Rudolph and Frosty's Christmas in July (1979)

Directed by

Arthur Rankin Jr.

Genre

fantasy film, musical film, crossover fiction, Christmas film

Country

United States

Runtime

1h 37m

Rated

G

Rating

6.4 of 10 from 79 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

This stop-motion film mixes characters from Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and Frosty the Snowman in a story that blends Christmas and Independence Day. Santa and a wizard try to keep a winter wonderland from melting in the summer heat.

whimsicallightheartedmusicalfestivecheerfulnostalgicmelodicanimated

What happens

Rudolph and Frosty's Christmas in July (titled on-screen as Rudolph and Frosty: Christmas in July) is a 1979 American Christmas/Independence Day film produced by Rankin/Bass Productions, featuring characters from the company's holiday specials Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964) and Frosty the Snowman (1969), among others. It was filmed in Japan using the company's trademark "Animagic" stop-motion animation style. The film was originally a theatrical film released on June 8, 1979, in Lexington, Kentucky, through Avco Embassy Pictures, where it ran for only one week; the film's expansion to other cities was quietly cancelled. Later that year, on November 25, the film premiered on television in the US on ABC. This is the last Rankin/Bass production to star Billie Mae Richards as Rudolph and Jackie Vernon as Frosty. Mickey Rooney reprises his role as Santa Claus from Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town (1970) and The Year Without a Santa Claus (1974). Additional voices are provided by Red Buttons, Ethel Merman, Alan Sues, and Paul Frees. Shelley Winters and Frees reprise their roles as Frosty's wife Crystal and Jack Frost, respectively, from Frosty's Winter Wonderland, and Hal Peary reprised his role as Big Ben the Clockwork Whale from Rudolph's Shiny New Year. This is the final Rankin/Bass production to use Rudolph and Frosty, and the only one to feature the latter in stop-motion form. All other specials and films starring the characters are produced by other companies. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

Trailer

More like this

• Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964)
• The Little Rascals Christmas Special (1979)
• The Man in the Santa Claus Suit (1979)
• Nutcracker Fantasy (1979)
• Frosty the Snowman (1969)
• Bugs Bunny's Looney Christmas Tales (1979)
• The Year Without a Santa Claus (1974)
• A Claymation Christmas Celebration (1987)