Advent Calendar House

🎄It’s 1992, and there’s no such thing as Buster Bunny. 🎙 Adam Pope, William Bruce West, and Chad Young help the Advent Calendar House wrap up Christmas in July with the unofficial series finale of “Tiny Toon Adventures,” when Buster wishes he’d never been on the show, and the horrors within Montana Max’s Biff Tannen Pleasure Palace or whatever. 📺 I found this special hiding in a 4-hour Christmas special compilation on the Internet Archive. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: “Meet the Tiny Toons” in the special edition magazine “Bugs Bunny: He’s 50, Folks” (1990). “The Chipmunks Go to the Movies.” Tony Pope (God) as Goofy in “Watch Out for Goofy” (the theme song for Adam’s 2 Goofs Podcast) and as the first voice heard in “Back to the Future.” John Kassir (who voices Buster in this episode) as the Crypt-Keeper in RD’s Retro Detention Halloween Specials in 2019 and 2023. Today’s TV Trope: Half-Dressed Cartoon Animal. Jacoby & Meyers and a 2-minute-long tangent about personal injury lawyer commercials. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s upcoming role as Santa in “The Man with the Bag.” American Express Commercials with Mel Blanc and Jim Davis. Bugs Bunny may have been voiced by an uncredited Noel Blanc, Mel’s son, for a single line at the end. **** 📼 Commercials: Godzilla: The Series Promo (1998) Toy Story: Holiday TV Spot (1995) **** “Tiny Toon Adventures” and “It’s a Wonderful Tiny Toons Christmas Special” © 1992 Warner Bros. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🎄It’s 1990… or 1962… and a quantum physicist forgot to powder his boss’s underwear. 🎙 Erin Evans and Joey O. join us for a Scrooge Sunday involving time travel of a different sort as we follow Dr. Sam Beckett on a mission to save a mission, and the soul of the man trying to tear it down. 🚨 Warning: This episode briefly discusses the death of actor Charles Rocket and the would-be death of his Scrooge-like character, Michael Blake. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: Episode guide on Al’s Place. A Christmas story from the Quantum Leap comic: “He Knows If You’ve Been Bad or Good.” Charles Rocket drops an F-bomb on “Saturday Night Live.” “Bringing in the Sheaves” on “The Simpsons” and “Batman” (1966). Polish Christmas desserts piernik and makowiec. Al’s Ghost of Christmas Future costume looks more like Jacob Marley mixed with the Ghost of Christmas Past from “Scrooged.” Goldie Wilson III from “Back to the Future Part II.” **** 📼 Commercials: Squarbles (circa 1987) Can’t Wait for Christmas Podcast. **** “Quantum Leap” and “A Little Miracle” © 1990 Universal City Studios, Inc. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🦃 It’s 2015, and in my search for a noisy cryptid I accidentally freed 175 roided-up turkeys, but neither of those things is the real monster. 🎙 Sammy Hain, Tony Whitaker, Ethan “The Hungry Reader” join us as we rediscover a long lost Thanksgiving special concept Jim Henson dreamed up in the 1960s and meet the Musical Monsters of Turkey Hollow. 📺 You can find “Turkey Hollow” on Disney+. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: ToughPigs.com Behind the Scenes of Turkey Hollow. Muppet Wiki on this special, Jim Henson’s original concept, and the 2014 graphic novel. Some prototype musical monsters: An early Grover, Snerf, and the Rock and Roll Monster. Director Kirk Thatcher in “Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home.” On-set interviews with Ludacris, Lisa Henson, and Alice Dinnean. Hope you like Beets. Today’s TV Tropes: When You Coming Home, Dad? and Hollywood Law. Station from “Bill and Ted’s Bogus Journey.” “Jim Henson’s Creature Shop Challenge.” Jason Hopley’s (Zorp) IMDb profile picture is from “Goosebumps.” Lewis, Target’s Halloween Ghoul. Homer Simpson eating potato chips on the space shuttle. **** 📼 Commercials: AT&T “Turkey” Commercial (2008) TGI Podcast. **** “Turkey Hollow” © 2015 The Jim Henson Company, Inc. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 It’s 1992, and my daydreams of snow are melting into a bucket of water getting dumped on my head from an airplane. 🎙 Kit Quinn, Randee Martin, and Tyler Green from Channel KRT join us as we dive down the rabbit hole to the strange world of The Disney Channel’s “Adventures in Wonderland,” where the White Rabbit wears Rollerblades and the halls are decked with fresh produce, the way Christmas was meant to be celebrated. 📺 You can find “Christmas in Wonderland” on Disney+, or this copy with a commercial bumper in front of it. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: Channel KRT on the episodes “Pie Noon” and “Wonderland: The Movie.” “White Rabbits Can’t Jump,” an unaired episode guest starring O.J. Simpson. One Movie Later: Alice Through the Looking Glass. Deadline’s obituary for Armelia McQueen (The Red Queen) uses a photo from this special. Armelia McQueen on “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” and… “The Fesh Pince of Blair.” Patrick Richwood (White Rabbit) lied to the casting director about knowing how to rollerblade. Cast members on The Tiara Talk Show. The Christmas Pickle. Harry Waters Jr. (Tweedle Dee) in “Back to the Future,” and Wesley Mann (Caterpillar) in “Part II.” **** 📼 Commercials: Disney Channel Holiday Preview Bumper with Jane Seymour (1992) Juicy Fruit Skiing Commercial (circa 1989) Cool Kids Club, a nostalgia-filled trip back to childhood. **** “Adventures in Wonderland” and “Christmas in Wonderland” © 1992 The Walt Disney Company. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Full show notes and social links at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 It’s 1988, the monsters under my bed are real, and they’re stealing Christmas. 🎙 Ethan “The Hungry Reader” follows us under the covers through a wormhole to the home of ’80s kids’ bedding sensation the Pillow People in a Christmas special so obscure, it’s not even listed on IMDb. But it’s real, and it’s ironically nightmarish. 📺 You can watch “Pillow People Save Christmas” on YouTube. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: Pillow People on the toy collectors’ website Ghost of the Doll. Toot Sweet Toys, or what’s left of it. TV listing in New York magazine (November 1988) Victor DiMattia (Billy) on filming “The Sandlot.” Window Rattler as seen on “Full House.” The Who Cares Bears. Today’s TV Trope: Introdump, example: the worst Rob Liefeld drawing. Cheryl Chase (Sweet Dreams) mentions working with Cree Summer (Rock-a-Bye Baby) on this special in a 2004 interview about the “Rugrats” spinoff “All Grown Up.” The Far Side: “…He’s taking it with him!” Nightmara looks like a cross between Mother Brain in “Captain N: The Game Master” and Madam Hecuba from the 1974 anime adaptation of “Jack and the Beanstalk.” **** 📼 Commercials: Pillow People: Pillow Valley Commercial (1988) Holidays After Dark. **** “Pillow People Save Christmas” © 1988 TMS Entertainment, Inc. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🎃 It’s 1986, and one student at a magical boarding school is struggling to fit in while having to deal with a hard-nosed potions teacher and bullying from a golden child whose father will hear about this, but finds comfort in broom flying and encouragement from the kindly old headmaster. No, not that one. 🎙️ Becca Petunia and Lindy Kempe join us for “The Worst Witch,” adapted from the original beloved series of books about a quirky boarding school for witches. This Halloween special stars a young Fairuza Balk, featuring Dianna Rigg, Charlotte Rae in a dual role, and Tim Curry in the trippiest ’80s music video. 📺 You can watch “The Worst Witch” on the Internet Archive. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: Find “The Worst Witch” book at your local library. St. Michael’s College is for sale. Pam Jones (Donna) — formerly Kate Buckley before another actress took that name while she was on hiatus — is now a ceramic artist. The kitten ceremony background music sounds kind of like Zelda’s Lullaby. Mildred and Ethel’s rivalry gave us “Owl House” vibes. Toonces the Driving Cat. One student is a future Teletubby! Becca on Movin’ Right Along discussing Tim Curry singing in “Muppet Treasure Island.” Both Tim Curry and Sebastian from “The Little Mermaid” sing “begin the Beguine.” Tim Curry in “Red Alert 3.” Other “Worst Witch” TV adaptations, including a college spinoff and a Netflix series. **** 📼 Commercials: Carvel Halloween Ice Cream Cakes Commercial (1986) Hyrule Podcasters, an audio “Let’s Play” through The Legend of Zelda. **** “The Worst Witch” © 1986 Central Independent Television Plc. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 It’s 1977, and the cast of Broadway’s hottest new musical is taking drastic measures to convince 4 different unions keep the theater open for a Christmas party because they forgot to book a venue. 🎙️ Guy Hutchinson joins us to watch the original Broadway cast of “Annie” play somethings in between themselves and their characters in a unique TV Christmas special that may very well have been many TV viewers’ first exposure to the musical. 📺 You can watch “The Annie Christmas Show” on the Internet Archive. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: The original Broadway version of “Annie” ends on Christmas; the 1982 movie ends on the 4th of July. Andrea McArdle in “Christmas at Walt Disney World.” (Full Episode) Danielle Brisbois (Molly) in “All in the Family,” and she was a founding member of the band New Radicals. “It’s Christmas” on the Annie 30th Anniversary Production Cast Recording, featuring multiple Annies and Miss Hannigans. “I Don’t Care” in “In the Good Old Summertime” and “Back to the Future: The Game.” “There’s a Broken Heart for Every Light on Broadway” in “Bullets Over Broadway.” Today’s TV Trope: I Have a Family. Ethel Merman sings “Tomorrow” in “A Special Sesame Street Christmas.” (Full Episode) How The Twelve Days of Christmas’ days 9 through 12 got reordered. Members of the cast reunited in 2019 to perform this Christmas special. **** 📼 Commercials: Kinney Shoes (1977) Fotomat (1977) Festive Foreign Film Fans. **** “The Annie Christmas Show” © 1977 Martin Charmin Productions / NBC Universal Network. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 It’s 1981, and a jolly swagman who may or may not be Santa Claus is flying me around the world in a sleigh built out of a bench and some rope we had lying around to search the globe for a lost baby kangaroo. Today’s Christmas in July episode begins where it’s actually winter in July, and only gets stranger and more inappropriate from there. 🎙 Dan MacPherson joins us for “Around the World with Dot,” also known as “Dot and Santa Claus,” starring the title character from an 1899 Australian children’s book, “Dot and the Kangaroo.” 📺 You can find “Around the World with Dot” on YouTube. You may want to watch “Dot and the Kangaroo” first. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: Director Yoram Gross endured World War II in Poland; his family was on Schindler’s list. His studio, now Flying Bark Productions, more recently animated “Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” and Marvel’s “What If…?” Barbara Frawley (Dot) singing “The Black Cat” on “Play School.” Today’s TV Trope: Magical Homeless Person. “Sakura Sakura,” which I recognized from Punch-Out!! How a White Lie Gave Japan KFC for Christmas. (Gastro Obscura) “The Real World of the Circus” opens similarly to the movie “Chaplin.” “Zelda: The Wand of Gamelon.” “Alouette” is about plucking the feathers off a lark. **** 📼 Commercials: Mortein “Louie the Fly” Commercial (1980s) Myer “Celebrate Christmas” Commercial (1980s) Bad Princess Movies. **** “Dot and the Kangaroo” © 1981 Yoram Gross Filmstudio Pty Ltd. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🐰 It’s 2004, and a stuffed toy rabbit voluntold me to clean his house. 🎙 Sammy Hain and Matt Spaulding join us to celebrate both Easter in July and Scrooge Sunday with a trip to the Hundred Acre Wood as Rabbit does double duty as both the Easter Bunny and Scrooge, all while Christopher Robin is somewhere else entirely. 📺 You can find “Springtime with Roo” on Disney+. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: Ads from the 2004 DVD, plus a video of some dude walking through the menu screen. Why do Christopher Robin’s toys have American accents? John Fiedler (Piglet) in “The Golden Girls” and “12 Angry Men.” “Christmas in the Stars,” the Star Wars Christmas album. **** 📼 Commercials: Sears Video Game Arcade Christmas Sale (1983) **** “Winnie the Pooh” and “Springtime with Roo” © 2004 Disney Enterprises, Inc. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 It’s 1983, and my emotional support jack-in-the-box is not providing much help for my Imposter Syndrome. 🎙️ Tommy Coombs, Jayme Kilsby, and Chad Young join us for a deep dive into another pre-ALF puppet special from Paul Fusco starring a very depressed elf in training trying to find where he belongs in Santa’s workshop by first finding everywhere he doesn’t belong. Plus: Santa’s Swedish Chef-like human hands! A three-eyed purple teddy bear we never get to see! Paul Fusco inserting himself into his own Christmas fan fiction! 📺 You can watch “Santa’s Magic Toy Bag” on Tubi. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: Sherman looks like A Gnome Named Gnorm. The hot dog puppet from “Funland.” The History of the Nickelodeon Hotel (Defunctland) The keeper of Santa’s Magic Toy Bag reminds me of the presidential designated survivor. Superman impales some jerk’s truck on a telephone pole in “Man of Steel.” Cracked: We Ruined Santa With Math. **** 📼 Commercials: Sears Video Game Arcade Christmas Sale (1983) The Studio Demands It! **** “Santa’s Magic Toy Bag” © 1983 Imagicom Productions, Inc. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🎄It’s 1979, and an evil king is having abandonment issues after his entire kingdom left, so he made an army of robots instead of going to therapy. The Advent Calendar House has once again emerged from hibernation after declaring 4 more months of winter to pretend it’s still winter. 🎙 Gerry Davila from Totally Rad Christmas, Matt Spaulding from North Pole Radio, and Jeff Loftin from the Lost Christmas Podcast join us as we encounter what might be the least Christmassy Rankin/Bass Christmas special, featuring a friendlier version of Jack Frost, a groundhog dressed like a pro wrestling manager, and the wintry weather neighbors of those angels your grandmother told you were bowling whenever there was a thunderstorm. 📺 You can watch “Jack Frost” on Tubi. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: Toei Animation’s “The Little Mermaid” (1975) Gilbert Gottfried on his favorite death scene: Buddy Hackett as Lou Costello in “Bud and Lou.” Today’s TV Trope: Inevitable Waterfall. The Christmas tradition of “dream presents” is like the dinner scene from “Hook.” February 2 is Candlemas, the 40th day of Christmas. **** 📼 Commercials: Pennsylvania Lottery: Like Holiday Morning, starring Gus, the 2nd most famous groundhog in Pennsylvania (2018) Sonic the Hedgehog 3: Hedgehog Day (1992) **** “Jack Frost” © 1979 Rankin/Bass Productions. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

Let’s all go to the taco show! The Advent Calendar House has awoken early from its long winter’s nap to take the Leap Year challenge as prescribed by Dr. Frasier Crane on one unseasonably warm February morning in 1996. 🎙 Erin Evans and Joey O. get dressed up in buttons and boys to look into the “Frasier” cast’s Christmas connections, explore the world of complicated opera solos and bad Western ballads, and call in to a PBS pledge drive to try and talk to Big Bird. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: Kelsey Grammer in “Mr. St. Nick” and “The Twelve Days of Christmas Eve.” Our adventures on the mid-1990s internet, when it was All About the Pentiums. “Frasier” episodes ranked on Variety, Frasier Online, and Thrillist. “When You Had Left Our Pirate Fold” from “The Pirates of Penzance,” in which Leap Day becomes a plot point. Oleg Cassini and the worst title card gag. KACL is a real radio station, but not in Seattle. “Rigoletto” and the aria “Ella mi fu rapita / Parmi veder le lagrime.” Kelsey Grammer sings “The Star-Spangled Banner” at the 1996 Major League Baseball All-Star Game in Philadelphia. “Buttons and Bows,” as sung by Bob Hope in “The Paleface” and by Leap Day baby Dinah Shore. Adam “Edge” Copeland talks “Money Plane” on Hey! (EW). **** 📼 Commercials: McDonald’s “Morning Break” Commercial starring Kelsey Grammer (1995) Remember That Show? **** “Frasier” and “Look Before You Leap” © 1996 Paramount Productions. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🎄It’s 1984, and Ebenezer Scrooge is threatening to raise his asking price for a warehouse full of corn. This Christmas Eve episode not only drops on a Scrooge Sunday, but it’s also the Advent Calendar House’s 150th episode! 🎙 Erin Evans, Joey O., and Anthony Strand join us for a Dickens of a celebration with 1984’s TV movie adaptation of “A Christmas Carol” starring George S. Scott, along with the original “Equalizer” Edward Woodward as a sassy Ghost of Christmas Present, and we even spotted our favorite Alfred Pennyworth, Michael Gough, as a not-so-portly gentleman. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: David Warner in “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze.” George S. Scott in “Angus” and “Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue.” “God Bless Us Everyone,” this movie’s theme music by Nick Bicât. Wikipedia and NO ONE ELSE names one Cratchit child “Michael,” played by Susannah York’s (Mrs. Cratchit) real-life son, Orlando Wells. Michael Carter (Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come) as Bib Fortuna in “Return of the Jedi.” “It’s Corn,” and My favorite “Futurama” joke. Scrooge’s grave, allegedly a real, reinscribed headstone, at St. Chad’s Church in Shrewsbury. Twelve Hundred Ghosts - A Christmas Carol in Supercut. **** 📼 Commercials: IBM Sponsored Commercial Break from the original airing of “A Christmas Carol.” George C. Scott “Read More About It” PSA. The Christmas Podcast Network All-Star Comedy Christmas Show! **** “A Christmas Carol” © 1984 Travenol Laboratories Limited. In memory of Jason Gross (1976–2023). Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. “Christmas in Your Heart” (from “A Garfield Christmas Special”) performed by Todd from Vista Blue/Second Saturday. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🎄It’s 1980, and my spoiled nephew just got beaten in a ski-jumping contest by a bear who’s never seen winter before. 🎙 Bill Hanstock join us we fail upward through middle to upper hotel management featuring a simultaneously very mature and very immature conversation about cartoon bears discovering mistletoe. What could be the Jellystone Winter Lodge’s final Christmas carnival manages to wake up Yogi Bear, who hibernates directly underneath it but somehow never knew about it before now. 📖 Check out Bill’s book, “We Promised You a Great Main Event: An Unauthorized WWE History.” **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: This special opens with a typo: The sign reads “Yellystone Park.” Daws Butler’s Snagglepuss voice was a Bert Lahr impression that was so spot on, Lahr threatened to sue when Snagglepuss started endorsing Kellogg’s cereal. Hanna-Barbera’s Christmas Sing-A-Long album, featuring songs from this special. Yogi was in “Casper’s First Christmas” in 1979, so this isn’t really Yogi’s First Christmas. Fruity Pebbles Christmas Commercial episode (2017) The Wonkamobile. ClickHole: “Which One of My Garbage Sons Are You?” Clickhole, 2014. Eddie the Eagle. Mickey Mouse’s shirtless (and hatless) Steamboat Willie winter look at Disneyland. “Mean, Sour, Crafty, and Cruel” in “Oliver and the Artful Dodger” and “Smurfs.” The Zone of Death in the part of Yellowstone National Park that’s in Idaho. “Christmas Is Here” in “A Flintstone Christmas.” **** 📼 Commercials: Cocoa Krispies Snagglepuss “Heavens to Murgatroyd” Commercial, circa 1963. Bad Princess Movies. **** “Yogi’s First Christmas” © 1980 Hanna-Barbera Productions, Inc. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🎄It’s 1970, and Santa’s been locked up in an underground cave with 2 giant Muppet monsters. 🎙️ Tori Schmidt and Tony Whitaker join us as we venture through the tunnels under Santa’s workshop to uncover Jim Henson’s first ever TV holiday special, presented by The Ed Sullivan Show and featuring the first Muppet performances by Richard Hunt, Fran Brill, Marilyn Sokol, and John Lovelady, as well as the first appearances of Thog and a familiar-looking Frackle who’d later be reworked into the Great Gonzo. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: “The Great Santa Claus Switch” on Muppet Wiki. ToughPigs.com’s transcript of the special (2004) Jim Henson, Thog, and Lothar on “The Dick Cavett Show” (1971) Taminella Grinderfall in “Tales of the Tinkerdee.” Jim Henson’s Red Book entries on the special’s casting and debut. Tony’s art of the Two-Headed Monster as the Miser Brothers. So Many Muppets Are Named Fred. Daniel Seagren as Spider-Man on “The Electric Company.” Richard Hunt as Elmo. Snarl, the Frackle who would become Gonzo. My Emmet Otter’s Teenage Mutant Jug-Band Christmas T-shirt. We have dubbed the green Frackle who looks like Thig with a beak and horns “Theg.” “This Is Halloween” in a Sesame Place parade. “8 Balls of Fur.” Stop calling them “Muppeteers.” **** 📼 Commercial Break: FritoLay Holiday Party Display Commercial (1970) “Noëlco” Razor Santa Commercial (1970) Merry Britsmas. **** “The Great Santa Claus Switch” © 1970 Sullivan Productions, Inc. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Full show notes and social links at adventcalendar.house.

🎄It’s 1983, and the Worst Kids in the World are taking over the church Nativity play, smoking in the ladies’ room, and helping themselves to the sacramental grape juice. 🎙 Scott Leopold from Holly Jolly X’masu and Bob Baker from Festive Foreign Film Fans join us as we meet the Herdmans in a classic Christmas story turned TV movie starring Loretta Swit from “M*A*S*H” and a young Fairuza Balk in her on-screen debut. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: Today’s TV Tropes: It’s the Best Whatever, Ever and Title Drop. Author Barbara Robinson wrote 2 sequels: “The Best School Year Ever” (1994) and “The Best Halloween Ever” (2004). Fairuza Balk (Beth) in “The Waterboy.” Loretta Swit (Grace) interview: “Meanest kids in town make the best pageant,” AP via The Free Lance-Star, 1983. Jason Michas (Leroy) as Johnny Arcade in “The Power Team” animated segment from Season 1 of “Video Power.” Antony Holland (Reverend Hopkins) as Dr. Light — er, “Wright” — in “Captain N: The Game Master.” Ocean Hellman (Alice) in “Danger Bay,” which keeps coming up this season. **** 📼 Commercial: Duracell “No Longer Under the Christmas Tree” Commercial (1983) Festive Foreign Film Fans. **** “The Best Christmas Pageant Ever” © 1983 Comworld Productions. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Full show notes and social links at adventcalendar.house.

🎄It’s 1994, and the Jeffersons are poisoning Metropolis with greed spray from toy atomic space rats. 🎙 Gerry Davila, Paxton Holley, and Jeeg join us on an unpredictable flight through the first Christmas episode of “Lois and Clark,” written by Dean Cain and starring Sherman Hemsley as the Toyman and Isabel Sanford as his reluctant assistant, plus Denise Richards, Dick Van Patten, Doug Llewellyn, and terrible special effects. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: C.T. brings up this episode and Jeeg seals his fate on Nerd Lunch’s “Nerdstradamus 2013 Redux.” Winslow Schott’s plan to dump his greed toxin into Metropolis’s water supply is similar to Scarecrow’s plan in “Batman Begins.” Progressive Insurance “Barbie” Commercial. Denise Richards (Angela) in “Tammy and the T-Rex.” Eddie Jones (Jonathan Kent) in “A League of Their Own.” Christmas at Graceland. Totally Rad Christmas on “It’s Gary Shandling’s Christmas Show” featuring Dom Irrera (Hecklebaum). Homer Simpson licking poisonous toads. Today’s TV Trope: Anticipatory Breath Spray. “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” by The Pretenders. **** 📼 Commercials: Burger King Holiday Disney Glasses Commercial (1994) Children First “Read a Book” PSA featuring Brett Butler (1994) Totally Rad Christmas. **** “Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman” and “Season’s Greedings” © 1994 Warner Bros. Television. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🎄It’s 2001, and a magical partridge is sending me on a coat drive for some kind of Karate Kid-style Santa training. 🎙️ Andre Bennett and Tim Babb join us for a ride in our light blue ’54 convertible as we take a joyride through the very last and most overlooked Rankin/Bass Christmas special, featuring a mostly black cast starring Patti LaBelle, Gregory Hines, and a criminally underused Eartha Kitt as a talking cat. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: This special was co-written by Suzanne Collins, who went on to write “The Hunger Games.” The other co-writer, Peter Bakalian, also has a book series. It’s called “The F.A.R.T. Diaries.” Patti LaBelle in Philadelphia’s “Get to Know Us” tourism campaign, 1985. Patti LaBelle on “Sesame Street” singing “How I Miss My X.” IMDb’s photo gallery for “Santa, Baby!” is full of high-quality promotional images. RankinBass.com’s first look at “Santa, Baby!” from December 2001. Gregory Hines in “The Muppets Take Manhattan” and “Running Scared.” Rankin/Bass finally includes “The Twelve Days of Christmas” and “Jingle Bells” in a Christmas special. Natalie Toro (Samson) lists “Santa Baby!” on her bio page. Andre’s uncle co-wrote K-Ci & JoJo’s “All My Life.” **** 📼 Commercials: McDonald’s “Wake Up” Breakfast Commercial featuring Patti LaBelle (1990) Can’t Wait for Christmas. **** “Santa, Baby” © 2001 Perisphere Pictures, Inc. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🎄It’s 1989, and a killer in a Santa suit is making it really hard to hide my dead husband’s body. 🎙 Jamie Ray from Fave Five From Fans joins us to dig up the first filmed episode of “Tales From the Crypt,” a cozy Christmas nightmare directed by Robert Zemeckis and starring his then-wife and talented screamer, Mary Ellen Trainor, and the kid who gets her hoverboard stolen by Marty McFly. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: Mike on Fave Five From Fans with my Fave Five Christmas TV Specials (already covered them all here). Fave Five Christmas Horror Movies. The Vault of Horror No. 35 (1954) “And All Through the House” segment of the 1972 “Tales from the Crypt” movie. HBO Feature Presentation opening (1983) John Kassir (The Crypt-Keeper) in a commercial for The Legend of Zelda (1987) Mary Ellen Trainor (Elizabeth) and Lyndsey Whitney Barry (Carrie Ann) in “Back to the Future Part II.” Today’s TV Trope: Tempting Fate. Elizabeth calls the operator because 9-1-1 was only available in about half the U.S. by 1989. **** 📼 Commercials: The Crypt-Keeper’s Ghoulish Guide to the Howlidays on Kids’ WB (2001) Holidays After Dark. **** “Tales From the Crypt” and “And All Through the House” © 1989 Tales From the Crypt Venture. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 It’s 1979, by way of 1933 — or the other way around — and the human from Fraggle Rock has broken into my garage with a haunted choir of singing children. 🎙️ Scott Leopold from Holly Jolly X’masu and Tommy Coombs join us as we turn the dial on our haunted time-traveling radio to find Henry Winkler at the height of his fame as the Fonz hiding under multiple layers of makeup as a Scrooge figure in Depression-era New England. 📺 You can watch “An American Christmas Carol” for free on YouTube. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: Henry Winkler interview on being asked to play a Scrooge figure. The Ford Model TT truck. Dorian Harewood (Matt Reeves/Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come) filling in for James Avery as Shredder. Today’s TV Trope: Recursive Fiction — and “The Identical.” Robin Williams on “Sesame Street” showing Elmo different ways to play with a stick. “Sister Kenny,” based on the true story of an Australian nurse. **** 📼 Commercials: McDonald’s Gift Certificates Christmas Commercial (1979) Holly Jolly X’masu, your podcast destination for Japanese Christmas music. **** “An American Christmas Carol” © 1979 Scrooge Productions, Inc. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🕎 It’s 2003, and a team of Hebrew school basketball players think they’ve found the ghost of Judah Maccabee in a random guy living in a van. 🎙️ April Ryley and J.W. Friedman join us for a Disney Channel Original Hanukkah Movie very, very loosely based on the true story of former college basketball star Lamont Carr and a yeshiva’s struggling team looking for a leader. 📺 “Full-Court Miracle” is available on Disney+. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: Lamont Carr’s obituary in Virginia Magazine (2017) Psychocandy, an experimental pop duo of Cassie Steele (Julie) and Jase Blankfort (Stick). UVA’s Athletics website circa 2003. Alex’s prized Dr. J basketball card isn’t even a rookie card and isn’t that valuable. “Jewball,” a novel featuring the South Philadelphia Hebrew Association basketball team. Sadly, the only upload I could find of the hip-hop cover of the Dreidel song is a smartphone recording of a TV playing this movie. This basketball movie’s NBA star cameo is provided by Jerome Williams. **** 📼 Commercials: Microsoft Encarta Commercial (1995) Returning Student. **** “Full-Court Miracle” © 2003 Disney Enterprises, Inc. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 It’s 1987, and someone stole Santa Claus in the middle of his hot dog break. 🎙️ Lindy Kempe and Emily Rowley join us as we follow a renowned novelist who may or may not be a teenager and her animated mouse writing partner on a quest find out who kidnapped a department store Santa, while we solve the mystery of how anyone remembers this Christmas special that only aired once. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: Dick Van Patten’s shout-out in “Wayne’s World” and cameo in “Robin Hood: Men In Tights.” Darcy Marta (Jill) on Totally Rad Christmas. Gene Kelly and Jerry Mouse dancing in “Anchors Aweigh.” Jill’s Miami Mice poster — no relation to the “Sesame Street” parody of the same name. Donald O’Connor (Alex) in “Singin’ in the Rain.” Helen Hughes (whoever the woman who answers Jill’s door is supposed to be) in “Billy Madison.” Today’s TV Trope: 555. Francis Dambeger’s (Jerry) 1991 film “Solitaire,” and its solitaire review on IMDb. The realistic looking toy gun predates the same federal law that forced Nintendo to recolor its Zapper orange. **** 📼 Commercials: 7up Christmas Commercial (1986–1987) Wild Puffalumps Commercial (1987) The Magic of the Season. **** “A Mouse, A Mystery, and Me” © 1987 Ruby-Spears Productions. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 It’s 1991, and Santa Claus is fighting with a talking dog over a park bench. By some Christmas miracle, this obscure special was rediscovered over 30 years later. For years, people on the Internet tried to identify it on a TV in the background of an old family photo, until finally, thanks to the power of positivity, it was identified as “The Soulmates in The Gift of Light.” 🎙️ Michael DiGiovanni and Jeff Somogyi join us as we meet the intergalactic Soulmates in what seems like a pilot that never got off the ground. 📺 You can watch “The Soulmates in The Gift of Light” for free on YouTube, courtesy of the special’s creator, Gabrielle St. George. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: The original Tumblr post: “Can You Figure Out Who This Is?” by Sophie Campbell (2016) Will Sloan’s tweet of the screenshot, September 2022. CBC News: Canadian cartoon mystery finally solved after 6 years, thanks to the internet (2022) “The Littles,” for comparison. Today’s TV Trope: Mind-Control Eyes. Soulmates Productions, Inc. defaulted in 2007. **** 📼 Commercials: Canadian Tire: Scrooge / Nintendo Action Set Commercial (1991) Pop Tarts Commercial starring Dan and Dave (1990) Remember That Show? **** “The Soulmates in The Gift of Light” © 1991 Soulmates Productions, Inc. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 It’s 1977, and Happy Gilmore’s grandma is surrounded by dancing chickens. It’s a beautiful day for a podcast, and this season of the Advent Calendar House begins with a visit to Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood in a Christmas special that hadn’t been available for more than 40 years until it resurfaced in 2022. It’s surprisingly less festive than some might expect, but it makes up for that with some extremely bizarre adventures. 🎙 Guy Hutchinson from Pointless Nostalgia and Tim Lybarger from The Neighborhood Archive join us for the wacky adventures of a mysterious Music Man and A Very Young Dancer. 📺 You can watch “Christmastime with Mister Rogers” at MisterRogers.org. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: “Christmastime with Mister Rogers” on The Neighborhood Archive. “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood: A Visual History,” co-written by Tim. Frances Bay (Mrs. Hamilton) in “The Karate Kid.” Today’s TV Trope: Hollywood Giftwrap. Mr. Rogers and François Clemmons sharing a wading pool. Lesser-known Christmas hymns “The Friendly Beasts,” “Rise Up, Shepherd, and Follow,” and “My Sheep Were Grazing.” Was Music Man Stan from “Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood” inspired by the Music Man from this special? “The Littlest Angel” (1969) Chuck Ozeas (Andrew) is now a director of photography. “A Very Young Dancer” and The Life That Followed (2011) Stephanie Selby’s obituary (2022) **** 📼 Commercials: Hershey’s Kisses Christmas Bells Commercial (1989) Dirt Cheap Liquors Chicken Commercial. Closer to Christmas. **** “Christmastime with Mister Rogers” © 1977 Family Communications, Inc. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 After spending 3 months locked in a water tower, the Advent Calendar House has escaped in time for Christmas Podcast Day, a fake holiday originally made up for a hashtag back when social media was slightly less stupid. It’s not Scrooge Sunday, but the theme for this year’s Christmas Podcast Day is “A Christmas Carol,” so I’m playing a long, but also cheating a little by covering both segments of a 1993 Christmas episode of “Animaniacs.” 🎙 Erin Evans and Joey O. join us for a totally insane-y Christmas Podcast Day-ny! **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: The Animanicast. Animaniacs Wiki entry for this episode. Sherri Stoner (Slappy Squirrel) was the live action reference model for Disney princesses Ariel and Belle. “A Christmas Plotz: The Hip-Hop Musical.” Jess Harnell (Wakko) sang the Taz-Mania theme. Jess Harnell’s band, Rock Sugar. Forest Lawn Memorial Park. Today’s TV Tropes: Sensational Staircase Sequence and Scooby Stack. Baby Jesus is in a thatched-roof cottage. Kathryn Page’s gag credits. **** 📼 Commercials: Animaniacs McDonald’s Happy Meal Toys (1994) Snow in Southtown. **** “Animaniacs,” “A Christmas Plotz,” and “Little Drummer Warners” © 1993 Warner Bros. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. “Christmas Podcast Day” song by Tim Babb from the Can’t Wait for Christmas Podcast. Parody of “Weasel Stomping Day” by “Weird Al” Yankovic. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 Previously on the Advent Calendar House, we watched a cavemen take over Santa’s job after he fell off the roof in “A Flintstone Christmas.” This time, our reunion tour of previously podcasted-about characters makes its final stop of the season in Bedrock, where Fred Flintstone is letting the lead role of “Ebonezer” Scrooge go to his head. 🎙️ “Ant-stony” Strand and “Mi-coal” May join us as we watch Wilma do the workload of I lost count of how many victims of the highly contagious Bedrock Bug. We also make the strongest case yet that this Modern Stone-Age Family does, indeed, know about who made lame beggars walk and blind men see. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: “A Flintstone Family Christmas,” from a year before, was the last appearance of adult Pebbles and Bamm-Bamm. “The Flintstones & WWE: Stone-Age Smackdown!” The latest we’ve waited to shop for our spouses. A grown-up Philo Quartz from “The Flintstone Kids” appears here and then never again. The Piltdown Man hoax. How big is the stage, and how are the actors playing ghosts appearing translucent? They added a “love scene” with Belle, and Maggie Magma is way too excited about it. Brian Cummings (Ernie/The Ghost of Christmas Present) did a weird Kermit the Frog voice in a promo for “Mr. Willowby’s Christmas Tree.” Other Dickens characters have headstones in the graveyard. IMDb credits Rip Taylor as the voice of a Venus flytrap tuba in the orchestra pit. (These show notes originally included a link to vote on which version of “A Christmas Carol” we’d cover for Christmas Eve! Here’s what won.) **** 📼 Commercials: Cocoa Pebbles “Christmas Carol” commercial (1998) “Dinner & a Movie” makes standing rib roast with “Rockshire” pudding (1996) **** “A Flintstones Christmas Carol” © 1994 Hanna-Barbera Cartoons, Inc. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🦃 Previously on the Advent Calendar House, we let the goofy alien puppet with the jokes toy with our emotions in “ALF’s Special Christmas.” This time, ALF teaches us about Melmac’s version of Thanksgiving. Unfortunately, he’s already eaten the turkey, but there might still be some sweet potato pie in the garage, with the homeless man. 🎙️ Chad Young, Tommy Coombs, and Jayme Kilsby join us around the Fappiano table as we aim a spoonful of squash back to 1988 for a very special, 2-part Thanksgiving episode. 📺 Watch “Turkey in the Straw” Part 1 and Part 2 on ALF’s official YouTube channel. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: ALF ruined Willie’s best belt to make his Thanksgiving pageant headdress. Oh no, Tom brought up Gerbert. Melmac’s version of Thanksgiving is named for Bob Fappiano, ALF’s assistant puppeteer. ALF trying to eat wax fruit reminded me of Rizzo in “The Muppet Christmas Carol.” I’m sad to report “Das Cornucopia, from Wagner Strauss’s ‘Der Feaster Famine,’” is not real. Is turkey really an aphrodisiac? What football game were the Alien Task Force agents watching? Chad still has his ALF doll from Burger King. ALF co-hosting the 1989 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. **** 📼 Commercials: Nobody Beats The Wiz Super Thanksgiving Sale (1985) Fan Fix-tion. **** “ALF” and “Turkey in the Straw” © 1988 Alien Productions. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 Previously on the Advent Calendar House, we went on an apocryphal adventure with the story of The Little Drummer Boy. This time, Rankin/Bass drums up an unnecessary sequel from 1976, its busiest year for holiday specials. 🎙️ Brandon Medley joins us on a side quest to retrieve the stolen silver bells from a troop of greedy Roman soldiers in the “Rogue One” of Christmas stories. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: Allen Swift (Melchior) as Twinkie the Kid. Simeon the bellmaker is very loosely based on the Biblical Simeon, but his Song of Simeon is left out. Ray Owens (Simeon) as the voice of Superbook, and Jesus in “The Flying House.” Zero Mostel (Brutus) on “The Muppet Show.” “Money Money Money” (not the song from “Mamma Mia!”) How bad is Brutus compared to the other Rankin/Bass Christmas villains? “Do You Hear What I Hear?” was written during the Cuban Missile Crisis. Our favorite recordings of “Do You Hear What I Hear?” by Copeland, the Mike Sammes Singers for Disneyland Records, and one by Spiraling that invokes The Who’s “Baba O’Riley.” **** 📼 Commercials: Kodak XL Movie Camera: “One Christmas” (1976) Holly Jolly X’masu, your podcast destination for Japanese Christmas music. **** “The Little Drummer Boy, Book II” © 1976 Rankin/Bass Productions. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 Previously on the Advent Calendar House, we spent Christmas Eve on Sesame Street, Hanukkah on “Shalom Sesame,” and even uncovered the oddity, “A Special Sesame Street Christmas.” This time, join us as we fly faster than time backwards around the globe to 1996 to watch Elmo save, then ruin, then fix Christmas. 🎙 Becca Petunia and Anthony Strand from ToughPigs.com drop in to watch Elmo’s wish for Christmas Every Day cause economic and environmental disaster in a star-studded special narrated by Maya Angelou and featuring Harvey Fierstein as the Easter Bunny and “Doc Hopper,” himself, Charles Durning, as Santa. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: “Brats of the Lost Nebula.” Early “proto-Elmo” appearances. Miss Piggy’s cookbook has a recipe by Maya Angelou. Baby Bear is Jewish. 14 Karat Soul sings “Down Below the Street.” Cookie Monster disguised as Ernie. A petition to remake “White Christmas” with Elmo and Rosita’s military veteran dads. This special’s unique News Flash logo. The soundtrack that’s not actually a soundtrack. Big Bird sings “All I Want for Christmas Is You,” but not THAT one. Elmo as the ring bearer at Luis and Maria’s wedding. Ranking all the jokes in “Elmo Says BOO!” Bert and Ernie meet their “It’s a Wonderful Life” counterparts. **** 📼 Commercials: “Elmo Saves BOO!” (1997) Returning Student, a 40-year-old’s journey to finish the college degree he never got. **** “Elmo Saves Christmas” © 1996 Children’s Television Workshop. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 Previously on the Advent Calendar House, we saved Punky Brewster’s Christmas spirit in “Yes, Punky, There Is a Santa Claus.” This time, join Punky in 1985 on an animated adventure in which Punky and pals visit Santa’s workshop and accidentally start Christmas too early. 🎙 Adam Pope and Steven join us on an instantaneous trip to the North Pole courtesy of Glomer, her new magical leprechaun-gopher Ewok lookin’ friend. The ’80s were weird. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: Comparing the original sitcom’s theme song to the cartoon’s theme. Galoob made a plush Glomer. Adam’s VHS cover has a very off-model Glomer. The Master Christmas Switch’s effect on time reminded me of the “Futurama” episode “Time Keeps on Slippin’.” Punky taught Adam how to wink. Santa drops off the kids on the roof again, just in like in “Frosty the Snowman.” **** 📼 Commercials: The Story of Phroomf commercial featuring baseball star Bob Boone (1986) WIZARDS The Podcast Guide to Comics. **** “It’s Punky Brewster” and “Christmas in July” © 1985 National Broadcasting Company, Inc. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🎃 Previously on the Advent Calendar House, we flew a sleigh made out of a dumpster into space with the California Raisins in “Will Vinton’s Claymation Christmas Celebration.” This time, we’re reanimating a creepier creation of his from 1991 — a Halloween special that premiered in May for some reason. 🎙 Sammy Hain and Chad Young join us for “Claymation Comedy of Horrors,” starring the scheming Wilshire Pig on a quest to uncover the secret lab of Dr. Frankenswine. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: IMDb’s photo gallery from this special. “The Adventures of Mark Twain.” Todd Tolces’ website and YouTube résumé. Michele Mariana (Wilshire) on “Sesame Street” as Cecile, the singing ball of clay. Herb from Burger King. Will Vinton wanted to build a theme park called Claymation Station with Wilshire Pig as its Mickey Mouse. Raphael opened the floodgates for characters made for children saying curse words. Sheldon the Snail bears a passing resemblance to The Noid. A closer examination of the bathroom graffiti. Today’s TV Trope: Removable Shell. Does Famine’s business card say he’s from Limbo, Illinois? **** 📼 Commercials: McDonald’s Coke Float Commercial, 1991, aired during this special. Another Zelda Podcast. **** “Claymation Comedy of Horrors” © 1991 Will Vinton Productions. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 Previously on the Advent Calendar House, we were Dreaming of a White Ranger with the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. This time, they’re away helping Santa, so Zordon surprises Alpha by teleporting in a bunch of children for a Christmas party. 🎙️ Andre Bennett and C.J. Belanger joins us for a very bonkers Power Rangers home video, plus a mini tribute to the late Jason David Frank, who’s seen as both the Green and White Ranger here because nobody cares about continuity during Christmas, I guess. 📺 You can watch “Alpha’s Magical Christmas” on YouTube, preserved by Dinosaur Dracula. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: “Chosen Sentai Jetman.” “Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Once and Always.” Morphed: Cheryl Saban’s Journey from Beach Bunny to Philanthropist. The real-life Command Center: The House of the Book at the American Jewish University. Baby Groot and the bomb that will kill everyone. Andre proves “Die Hard” is a Christmas movie. **** 📼 Commercials: Mighty Morphin Power Rangers Karate Club Video (1994) Mighty Morphin Power Rangers Fan Club (1994) The Magic of the Season. **** “Mighty Morphin Power Rangers” and “Alpha’s Magical Christmas” © 1994 Saban Entertainment, Inc. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 Previously on the Advent Calendar House, our hearts and golden harmonicas went out to “A Chipmunk Christmas.” This time, it’s Scrooge Sunday, so get set to have some fun in this Dickens of an episode of “Alvin and the Chipmunks.” 🎙️ Tommy Coombs and Sean Sotka joins us in Hollywood — or at least a nearby cartoon suburb where Alvin turns his greed up to 11 and blames it on his lonely old neighbor who doesn’t know how to plant a garden. 📺 You can watch “Merry Christmas, Mr. Carroll” on Internet Archive. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: “Merry Christmas, Mr. Carroll” on Munkapedia. Pee-wee Herman’s breakfast machine. “Paperboy,” the video game. “Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue.” Dads with trash bags on Christmas morning. “A Chipmunk Reunion.” A Seville family portrait featuring Dave’s abnormally large head. Mickey Mouse’s 1980s Epcot spacesuit. Today’s TV Trope: Sounding It Out. Southern California’s Blizzard of 2023. “Here Comes Christmas,” the TV version, and the album version. **** 📼 Commercials: The Chipmunks are Coming to Target (1990) Cool Kids Club. **** “Alvin and the Chipmunks” and “Merry Christmas, Mr. Carroll” © 1989 Bagdasarian Productions. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🫓 Previously on the Advent Calendar House, we helped our favorite talking babies stop a true meanie in “A Rugrats Chanukah.” This time, we’re ignoring the rules of another long-standing tradition as “Rugrats” reimagines the story of Passover. 🎙️ Sarah Shay and Zach Gozlan join us as we witness grown men throwing temper tantrums and ending up locked in the attic. 📺 I found this special hiding in a 4-hour VHS recording of Nick on CBS from 2003. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: Pilot House on “I Dream of Jeannie,” which would not be seen the night this premiered. Fact-Checking “Fact-Checking A Rugrats Passover.” As of this recording, the Sultan of Brunei in 1995 is still sultan. “Noozles,” which co-starred Cheryl Chase (Angelica) and was not “The Adventures of the Little Koala.” The 4 categories of Jewish holidays. Melanie Chartoff (Didi, Minka) as the principal in “Parker Lewis Can’t Lose.” The controversy over Boris and Minka’s design. “The Song That Doesn’t End” from “Lamb Chop’s Play Along.” The Maxwell House Haggadah. A Haggadah of Our Own. “Bible Adventures.” **** 📼 Commercials: Country Crock Spreadable Sticks (1994), featuring Jack Riley (Stu). Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Awards (2003) The Studio Demands It! **** “A Rugrats Passover” © 1995 Viacom International Inc. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 Previously on the Advent Calendar House, we witnessed goodness make the badness go away in “The Smurfs’ Christmas Special.” This time, we’re taking a one giant puppy open sleigh ride back to 1987 to spend another Christmas with the Smurfs. 🎙️ Lindy Kempe and Donnie Storms join us to help the Smurfs save Christmas for a poor human toymaker and his gravely ill wife, while Brainy and Hefty get lost in medieval Crime Alley. 📺 You can watch “’Tis the Season to be Smurfy” for free on YouTube, or an upscaled version including the opening credits. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: “Look at the adjective…” The crazy backstories of the Smurfs’ Puppy and Sassette. The Great Cookie Thief. New and improved Joker products! Painter Smurf paints like “Duck Amuck.” **** 📼 Commercials: Smurf-Berry Crunch Cereal (1983) Bad Princess Movies. **** “’Tis the Season to be Smurfy” © 1987 Hanna-Barbera Productions, Inc. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

💝 Previously on the Advent Calendar House, we visited the Easter Bunny’s underground nightmare factory in “The Berenstain Bears’ Easter Surprise.” This time, it’s 1982, and love and hockey are in the air we get all warm and fuzzy with the Bear Family’s Valentine’s Day capers. 🎙️ Gerry Davila from Totally Rad Christmas joins us as Brother Bear gets stalked by a secret admirer, and his Papa’s public displays of affection send him into orbit. 📺 You can watch “The Berenstain Bears’ Comic Valentine” for free on YouTube. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: The Broad Street Bullies. Totally Rad Christmas on Chuck E. Cheese. Homer Simpson’s rabbit trap. The bottom brick scene in ”Bloodsport.” A set of clips from this special set to “Let’s Hear It for The Boy” by Deniece Williams. **** 📼 Commercial: McDonald’s Berenstain Bears Happy Meal Toys (1986) **** “The Berenstain Bears’ Comic Valentine” © 1982 Joseph Cates Co., Inc. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 It’s the Advent Calendar House’s 10th season, and to celebrate, every episode is revisiting familiar faces and places already covered on the podcast. Previously, we spent Christmas with the Joker in “Batman: The Animated Series.” This time, we’re returning to the 1997 premiere of the redesigned, rebranded “New Batman Adventures.” 🎙️ Andre Bennett and Joey O. join us on a festive tour of Gotham City through the Joker’s hideously redrawn eyes. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: The Batman Adventures Holiday Special original comic. “Welcome to Our OOL.” Dark Night: A True Batman Story, by Paul Dini. Arleen Sorkin on “America’s Funniest People,” a her appearance as a jester on “Days of Our Lives” that inspired her casting as Harley Quinn. Kevin Conroy on being recognized while volunteering after 9/11. “Finding Batman,” by Kevin Conroy, from DC’s Pride 2022. Paul Dini’s original cel from Harley and Poison Ivy’s shopping spree. Tim Drake’s animated debut, and a shocking Muppet tangent. **** 📼 Commercials: Batman and Alfred Diet Coke Commercial (1989) Festive Foreign Film Fans. **** “The New Batman Adventures” and “Holiday Knights” © 1997 Warner Bros. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 It’s 2002, and we’re trapped in a horrifying world where Kermit the Frog doesn’t exist. 🎙 Lindy Kempe, Adam Jurotich, and Erik Johnson join us for a spectacular, spectacular Christmas Eve extravaganza starring Kermit in the George Bailey role of the Muppets’ perfectly silly take on “It’s a Wonderful Life,” also featuring Joan Cusack, David Arquette, Matthew Lillard, the cast of “Scrubs,” and Whoopi Goldberg as God, Herself. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: Muppet Wiki’s list of similarities between this special and 2011’s “The Muppets.” Joe Snow. Hoggle from “Labyrinth” at the Unclaimed Baggage Center. Director Kirk Thatcher as the punk on the bus in “Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home” and ”Picard.” Jonathan Bruce, who’d later appear in “Elf.” Deleted scenes include more of Carson Daly, Santa, and a lost cut scene with Snoop Dogg. The giant Bossmen Muppets. A scheduling conflict robbed this movie of actual Steve Irwin. Fozzie as “that green guy who stole Christmas.” Today’s TV Tropes: Celestial Bureaucracy, Laser Hallway, and Lampshade Wearing. The Yoda Muppet has his own Muppet Wiki entry. So does Amy, the Dancing Brick! The World Trade Center in alternate timeline Piggy’s apartment window, and that’s not the worst part of that scene. **** 📼 Commercials: Mastercard Priceless Getaway Sweepstakes Commercial starring The Muppets (2002) Acid Washed Memories, a retro pop-culture celebration podcast starting January 9, 2023. **** “It’s a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie” © 2002 The Jim Henson Company. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 It’s 2012, and I found a 60-year-old tangerine under a floorboard in my bedroom that’s the perfect size for a snowman’s nose… or is it? 🎙 Adam Parker Sibun from Merry Britsmas joins us for another walk in the air back to 2012 for the charming sequel to the British Christmas classic, “The Snowman,” by the now-late Raymond Briggs. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: I finally got a copy of the original Raymond Briggs book! UK Christmas’s “The Snowman” TV listing history. Raymond Briggs hails Christmas sequel to his Snowman classic (The Guardian, 2012) Billy has a picture of Fungus the Bogeyman in his room. The Snowman finds a 1960s toy Batmobile in the shed. Maybe it lost a wheel. A newer version of Andy Burrows’s “Light the Night.” An older version of Andy Burrows’s “Hometown.” “Funny Looking Angels,” a 2011 Christmas Album by Smith & Burrows. ‘Walking In The Air’ composer told to send a demo tape for The Snowman sequel (NME, 2012) London landmarks seen in the special. Let’s start building more creative snowmen with orange slices for ears and asparagus spear mustaches. The Snowdog Art Trails around the UK, including Snowdog sculptures displayed in Brighton. **** 📼 Commercial: IRN-BRU Snowman Advert, 2011. **** “The Snowman and The Snowdog” © 2012 Snowdog Enterprises Ltd. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🕎 It’s 1998, and we’re praying for a miracle after getting stuck in a snow bank on the side of a dark highway with only an eighth of a tank of gas. 🎙 April Ryley joins us on an enlightening revisit to the Flashy Girl from Flushing on her first Hanukkah as a married woman. Also, Ray Charles is here! 📺 You can watch “The Hanukkah Story” for free on Facebook. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: April visits the Sheffield residence, and so can you. Fran Drescher in “UHF.” Fran Drescher says she had to fight to let ‘The Nanny’ be Jewish (L.A. Times, 2020) Benjamin Salisbury (Brighton) on “Teen Celebrity Jeopardy” in 1997. Daniel Davis (Niles) on “The Fran Drescher Tawk Show” in 2010. Max’s childhood memory of his dad at Christmas reminded me of Bruce Wayne’s long dining room table. What to do if you’re stranded in a car during a winter storm. Kenny Rogers Roasters still exists, but only in Asia. **** 📼 Commercials: 3 Musketeers Commercial starring Fran Drescher (1998) Hyrule Podcasters, an audio “Let’s Play” through The Legend of Zelda. **** “The Nanny” and “The Hanukkah Story” © 1998 Global Entertainment Productions GmbH & Co. Medien KG. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 It’s 2016, and a Scrooge-like unicorn is brewing a potion to eliminate Hearth’s Warming Eve from the calendar. That’s how potions work, right? 🎙 Jon and Bin from Bin’s Toy Bin and Santa by the Minute join us for a Scrooge Sunday canter through a “Christmas Carol” adaptation set in Equestria, the world of “My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic.” 📺 You can watch “A Hearth’s Warming Tail” for free on YouTube. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: Mike on Santa by the Minute. The first My Little Pony special, from 1984: “Rescue at Midnight Castle.” Patton Oswalt on My Little Pony. Patton Oswalt literally on My Little Pony. “It’s a Pony Kind of Christmas,” featuring characters who don’t celebrate Christmas singing Christmas songs, so the show’s composer had to clarify it wasn’t canon. The mysterious “Derpy,” a.k.a. Muffins. A short tangent about “The Nutcracker and the Four Realms” air fresheners. Today’s TV Trope: And You Were There. A scene was cut featuring Discord in the Jacob Marley role. He’s not in this episode, but there’s a character named Cheese Sandwich who is literally “Weird Al” Yankovic as a pony. Bin takes roll call at the Hearth’s Warming Eve party. **** 📼 Commercials: My Little Pony Dream Castle Commercial (1983) The Hub Network: 12 Days of Ponies Promo (2014) **** “My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic” and “A Hearth’s Warming Tail” © 2016 Hasbro Studios. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 It’s 1973, and a musical cricket is about to save the Christmas spirit during New York City’s quietest power failure. 🎙️ Michael DiGiovanni join us for a one-cat open sleigh ride into Chuck Jones’s beautifully animated sequel to “The Cricket in Times Square.” **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: A very insightful Letterboxd review. Name That Christmas Special’s screenshot gallery for this special. Today’s TV Trope: Bully Bulldog. Mel Blanc’s voice for the Alley Cat sounds his voice for Clarence the Cat in “Birds Anonymous.” DiGio introduces me to Yorkshire pudding. “Down by the Old Mill Stream.” The similar “Joy to the World” segment from “Will Vinton’s Claymation Christmas Celebration.” The final Classic Film Jerks movie, “Babes in Toyland (March of the Wooden Soldiers).” **** 📼 Commercials: Mel Blanc American Express Card Commercial (1971) Rediscover the 80s podcasts, including The 80s Weekly and Memory Jogger. **** “A Very Merry Cricket” © 1973 Chuck Jones Enterprises. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 It’s 1970 by way of 1990, and I just noticed the Santa Claus at the mall is actually my gym teacher. 🎙 Andy Gattis joins us on a revealing trip back to The Wonder Years as we salute Robert Picardo’s standout performance as Coach Cutlip… and Santa. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: Joe Cocker’s version of “With a Little Help from My Friends” over the opening credits was replaced for streaming with a soundalike, only they don’t sound alike. Almost all the original music is replaced, including a surf rock cover of “Sleigh Ride” by The Ventures. Fred Savage in “Dinosaurs! A Fun-Filled Trip Back in Time,” featuring Rex and Herb from “Will Vinton’s Claymation Christmas Celebration.” Coach Cutlip’s drawing of the female reproductive system. Oops, Wikipedia linked to the wrong Jay Lambert (Tommy). Here’s the right guy. Brandon Crane’s (Doug Porter) new podcast, “The Errorist.” **** 📼 Commercials: Pepsi “Love Letter” Commercial with Fred Savage (1990) TGI Podcast. **** “The Wonder Years” and “A Very Cutlip Christmas” © 1990 New World Television. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 It’s 1997, and Tim Curry as an evil pipe organ is literally bringing down the house. 🎙 Kristi and Bri from Bad Princess Movies join us as we journey into the depths of Disney’s direct-to-video library for an unnecessary but charming midquel that explains why the Beast hates Christmas and raises even more questions about the curse on his castle. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: Bad Princess Movies on Disney’s original “Beauty and the Beast” and “The Enchanted Christmas.” Coming Soon previews from the original VHS. Kathie Lee Gifford sang the soundtrack for “Pooh’s Grand Adventure: The Search for Christopher Robin.” Behind “Prince Adam,” the Beast’s real name Disney never made official but keeps occasionally using. Tim Curry as Darkness in “Legend” and as Hexxus in “FernGully: The Last Rainforest.” How tall is the Beast’s castle compared to the real world’s tallest castle? Disney can’t keep the Feather Duster’s name straight, either. The West Wing at Be Our Guest Restaurant in the Magic Kingdom. The terrifying air conditioner in “The Brave Little Toaster.” The loudest organ ever built. Belle wears her dress from this special during Christmastime at Disney parks. Lisa Temming on designing Belle’s Christmas dress. **** 📼 Commerciasls: Disney Home Video Collection (1997) Tiger Electronics Beauty and the Beast handheld game (1994) Holidays After Dark. **** “Beauty and the Beast: The Enchanted Christmas” © 1997 Disney Enterprises, Inc. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 It’s 1975, and a shepherd boy just lost his sight after staring directly at a lightning bolt. 🎙️ Mike Troxell joins us as we return to enchanted world of Rankin/Bass Christmas specials for an overlooked, underrated, and redundantly titled hidden gem about neither the first Christmas, nor the first Christmas snow. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: Vox’s Emily St. James ranks all the Rankin/Bass Christmas specials. A very brief history of the Christmas card. Was There Really Any Winter’s Snow at the Time of the Nativity in Bethlehem? Flash blindness is real. Arthur Rankin Jr. recalling how Irving Berlin really, REALLY didn’t want “White Christmas” in the special. This exact sound of a wolf howling (or, actually, a coyote) is heard over and over again. **** 📼 Commercials: Toys “R” Us Time of Year Christmas Commercial (1976) Christmas Creeps. **** “The First Christmas: The Story of the First Christmas Snow” © 1975 Rankin/Bass Productions. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 It’s 1990, and a little girl’s Christmas wish is about to get shot out of the sky. 🎙 Joey O. join us for the podcast’s first voyage into the Disney Afternoon as Baloo the cargo pilot bear attempts to save his boss’s daughter’s belief in Santa. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: Joey’s Christmas TV lineup that he wrote on a piece of paper around 1991 and found again 30 years later. The TaleSpin/Quantum Leap joke. Disney’s “The Jungle Book,” the animated one, is somehow Germany’s biggest box office draw ever. “Tales of the Gold Monkey,” a single-season TV show that inspired “TaleSpin.” “What a Dummy,” an even shorter single-season TV show featuring Janna Michaels (Molly) and a living ventriloquist’s dummy. Joey’s Interview with Pat Fraley (Wildcat), again! Today’s TV Trope: String-on-Finger Reminder. Cape Suzette and Louie’s Place on the Disney Wiki. Flunkey, the Einstein-haired monkey from “The Jungle Book” whose “TaleSpin” counterpart appears to be Santa Louie’s “elf,” Waldo. **** 📼 Commercials: McDonald’s TaleSpin Happy Meal Toys (1990) Snow in Southtown. **** “TaleSpin” and “Jolly Molly Christmas” © 1990 The Walt Disney Company. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 It’s 1979, and no one wants to go to Pat Boone’s lame Christmas party, but everyone’s here to dunk on him. 🎙 Guy Hutchinson extends an invitation to discover this bizarre but wholesome special featuring the Hudson Brothers, the stars of “The Ropers” as themselves but also still as the Ropers, and a criminally brief appearance by Yogi Bear and his Hanna-Barbera friends. 📺 You can watch the “Pat Boone and Family Christmas Special” on Tubi. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: Pat Boone’s album of heavy metal covers from 1997. TV Guide’s ad for the special, prominently featuring Yogi Bear and friends. “The Hudson Brothers Razzle Dazzle Show,” as seen in a “Family Guy” cutaway gag. “The Seventh Python,” Brett Hudson’s 2008 documentary about frequent Monty Python collaborator Neil Innes. “Largo al Factotum,” the “Figaro” song from “The Barber of Seville.” Dinah Shore’s giant belt buckle. **** 📼 Commercials: Master Charge Christmas Commercial (1979) Season’s Eatings. **** “Pat Boone and Family Christmas Special” © 1979 Cooga Mooga Productions. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 It’s 1971, and Alastair Sim is delivering an even more animated performance as Scrooge. 🎙️ Michael May and Rob Graham join us as we invade your personal space for salute an animated adaptation of “A Christmas Carol” that bent the rules and became the last TV special to win an Oscar, directed by Richard Williams and executive produced by Chuck Jones. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: Michael May’s Christmas Carol Project entries on 1971’s “A Christmas Carol.” CED Magic’s “Christmas Carol” screen adaptation directory. John Leech’s original illustrations for the Dickens story. AfterLUNCH on Christmas Ghosts (And One Carol in Particular). The rarely seen Phantom Hearse. Visions of Young Scrooge’s favorite stories dancing in his head. Alex Williams’s website and blog post about his memory of voicing Tiny Tim at age 4. One notable businessman from the future and his gross nose. The Making of Richard Williams’s “A Christmas Carol.” **** 📼 Commercials: NyQuil Scrooge Commercial, circa 1968. Bell Telephone Christmas Commercial (1978) “The Christmas Book: The Ultimate Guide to Your Favorite Holiday,” by Ed Daly. **** “A Christmas Carol” (1971) © Richard Williams Productions. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 It’s the Advent Calendar House’s 5th anniversary, so instead of celebrating one Christmas special, we watched three! 🎙️ Jeff Somogyi and Paxton Holley help us clear the runway as we salute Disney’s trilogy of 2009’s “Prep & Landing,” 2010’s “Operation: Secret Santa,” and 2011’s “Prep & Landing: Naughty vs. Nice.” **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: Disney’s Prep & Landing Website from 2009 is still up with character and gadget profiles. “Tiny’s Big Adventure,” a minute-long short starring Magee’s assistant. Super Golden Crisp Cereal’s Sugar Bear musical Christmas ornament. Prep & Landing Easter eggs. Santa’s castle looks familiar. Noel’s early cameo in “Operation: Secret Santa.” A hat tip to the Classic Film Jerks. Captain Avalanche and Snowball’s poster looks like a Batman and Robin Detective Comics cover. “Naughty, Naughty Children” by Grace Potter and the Nocturnals. “Nuttin’ for Christmas” by the Plain White T’s. “The Ballad of Nessie,” who makes 2 cameos. Ralphie from “A Christmas Story” appears. “Mansion: Impossible,” featuring Wayne and Lanny prepping the Avengers Mansion. **** 📼 Commercials: Coca-Cola: Santa Packs are Coming (1994) Campbell’s Soup: Snowman (1995) Can’t Wait for Christmas’s reminder to play “Underneath the Tree” by Kelly Clarkson more. **** “Prep & Landing,” “Operation: Secret Santa,” and “Prep & Landing: Naughty vs. Nice” © Disney. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.

🎄 November 1st is Christmas Podcast Day! I don’t make the rules; I just use the hashtag. 🎙 Gerry Davila from Totally Rad Christmas and Matt Spaulding from North Pole Radio join us as on a very important mission to dig up the original animated adventures of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer in a 1948 short film that predates the song. 📺 You can watch “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” courtesy of the Library of Congress. **** 💬 Topics & Tangents: Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer’s First Starring Film Role (Library of Congress, 2014) The 1951 re-release, featuring the new “Rudolph” song. The Advent Calendar House episode on Rankin/Bass’s “Rudolph.” Disney’s Very Merry Christmas Sing-Along Songs. Water Polo, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer & Chevrolet: The Life of Jam Handy (Collegiate Water Polo Association, 2019) Matt’s Little Golden Book of Rudolph, illustrated by Richard Scarry. Paul Wing’s Rudolph record from 1947. “Rudolph’s 2nd Christmas.” George Klensinger, who arranged the original Silent Night intro, also composed “Tubby the Tuba.” “The Biggest, Most Beautiful Christmas Tree.” James Bond and Blofeld fight on a bobsled in “On Her Majesty’s Secret Service.” Ear trumpets, and Daisy Duck’s mother using one in “Donald’s Diary.” **** 📼 Commercials: Closer to Christmas. **** “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” ©1948 The Jam Handy Organization. Theme song by Bronwen’s Ghost. Find us at adventcalendar.house.