My Top 10 Cartoon Christmas Shorts

 

Way back when I was just a little kid, it always excited me to combine two things I loved into one offering, and for today’s topic it’s cartoon shorts with a decorative Christmas make-over. While I certainly had my fill of the half-hour specials in the vein of “How the Grinch Stole Christmas”, and “A Charlie Brown Christmas”, it was also an accomplishment for a special to leave an impression on my childhood within the span of only ten minutes. I’ve already done a countdown of my favorite shorts featuring all the classic Disney characters, so I felt I was due to countdown my other favorite Christmas shorts, including some from MGM, and others from Disney, but excluding Mickey or any of his famous co-stars.

 

#10 “Prep and Landing – Operation: Secret Santa” (2010) 

Most of the shorts on my list are specials I watched when I was a little kid, but I figured, why not start my countdown with one of the more current generation shorts. “Operation: Secret Santa” is part of Disney’s “Prep and Landing” series. For this adventure, two of Santa’s Elves seek a gift belonging to Mrs. Claus, and they face many fun obstacles along the way to obtain it. While this short is nothing demanding, it's still an enjoyable watch all the same. There’s plenty ingenuity and energy to the short to make for a fun watch, and I generally prefer it over the half-hour specials of the “Prep and Landing” series.

 

#9 “Once Upon a Wintertime” (from Disney’s “Melody Time” - 1948) 

In this silent musical short, two romantic young lovers go out sleigh riding on a beautiful December day. Their company soon involves various woodland animals, including two rabbits that are likewise in love. The males try to show-off while skiing, only to upset their respected dates. What follows is a near-tragedy on the ice, and a timely rescue ensues. While the characters are consistently silent, they still convey enough through the animation, and I love the overall design of this short. The colors pop, and it almost resembles one of those Christmas Hallmark cards, that is if one were to come alive in animated form. More than anything, I just love the simplicity of the premise. It’s just a little venture into the frosty country side, and it’s an experience full of action and romance. The title song at the center of this short is nothing great, but it does its job carrying the tone and feel of the short.

 

#8 MGM’s “Alias St. Nick” (1935) 

It’s Christmas Eve, and a family of mice are eagerly awaiting the arrival of Santa Claus … that is with the exception of one loud mouthed boy, who just doesn’t believe. Meanwhile, a nasty cat is outside, and itching to make a meal out of this mouse family. Thus, he discuses himself as Saint Nicholas, and gains access to the home by bringing the kids gifts. The one doubtful child naturally can see through the charade, and leads his siblings in a revolt against the invader, with their means of combat naturally being all their new toys. It’s all around a fun and cute little short, with kids using their plays toys as a means to fight-off a villain. 

 

#7 Disney’s Silly Symphony: “The Night Before Christmas” (1933) 

Following after the 1932 short “Santa's Workshop”, Disney followed-up with “The Night Before Christmas” in 1933, and it’s my preferred choice of the two. In this short, Santa doesn’t just leave toys for kids … he makes a party out of it, with all the toys coming to life, dancing to music, and decorating the house for the kids. It’s funny to think that during Santa’s busy work schedule, he has time for these mini parties in each house … but it makes for a delightful little watch. The animation is detailed, the music is upbeat, and even the backgrounds are memorable highlights … the moon with the smiling face always lingered in the back of my mind. 

 

#6 “The Nutcracker Suite” and “The Steadfast Tin Soldier” (from Disney’s “Fantasia” – 1940, and Disney’s “Fantasia 2000” - 1999)

Even if you’ve never seen the ballet, you’re probably still familiar with the music from “The Nutcracker”, as that too has become a staple of the holiday season. As for the music, I was initially introduced to these famous medleys through Disney’s 1940 animated classic “Fantasia”. While the sequence of “The Nutcracker Suite” doesn’t feature any of the principal characters, it still captures the same spirit of the Ballet, as it features fantastical creatures and elements that dance and move with the same grace and spirit as Ballet dancers. The final scene with the fairies skating on the ice always got me in the winter, holiday mood, despite the lack of any Nutcracker on screen. Every now and then around Christmas, I like to watch this segment, along with “The Steadfast Tin Soldier” sequence from the 1999 sequel “Fantasia 2000”. While the Hans Christian Andersen fairytale of “The Steadfast Tin Soldier” is a completely different entity all together, it still has a similar look and feel to “The Nutcracker”, and just has that same magic touch. Back-to-back, they make for a perfect holiday package, and neither even had to mention Christmas.

 

#5 Fleischer’s “Rudolph the Red-Nosed-Reindeer” (1948) 

While Rudolph’s modern-day popularity ignited with the classic 1964 Rankin/Bass TV special, I just can’t dismiss the original 1948 short that first made Rudolph one of the season’s most marketable characters. For an eight-minute short, it delivers the straightforward story of Rudolph in a tight and effective package. The iconography on display can still impact young viewers to this day, and it’s just a warm little classic on its own. If anything else … it made for a funny segment to spoof on 2010 “RiffTrax Live: Christmas Special”.    

 

#4 MGM’s “A Pup’s Christmas” (1936) 

It’s Christmas morning, and as a family open-up gifts, two curious puppies go exploring, and find themselves going from one goofy encounter to another, culminating in a battle with a rogue toy-tank, who really should have been taken off the market. Both the premise and appeal of this episode couldn’t be more simple, as it’s just these cute pup’s going on a mini-adventure amidst all these Christmas decorations and toys. It’s cute, lovable, and for me and my little sister, it was a real joy to watch at a young age.   

 

#3 Tom and Jerry: “Twas’ the Night Before Christmas” (1941) 

I was only a passive fan of the famous Cat and Mouse duo when I was a kid, but looking back as an adult, I’ve come to admire Tom and Jerry as cartoon icons in their own right. Among the limited shorts of theirs that I regularly watched as a kid, it was their 1941 Christmas short that I loved the most, which just happened to only be their third short ever released. While the cartoon slap-stick is fairly simple compared to their later outings, this one makes-up for it with a warm holiday atmosphere, gorgeous backgrounds, and a very touching ending, in which Tom rescues Jerry from a snow storm. There’s something touching about enemies looking out for one another, and along with the quality animation on display, this was a winning sign that MGM’s cat and mouse duo were sticking around for the long-run.

 

#2 MGM’s “Peace on Earth” (1939) 

Set in a post-apocalyptic world, we see animals have taken over the globe, after human kind destroyed itself during a savage war. It’s Christmas Eve, and Grandpa Squirrel teaches his kids about humans, and through his tale, we see a dark and horrific depiction of how “Man” lost fighting each other. How’s that for a set-up, not too often a children’s short begins with … “Merry Christmas! Mankind Didn’t Make It!” I was about five years old when I first saw this short, and it terrified me, but also left a memorable impression. While the message is direct, it still effectively gets it’s point across that, if we’re not careful, we’ll doom ourselves. The imagery in this short is unforgettable, disturbing, but also quite beautiful in its presentation. This short was nominated at the Academy Awards, but lost to Disney’s “The Ugly Duckling”. Personally, I feel this short deserves more attention, and I highly encourage anyone to look it up this Christmas season. 

 

Before I reveal my Number one Favorite Christmas short, here are some quick Honorable Mentions … 

“One Ham’s Family” (1943)

“Santa's Workshop” (1932)

 

“The Captain’s Christmas” (1938)

 

“Cookie Carnival” (1935)

 

“Christmas Comes But Once a Year” (1936)

 

#1 Disney’s “The Little Match Girl” (2006) 

In this seven-minute short adapted from the Hans Christian Anderson novel of the same name, a homeless little girl sets out into the cold winter streets to make money selling matches, but unfortunately, no one is buying. With the weather baring down hard, she seeks warmth from the vary matches she was trying to sell, and begins to imagine herself sharing a Christmas day with her late grandmother. I won’t spoil the ending, but’s it’s among one of the most powerful moments I’ve ever experienced in the realms of animation. Once again, this is a short that’s not directly aimed at Christmas, but it’s set during the holiday season, and its simply Disney at its finest. 

It’s got great animation, and lots of heartfelt drama, as it mainly focuses on the fragile nature of human life. It's a truly heartwarming story that highlights the importance of hope, dreams, and helping the innocent. I watch this short every year, and I never have a dry eye at the end ... it’s just that moving. This short was also nominated at the Academy Awards for Best Short film, but lost to “The Danish Poet”. “The Little Match Girl” in general has always been one of my favorite Christmas stories. It’s a tail that my own late grandparents read to me all the time as a kid, and I always felt it deserved its own holiday special. Thankfully, in the absence of a motion picture, we have this terrific little Disney short that ranks among the finest the studio has ever produced, and it’s personally my favorite Christmas short.

Thanks for reading my countdown … and continue to enjoy the specials you love!

Have a Merry Christmas!