten from 1990 the quality has greatly lowered in Muppet productions. With last year's Letters to Santa things seem to be getting better. But for me, The Muppet Christmas Carol is a dark, funny and all around entertaining masterpiece that should and will be embraced for years to come.

#3 - Christmas Eve on Sesame Street

I'll just flat-out say it. I LOVE Christmas Eve on Sesame Street. This was one of my favorite Christmas specials when I was a kid, the one you would watch constantly even when it wasn't Christmas. To me, it was just Big Bird trying to figure out how Santa Claus gets down the chimney. But as I've gotten older I began to see the true heart of it.

It is often said by those who worked on the show during Jon Stone's tenure that "if you want to see the heart of Jon Stone, you watch Christmas Eve on Sesame Street". This seems to be very much the truth. From the opening skating party sequence (which facinated me as a child) to the final post-credits scene of Cookie Monster eating Gordon and Susan's tree, this special only had one goal: to entertain everyone in the family as much as possible. It succeeds. Even in this pre-Elmo era, it's still a wonderful special. It's a crying shame PBS doesn't run it anymore, but with the advent of DVD, this underrated holiday classic still holds up as it did in 1978.

#4 - How the Grinch Stole Christmas

Let me just say right now, I made this top 12 list before I was in Seussical.

That said, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, even based on a book is another Christmas special with a good message and is hilarious as well. As one of Chuck Jones' most iconic animated films, it manages to combine the typical Looney Tunes humor we always associated with Jones with Dr. Seuss' classic tale. Even quoting the book word-for-word, he manages to hit the nail on the head.

While only a half-hour long, it manages to pack a lot of punch. Again, it's another iconic holiday classic that is maybe too-close-for-comfort to some of us during the holidays.

#5 - A Muppet Family Christmas

The Muppet Show Muppets. Sesame Street Muppets. Fraggle Rock Muppets. Muppet Babies in Muppet form. All in the same special. If that isn't any Henson fan's dream come true, I don't know what is. Truth is Muppet Family Christmas is short on plot but makes up for it with a lot of great music and laughs.

There are so many highlights in this special. From the Muppets, Sesame crew, Fraggles and all together. From Big Bird trying to be cooked by the Swedish Chef, Kermit and Robin meeting the Fraggles, the Sesame Street pagent of "Twas the Night Before Christmas" (and Sam the Eagle's reaction!), seeing the Muppet Babies in puppet form (and actually appealing!). It's a treat all-around.

It is a bit hard to come by uncut, but it's worth it. Here's hoping it comes out on DVD again soon.

#6 - The Simpsons: Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire

The first episode of what was to be a great, great series. Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire is a Charlie Brown Christmas for the 1980's. As a show like The Simpsons has been on for 20 years, they have done many Christmas episodes since that iconic first show but in my opinion none of them top this classic.

As this was from the first season, the animation is a bit more sketchy and the writing is a bit akward but it's pure gold. We can't deny that Homer Simpson does have great intentions, he just wants to give his family a good yet cost-effective Christmas. He goes through a living hell to get it but in the end he gets Santa's Little Helper which makes the family more than happy. It's not a huge commentary on the holidays, it's just a bit of a charmer, a.special with a heart of gold.

It's too bad FOX can't run this special due to syndication issues. If your local UHF station shows it, be sure to watch it. It's a modern holiday classic.

#7 - A Charlie Brown Christmas

There's something about those old Charlie Brown specials that just makes me like them a lot. I tend to avoid mid-60's television animation but A Charlie Brown Christmas is a bright gem. From that famous opening ice skating scene to the entire Peanuts gang humming "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing" it's just something that brings you back every year.

Charlie Brown is quite a character, a cynic who doesn't get what the point of the holidays was. Snoopy is the only character who gets any out loud laughs but A Charlie Brown Christmas doesn't have to be laugh out loud funny. It's the characters and the way the animation is done that really lures people in. It's very subtle but it's a classic just to see all these iconic characters together.

A Charlie Brown Christmas has become a Christmas mainstay and it deserves to stay that way. It's one of the true classics of holiday animated specials.