'Tis The Season: specials

Wednesday, October 30, 2013

Raggedy Ann & Andy in the Pumpkin Who Couldn't Smile

One of my very favorite Halloween specials that I looked forward to watching every year as a child has pretty much fallen into obscurity. It's such a shame, because it is one of the sweetest, most charming little animated specials ever made and I still love it immensely. I am referring to Raggedy Ann & Andy In The Pumpkin Who Couldn't Smile, written, produced and directed by none other than Chuck Jones and released in 1979.

The special starts out on the evening of Halloween. We are immediately introduced to a glum pumpkin that no one has bought and time is quickly running out as the sun begins to set. He begins sobbing uncontrollably at the thought of missing out on the opportunity to make some child happy and fulfill his ultimate purpose.

Next we find Raggedy Ann (June Foray) and Andy (Daws Butler) looking out a window and talking about a sad boy next door named Ralph who lives with his stern Aunt Agatha (June Foray), that forbids him from partaking in any of the Halloween festivities. Raggedy Ann decides to give the aunt the benefit of the doubt, but begins to devise a plan to find a pumpkin to bring the boy a bit joy on the spooky holiday. It doesn't take long to figure out where this is going, but the journey of uniting these two misfits is the focus.

Enter Raggedy Arthur, a skateboard riding rag doll dog! He joins Raggedy Ann and Andy as they begin their journey into the unknown in search for the prized gourd! Time is running out and just as they begin to get hopeless they stumble upon the glum pumpkin, who is still having a pity party and doesn't see that his saviors have arrived.

It all seems to good to be true, as the dolls explain their predicament and how needed he is. He begins to cry tears of joy at the news - tears in the form of pumpkin seeds (awww)! They quickly grab a wooden beam to scoot him off the platform and onto the skateboard. Here begins a difficult trek back to town, wrought with a zany chain of events that stun a homeowner, jogger and police officer. It's quite a funny, clever classic Chuck Jones scene that still gets a laugh out of me!

They finally make it to Ralph's house and decide to use a rope and pulley to haul the pumpkin up to the boy's room on the 2nd floor. Ralph is in bed sleeping when we wakes up to see a beautifully glum looking jack-o-lantern facing him in the window. It's a very touching moment as he is overcome with joy at seeing the pumpkin! He brings him to the bed and wraps his arms around his new friend and all seems to be well, until they remember Aunt Agatha.

Raggedy Ann and Andy know that there is no chance Ralph will be able to keep the pumpkin unless something is done to soften Aunt Agatha's heart and help her remember what it is like to be child again. The two sneak into her bedroom, where she is fast asleep, and Ann begins whispering in her ear to conjure up her own fun Halloween memories from the past.

* * * SPOILER ALERT * * *
Just like Scrooge, Aunt Agatha suddenly wakes from her stupor and realizes the error of her ways. She instantly seeks to make things right with Ralph and whisks him off to enjoy the last bit of Halloween with some trick-or-treating. He dresses up like a pirate and she joins the fun by dressing up as a witch (just as she did as a little girl). Best of all, even the glum pumpkin comes along for the fun and it's a very happy ending for all!

This special is quite difficult to find, especially in any decent quality. Most copies were released by companies looking for a quick cash-in who did nothing to restore to the sound or picture. In fact, the sound is so bad on some copies that it makes it virtually impossible to watch. To my knowledge it has never been released on DVD at all. While I still have my VHS copy, which also includes the hard-to-find Christmas special, 'Raggedy Ann & Andy in the Great Santa Claus Caper', I was fortunate to get my hands on a decent digital transfer, but it's still a far cry from the restoration it deserves. In the meantime, you can watch the special in its entirety on YouTube. I hope you will enjoy it as much as I do and make it part of your own yearly traditional Halloween viewing!

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Thursday, October 10, 2013

Garfield's Halloween Adventure

This October we will be reviewing a few of our very favorite Halloween specials and movies. Keep an eye out for these in the weeks to come, as we go back in time to reminisce on those classic films that had such a great impact on us over the years!

Garfield's Halloween Adventure is a half hour animated Halloween special based on the popular Garfield comic strip by Jim Davis. It originally aired in 1985 on CBS before 'It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown'. As a child I always remember these playing back to back, sometimes reversed, and it became a tradition I looked forward to every year. In fact, to this day I still insist on watching Garfield and Peanuts Holiday specials back to back, because that's what keeps the universe balanced for me! I was excited to even find this promo ad from the first year it aired, which definitely brought back memories (isn't YouTube great?):

The strange thing about this seemingly harmless kiddie special is that it's actually pretty scary. Even as an adult it still gives me chills! As a child I would be so spooked by the ghostly images, that after it aired I would go to bed, throw the covers over my head and try my best not to think of it. Even looking at the illustrations in the paperback version sent chills down my spine. Perhaps that is because the supernatural has always disturbed me, but I also credit Jim Davis with writing an effective Halloween tale, just scary enough to give a kid the creeps, but not overly scary that it becomes inappropriate. After all, isn't it the things that scare us as kids that usually has the strongest effect? And so it is with Garfield's Halloween Adventure...

The story begins early Halloween morning in which Garfield is abruptly awoken by The Binky the Clown Show, as he screams his ear piercing catchphrase, "HEYYYY KIDS!", to motivate them to do some jumping jacks. Garfield is of course having none of that, so he shuts off the TV immediately, but not before hearing him mention that "this is the night you can get a lot of CANDY!" Well, all that "CANDY, CANDY, CANDY, CANDY" definitely gets Garfield's attention and he's ready to go...after a quick nap, of course!

Soon after Garfield wakes up for the day, he heads up to the attic in search of something to wear. There is a cute little musical number here called "What Should I Be?" that features Garfield putting together various items of clothing in an old chest to make costumes. After going through a series of changes, Garfield finally selects the perfect costume and promises Odie his very own piece of Halloween candy if he helps him go door to door. Odie unwittingly agrees and off they go into the night dressed as fearsome pirates, in search of their plunder!

It doesn't take long for Garfield and Odie to finish trick-or-treating at all the nearby homes, but the night is still young and Garfield is becoming increasingly obsessed with how much candy he can collect. They come to a dock on the river and notice many more houses on the other side that are ripe for the picking. This gives Garfield a brilliant idea, and as luck would have it, tied to the end of the dock is a row boat with oars, so they decide to climb aboard and set sail for more treasure, as any good pirates would do.

They start out smoothly, but a current quickly takes them off course, down the river and further from the houses. They begin to panic, but eventually the boat lands on an island with a path that leads to a spooky old house, fitting the description of any classic haunted house. There's a light on in the window, so they foolishly decide to investigate.

The house appears deserted, yet there is a crackling fire lit in the fireplace. They decide to cozy up to and get warm, and just as their nerves begin to settle, they turn around and sitting in an arm chair is a creepy old man staring down at them! This of course causes them to scream in panic, but the old man quiets them down just long enough to tell them a dreaded tale of pirates and stolen treasure. A perfectly eerie tale for a spooky Halloween such as this!

He tells them of a ruthless band of Pirates who ended up on the island as they were running from government troops. They had amassed far too much treasure to carry with them, so they buried it under the house, but not before signing a contract in blood swearing to return from the grave in one hundred years on Halloween night at midnight to reclaim it. Wouldn't you know that the hundred year anniversary was that very night! Just moments before the clock strikes midnight they turn to leave, but the old man is nowhere to be seen. They head out to the boat, only to discover he has taken off in it, with their hard earned bags of candy along with it. Just then the clock strikes midnight and Garfield and Odie are stuck in search of a place to hide!

They see a ghost ship then appear on the water and find a small cabinet to hide in just before the ghost pirates enter the house to reclaim their ill gotten gains. They do their best to remain quiet through the ordeal, hoping for the moment to pass, but suddenly Odie sneezes and the doors to the cabinet fly open. The pair are discovered by the vicious ghosts who then begin to pursue them! The suspense and design of the ghosts in this scene are what always scared me most. The glowing, transparent figures looked as I imagined ghosts could look in real life.

Well, having no place else to go, Garfield and Odie run back to the river and decide to make a swim for it, but get swept up into the current once again. All seems to be lost as Garfield proves not to be a great swimmer and begins to go under. Odie saves the day and rescues Garfield, dragging him back onto the shore, ending up just where they started from! They decide to count their losses and head for home when lo and behold! They find the row boat with their bags of candy still in tact and are glad for a happy ending to the dreadful night after all.

Once safe at home, Garfield rethinks his greedy attitude. As a show of gratitude to Odie for saving his life, Garfield does the most difficult thing in the world for him; he gives Odie his half of the candy. This is a great sentimental moment between the two characters, as Garfield rarely shows his true affection for Odie. Usually he expresses disdain for the brainless pup, but most Garfield specials expose Garfield's softer side at some point toward his furry companion. It shows that just like members in our own family, they may drive us nuts, but deep down we really love them.

Just before bedding down for the night, Garfield decides to unwind with a little TV. He suddenly comes across an all-night pirate movie marathon, hosted by none other than the old man in the creepy house. This is a great twist, which allows the special to still end on an eerie note. Deciding he has had enough, Garfield shuts off the TV and does what he does best...goes to sleep.

Despite being well written and winning an Emmy for Outstanding Animated Program in 1986, this special has sadly faded into obscurity. However, it still remains a personal favorite of mine and one that I can't skip or else it just won't feel like Halloween. Though it was once easy to find on DVD on the Garfield Holiday Celebration set, it is now out of print and quite expensive to find a new copy of. Used is a bit cheaper, but the good news is, it is available to rent on Amazon free to Prime members and only $1.99 for non-members! It's totally worth that, especially if it means sharing it with your own kids. I, for one, think it is still deserving of being called a classic!

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Wednesday, October 9, 2013

It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown

When it comes to Halloween specials, there are not many that give the feeling that "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" provides. Charles Schultz yet again puts together a 30 minute classic that has been a staple of the Halloween season.

The special starts right out with a perfect fall landscape. Linus and his sister Lucy go out to the pumpkin patch to get ready to carve a jack-o-lantern. When they bring the pumpkin back in the house Lucy lays out some paper and begins carving. Poor Linus, being unfamiliar with pumpkin carving, cries "You didn't tell me you were going to kill it!!!"

Linus then writes a letter to the Great Pumpkin, who he believe will come to the most sincere pumpkin patch on Halloween night and deliver presents to all the good kids in the world. Unfortunately for Linus, none of his friends or even his sister are taking him seriously and think he is making a fool of himself. That is, everyone but Charlie Brown's sister Sally, who believes anything Linus tells her.

Halloween night arrives and Linus takes his place in the pumpkin patch with a sign reading "Welcome Great Pumpkin", while the rest of the gang is getting ready for a fun Halloween night of trick-or-treating, then heading over to Violet's for the big Halloween party. On their way out, they stop by the pumpkin patch to tease Linus some more but Linus stands by his belief that the Great Pumpkin will arrive. Sally, feeling bad for her crush, decides to stay with him in the pumpkin patch instead of going out with the other kids.

During trick-or-treating, the gang receives a assortment of candies, apples and gum, while poor Charlie Brown gets stuck with only rocks. Meanwhile, Charlie Brown's faithful dog, Snoopy, is wearing his World War I flying ace costume, and climbs onto his doghouse, which he imagines to be a fighter plane. He flies into battle against the Red Baron, where they engage into a fierce battle in which his plane is shot down and he finds himself in enemy territory. Snoopy travels through the countryside, which leads him to the Halloween party, where Charlie Brown and his friends are at. He hangs around a bit, mostly near Schroeder's piano, who is playing World War I tunes just for him.

Snoopy ends up leaving the party and heads to the pumpkin patch where Linus and Sally are still waiting for the Great Pumpkin to show up. By this time Sally is having doubts about the whole thing, when suddenly they hear rustling in the vines. Linus gets so worked up with excitement that he ends up fainting before he could see it was not the Great Pumpkin rising from the pumpkin patch, but only Snoopy. Sally is deeply let down and scolds Linus for making her miss the Halloween party, trick-or-treating and all the Halloween fun. Just then, the gang shows up as everyone is heading home for the night. Sally decides to leave too, while Linus tries to convince everyone that the Great Pumpkin is still coming and promises to put in a good word for them.

At 4 am Lucy wakes up and notices her brother is still not in bed, which prompts her to go look for him. When she comes to the pumpkin patch, she finds Linus asleep and shivering, so she brings him back home and puts him to bed. A couple weeks later Charlie Brown and Linus are at the rock wall discussing their disappointment from Halloween night. Charlie Brown tries to make Linus feel better by telling him he has done stupid things before, but this just angers Linus and he vows next year the great pumpkin will come!!!

This halloween classic has been a highly regarded family favorite every October. I know in my household this has become a must when we are carving Jack-O-Lanterns. What makes this special so great is how it touches on the childlike innocence that Linus provides in his undying belief of the Great Pumpkin, as well as captures this special time of year with great fall imagery. It's simple, yet effective in reminding us of our childhood experiences at Halloween.

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Thursday, September 19, 2013

Forever Fun Holiday Collectibles For 2013

Some of you may recall that many years ago a company called Memory Lane released a line of holiday collectible figures of the Peanuts and Rankin & Bass Rudolph characters. I bought quite a few of the Charlie Brown Christmas and Great Pumpkin set, but they eventually dropped the line and it was discontinued. A few years later a company called Forever Fun popped up, which not holds the rights to the designs. They started releasing some of these sets and even added new pieces each year. They have not been as easy to find as I would like, as I think their products are excellent, but one sure place I have always found them in CVS and sometimes Toys R Us. Every year I look forward to seeing what they put out for the holiday season and have gotten many of their items. So, I thought I would share some of their new line up with you, as seen on their website. You can also follow them on their Facebook page for more product updates!