FROSTY THE SNOWMAN [1969] [Blu-ray] [1969 / 2014] [UK Release] The Original Christmas Classic and Look at Frosty Go!
For the first time on Blu-ray, discover the magic of ‘FROSTY THE SNOWMAN’ in this Original Christmas Classic and rediscover the Original Christmas Classic for the first time on this Blu-ray disc.
Do you remember when Karen placed a top hat on Frosty’s head, and he magically came to life on Christmas Eve? Share the magic of this Original Christmas Classic and is narrated and sung by Jimmy Durante.
FILM FACT: ‘FROSTY THE SNOWMAN’ is a 1969 American animated Christmas television special produced by Rankin/Bass Productions. It is the first television special featuring the character Frosty the Snowman. The special first aired on the 7th December, 1969, on the CBS television network in the United States, airing immediately after the fifth showing of A Charlie Brown Christmas; both scored high ratings. The ‘FROSTY THE SNOWMAN’ special has aired annually for the network's Christmas and holiday season every year since. The special was based on the Walter E. Rollins and Steve Nelson song of the same name. It featured the voices of comedians Jimmy Durante (in his final film role) as the film's narrator, Billy De Wolfe as Professor Hinkle, and Jackie Vernon as Frosty. Arthur Rankin Jr. and Jules Bass wanted to give the show and its characters the look of a Christmas card, so Paul Coker Jr., a greeting card and Mad magazine artist, was hired to do the character and background drawings. The animation was produced by Mushi Production in Tokyo, Japan, with Yusaku "Steve" Nakagawa and then-Mushi staffer Osamu Dezaki (who is uncredited) among the animation staff. Jimmy Durante was one of the first people to record the song when it was released in 1950 (though at the time the song had slightly different lyrics); so Jimmy Durante re-recorded the song for this special. Rankin/Bass veteran writer Romeo Muller adapted and expanded the story for television, as he had done with the "Animagic" stop-motion production of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.
Voice Cast: Jimmy Durante [Narrator], Billy De Wolfe [Professor Hinkle / The Magician], Jackie Vernon [Frosty the Snowman], Paul Frees [Santa Claus / Traffic Cop / Additional Voices], June Foray [Teacher / Karen / Additional Voices] and Suzanne Davidson [Karen] [uncredited]
Directors: Arthur Rankin Jr. and Jules Bass
Producers: Arthur Rankin Jr. and Jules Bass
Screenplay: Romeo Muller
Composer: Maury Laws
Image Resolution: 1080p
Aspect Ratio: 1.37:1
Audio: English: 2.0 Stereo Audio
Subtitles: None
Running Time: 25 minutes
Region: Region B/2
Number of discs: 1
Studio: ClassicMedia / Universal Pictures UK
Andrew’s Blu-ray Review: With this Classic animate cartoon ‘FROSTY THE SNOWMAN’ [1969] and unlike their other holiday specials, which used stop motion puppetry, Arthur Rankin Jr. and Jules Bass employed tradition 2D cell animation for ‘FROSTY THE SNOWMAN’ and the style of the animation for ‘FROSTY THE SNOWMAN’ is quite charming, since the filmmakers were aiming for the look of a greeting card brought to life, and sort of like the story’s protagonist Frosty.
The plot of ‘FROSTY THE SNOWMAN’ utilises the popular Christmas song as the inspiration for this animated tale and taking place on Christmas Eve where Frosty the Snowman tells the story of a group of children that are being entertained in school by a third rate magician named Professor Hinkle. Of course, none of his magic tricks work and the frustrated magician throws away his hat just as the school day ends. The children decide to take advantage of the Christmas snow and build a snowman in the schoolyard. They finish off their creation with the castoff magician’s hat, which magically brings ‘FROSTY THE SNOWMAN’ to life.
When Professor Hinkle discovers that his discarded hat actually contains some magic, he tries to get it back. However, with a little help from the magician’s rabbit, Frosty is able to hold onto the hat. Unfortunately, a rise in temperature forces Frosty to leave town and all his new friends behind. A young girl named Karen decides to accompany Frosty on his trek to the North Pole and the only place he is sure he won’t melt. However, Frosty and Karen soon discover that Professor Hinkle is following them in an effort to get the magic hat back. ‘FROSTY THE SNOWMAN’ features the vocal talents of Jimmy Durante, Billy De Wolfe, Jackie Vernon, Paul Frees and June Foray.
FROSTY THE SNOWMAN MUSIC TRACK LIST
FROSTY THE SNOWMAN (Written by Steve Nelson and Jack Rollins) [Performed by Jimmy Durante and the Children]
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Blu-ray Image Quality – Classic Media / Universal Pictures UK presents us ‘FROSTY THE SNOWMAN’ with a wonderful colourful 1080p image and presented with a 1.37:1 aspect ratio on this very special Blu-ray disc release that is very appealing and with only minor blemishes to remind one that ‘FROSTY THE SNOWMAN’ was produced in 1969. Everything appears as crisp and well defined as is possible with cell animation. Colours are nicely rendered with some dusty wintry hues contrasting nicely with the strong Christmas reds. All of the colours appear stable, with no signs of noise or smearing. But occasionally you get to see some shadowing behind the characters, but despite this, it is still a very charming and loveable animation to view.
Blu-ray Audio Quality – Classic Media / Universal Pictures UK brings us ‘FROSTY THE SNOWMAN’ with a 2.0 Stereo Audio soundtrack that sounds reasonably good, but one must remember that ‘FROSTY THE SNOWMAN’ was produced for USA television in 1969. The mid-range music sounds quite pleasant enough and is reproduced without any real signs of distortion. Dialogue is also very nice sounding and always completely understandable. Comedian Jimmy Durante was a popular performer in the 1940’s and sold millions of records, even if his music is largely forgotten today. Jimmy Durante’s gravel-voiced rendition of the title song is an inspired take on the hit made famous by Gene Autry and Jimmy Durante re-recorded the song for this special Blu-ray release.
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Blu-ray Special Features and Extras:
FROSTY RETURNS [1992] This special begins with a musical number showing that the Beansboro Elementary School is cancelled for the day due to a seven-inch snowfall, while the adults incessantly complain about the problems snow and ice cause, and the children enjoy the opportunity for playing with it. Frosty arrives in the town of Beansboro and meets young Holly DeCarlo, a relatively lonely young girl and an aspiring child magician with only one friend, a tone-deaf, somewhat geeky character named Charles. Meanwhile, evil Mr. Twitchell is the inventor of Summer Wheeze and is an aerosol spray that makes snow instantly disappear through unexplained means. When one of the members of the town council voices concern about the environmental impact of the untested product, Mr. Twitchell has her dropped through a trapdoor. To Twitchell's delight, and Frosty's dismay, the town of Beansboro falls head over heels for "Summer Wheeze", delighting Twitchell but causing Frosty to be concerned, not unreasonably, about his safety. Holly gets Frosty to appear at the annual Beansboro Winter Carnival to persuade the townspeople to rethink their newfound hatred of snow. Singing about the joy of winter to the town, Frosty is unanimously declared king of the carnival, a title which Mr. Twitchell had hoped to win. Holly and Frosty, however, allow Mr. Twitchell to still wear the cape and ride the sled of the carnival king. With this bonus special feature, entitled ‘FROSTY RETURNS’ and abandons the premise of the original and tells the story of another snowman named Frosty and his new friend, a young girl named Holly, who tries to save her town’s winter carnival from a grouchy old businessman who invents a product that makes snow disappear. ‘FROSTY RETURNS’ is a rather uninspired special, whose characters bear a vague resemblance to members of the Peanuts gang. ‘FROSTY RETURNS’ features the vocal talents of Jonathan Winters, Jan Hooks, Andrea Martin, Brian Doyle-Murray, Elisabeth Moss and John Goodman as Frosty. This 1992 ‘FROSTY RETURNS’ special looks as good as an animation will allow for its age.
FROSTY RETURNS MUSIC TRACK LIST
WE LOVE THE SNOW/ON NO, NOT SNOW! (Written by Mark Mothersbaugh) (uncredited) [Performed by the Kids and their Parents]
LET THERE BE SNOW (Written by Mark Mothersbaugh (uncredited) [Performed by John Goodman and the Children]
NO MORE SNOW! (Written by Mark Mothersbaugh) (uncredited) [Performed by Brian Doyle-Murray]
FROSTY THE SNOWMAN (Written by Jack Rollins (uncredited) and Steve Nelson (uncredited) [Performed by the Cast]
Voice Cast: Jonathan Winters (Narrator), Jan Hooks (Lil), Andrea Martin (Miss Carbuncle), Brian Doyle-Murray (Mr. Twitchell), Elisabeth Moss (Holly), Michael Patrick Carter (Charles), John Goodman (Frosty the Snowman), Steve Stoliar (News Announcer / Townspeople / Mr. Twitchell's Goons), Phillip Glasser (Kids), Gail Lynch (Townspeople / Mearle / Objective Woman), Mindy Ann Martin (Kids), Brian Cummings (Owl) (uncredited) and Linda Gary (School Bus Driver) (uncredited)
Directors: Bill Melendez and Evert Brown
Producers: Bill Melendez, Dinah Minot, Eryk Casemiro and Lorne Michaels
Screenplay: Jim Lewis (based on a story) and Oliver Goldstick (written)
Composers: Denis M. Hannigan (uncredited) and Mark Mothersbaugh
Image Resolution: 1080p
Aspect Ratio: 1.37:1
Audio: English: 2.0 Stereo Audio
Subtitles: None
Running Time: 22 minutes
Region: Region B/2
Number of discs: 1
Studio: Bill Melendez Productions / Broadway Video / CBS Entertainment Productions
FILM FACT: Contrary to popular belief, this special is not a direct sequel to the original ‘FROSTY THE SNOWMAN’ 1969 animated cartoon. Rankin/Bass produced the latter special, while Lorne Michaels’ Broadway Video produced this special. Additionally, the animation was done by Bill Melendez of Peanuts fame, which is why the style is drastically different from the original Rankin/Bass special.
Finally, ‘FROSTY THE SNOWMAN’ is a very special animated cartoon, and it was produced not by Arthur Rankin Jr. and Jules Bass, but by CBS Television. The characters, setting, voices and animation by Bill Melendez are vastly different. John Goodman provides the voice of Frosty the Snowman in this special, as Jackie Vernon had died five years earlier in 1987. Frosty the Snowman's appearance is physically different, his personality and humour have changed, and has the ability to live without his top hat. In this special, when his hat comes off, he turns back into an inanimate snowman. ‘FROSTY THE SNOWMAN’ is a wonderful Christmas holiday treat that belongs in every Christmas Blu-ray collection. While ‘FROSTY THE SNOWMAN’ may only be watched once, and the animation reminded me of the style of the newspaper cartoon Peanuts by Charles M. Shultz. But most of all, ‘FROSTY THE SNOWMAN’ has shown us that it has genuine staying power and will probably be watched every Christmas for all the family and especially all age groups, so enjoy folks. Highly Recommended!
Andrew C. Miller – Your Ultimate No.1 Film Aficionado
Le Cinema Paradiso
United Kingdom
