Since its premiere in 1965, "A Charlie Brown Christmas" has been a holiday staple for both kids and adults. Though the special follows the exploits of Charlie Brown, Linus, Lucy, Schroeder and their other young friends, its brilliant, jazz-infused soundtrack by the Vince Guaraldi Trio is anything but juvenile.
Featuring Guaraldi's imaginative takes on Christmas standards ("O Tannenbaum," "The Christmas Song") alongside original compositions, like the sublimely pensive "Christmastime Is Here" and the series's most famous theme, "Linus and Lucy," the soundtrack is an instant dose of nostalgia and the epitome of Christmas cheer.
Jill Spivey
The Grove Park Inn Gingerbread House Contest
At first glance, the 2-foot-by-2-foot model that sits on the 10th floor of the Grove Park Inn -- a downtown scene complete with cobblestone streets, a post office, grocery store, JC Penney and pedestrians all crafted to scale -- looks like one of the ceramic miniatures one can purchase from the holiday section of a Hallmark Store.
Except that this model is entirely edible.
The model is the latest in a 10-year line of grand prize winners for the Grove Park Inn's annual Gingerbread House competition. This year, the contest brings nearly 300 edible entries from New Jersey to New Mexico into the east wing of Asheville's historical resort.
And despite the contest's title, each entry is not confined to gingerbread nor even limited to a house.
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Among this year's diverse entries are a recreation of the Great Flood, a representation of Bag End (of "Lord of the Rings" fame) and a rendition of Charlie Brown's neighborhood. Last year's winner was a model of Hogwart's from the Harry Potter series.
In order to craft such complex creations, the contestants employ a pantry -full of food products. Frosted Mini-Wheats serve as snow-covered shingles, pretzels double as picket fences, and Twizzlers take the place of wooden planks.
All the entries are on display free to the public from now until Jan. 5.
Brook Corwin
Christmas Cartoon Favorites
There is nothing better than a good holiday TV special to take one back to the days of yore. As always, there are the classics that have achieved permanent residence in the pantheon of yuletime entertainment -- Rudolph and Frosty and the Grinch (the animated original, never the brainless Jim Carrey version).
But if you want to be truly rewarded, search out the less-seen Christmas specials, such as the "Garfield Christmas" special, the "Muppet Family Christmas," or "A Claymation Christmas," the piece de resistance of obscure holiday entertainment. You remember Claymation, those little figures that looked like some genius 3-year-old molded them out of Play-Doh? Someone made a killer Christmas special out of that stuff back in the '80s, complete with singing camels and a cameo from the California Raisins. Holiday specials are entertainment in its highest form -- cheesy, nostalgic and endlessly enjoyable.
Jill Spivey
"A Christmas Story"
Mom wants The Old Man to stay away from her turkey. The Old Man wants everyone to admire his leg lamp, a gaudy prize won in a radio station contest. And all their son Ralphie wants is "an official Red Ryder, carbine action, two-hundred shot, range model air rifle."
As seen through the eyes of little Ralphie Parker, "A Christmas Story" gives a hilarious view of the all-American Christmas in the 1940s. It's the tale of one boy's all-consuming desire to find a BB gun under the Christmas tree and all of the wacky obstacles standing in his way. From bunny suits to tongues stuck on flagpoles to the film's catchphrase, "You'll put your eye out!" this is one holiday classic guaranteed to keep you laughing.
Harmony Johnson
