Christmas classics
American Christmas has its own screen canon, and it is defined less by quality than by repetition. Rankin/Bass's television specials from the 1960s have been broadcast every December for decades; A Christmas Story has run as a day-long cable marathon since 1997; Home Alone, Elf and Christmas Vacation return to the schedule every year.
About Christmas classics
American Christmas has its own screen canon, and it is defined less by quality than by repetition. Rankin/Bass's television specials from the 1960s have been broadcast every December for decades; A Christmas Story has run as a day-long cable marathon since 1997; Home Alone, Elf and Christmas Vacation return to the schedule every year. Characters that are seen annually, by several generations of one household at once, behave differently from other licensed properties. Their apparel is bought for a single month, and usually for an occasion — a family photograph, an office party, a sweater contest, a matching set for a whole household — which is why so much of it is designed to be read and laughed at from across a room.
These characters are watched every year by whole families, which is why so much of their apparel is sold as matching sets.
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Key eras
| Era | Years | What happened |
|---|---|---|
| Origins | 1939–1950 | Rudolph as a department-store booklet, Frosty as a song. |
| Television specials | 1964–1970s | Rankin/Bass specials that became annual broadcasts. |
| Holiday films | 1983–2003 | A Christmas Story, Christmas Vacation, Home Alone and Elf. |