Pinocchio's Christmas
| Pinocchio's Christmas | |
|---|---|
| Based on |
The Adventures of Pinocchio by Carlo Collodi |
| Written by | Romeo Muller |
| Directed by |
Jules Bass Arthur Rankin, Jr. |
| Starring |
Todd Porter George S. Irving Alan King Bob McFadden Allen Swift Paul Frees |
| Theme music composer | Maury Laws |
| Country of origin |
United States Japan |
| Original language(s) | English |
| Production | |
| Producer(s) | Jules Bass Arthur Rankin, Jr. Masaki Iizuka (Associate Producer) |
| Cinematography | Akikazu Kono Ichiro Komuro |
| Running time | 49 minutes |
| Production company(s) | Rankin/Bass Productions |
| Release | |
| Original network | ABC |
| Original release | December 3, 1980 |
| Chronology | |
| Preceded by | The New Adventures of Pinocchio |
Pinocchio's Christmas is a 1980 Christmas stop motion television special produced by Rankin/Bass Productions that is a holiday adaptation of The Adventures of Pinocchio. The special was originally aired on ABC on December 3, 1980. It airs annually during the Christmas season on Freeform.
It is Pinocchio's first Christmas, and Geppetto is trying to figure out how to buy a Christmas present for his son, so he sells his boots to a used shoe store and uses the money to buy an arithmetic book, which he gives to Pinocchio early. Pinocchio, however, brings the book back to the bookseller for five copper coins, which he decides to use to buy a present for Geppetto. However, he soon runs into the Fox and Cat, whom he thinks are his only friends. The Fox and Cat convince Pinocchio that he should bury his five coins in the snow, and when the sun sets, they will grow into a Christmas tree covered with lots of gold and silver coins. Pinocchio does exactly that, and then, while he's not there to pay attention, the Fox and Cat dig the coins out of the ground before he returns.
When Pinocchio returns and finds that the tree didn't grow, he takes part in a local Christmas marionette show run by Maestro Fire-Eater, where he is given the stage name of Sir Larry Olive-Tree. During the show, he befriends a non-sentient female puppet of Fire-Eater, named Julietta. After the show, Fire-Eater tells Pinocchio that he needs to change the Julietta puppet to resemble one of the Three Wise Men for a Christmas pageant next week. But Pinocchio runs off, taking Julietta with him, and Fire-Eater calls a nearby gendarme to chase after him.
Pinocchio manages to elude the gendarmes and brings Julietta with him to the Forest of Enchantment, which he recognizes as his birthplace. Pinocchio explains his backstory - how he was cut down as a log from an enchanted tree and sold to a master carpenter named Mr. Cherry, who sold him to Geppetto, who built Pinocchio into a marionette and raised him as his son. Pinocchio then describes how he always ended up getting into trouble and no one in the village ever got along with him, except for the Fox and Cat who have been teaching him to tell lies and play hooky. He also mentions his first encounter with the Talking Cricket, who tried to lecture him about being a good boy until Pinocchio tossed a book at him. As he finishes his flashback, Pinocchio expresses sadness at the idea that he may never see his father again. Just then, the Fox and the Cat show up, telling Pinocchio they know how he can bring Julietta to life using a secret medicine, which he can only find if he goes on a sleigh ride over seven mountains and seven valleys.
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