If you look forward to holiday-themed episodes of your favorite TV series, these new DVDs are for you.
The Carol Burnett Show: Carols Lost Christmas (Time Life, 1967-78, three episodes; eight-page booklet). These three December shows are from Burnetts first four seasons and havent been seen in more than 40 years. Highlights include Jonathan Winters as Saint Nick and early incarnations of the regular skits The Old Folks, Carol & Sis and The Charwoman. A funny non-Yule courtroom skit was penned by Neil Simon and features Burnett's old buddies Garry Moore and Durwood Kirby, who gave the comedian her start on The Garry Moore Show.
Peanuts Holiday Collection: Deluxe Edition (Warner, 1965-73, three episodes, six bonus episodes, three featurettes). This 4K/Blu-ray release includes three classic animated CBS specials: A Charlie Brown Christmas, Its the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown and A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, along with six more "Peanuts specials.
Emmet Otters Jug-Band Christmas: 40th Anniversary (Sony, 1977, deleted/alternate scenes, lost song, featurette, bloopers). Jim Henson created this hourlong HBO family-friendly special based on the 1967 book by Russell Hoban (The Mouse and His Child), using Muppets and his stock company of familiar voice actors (including Frank Oz). The special is charming, witty and fun, with songs by Paul Williams and an introduction by Kermit the Frog.
The Honeymooners: Christmas Laughter (CBS/Paramount, 1955-56, b/w, six episodes). This ancient sitcom is still hilarious, thanks to sharp writing and the singular comic chemistry of Jackie Gleason and Art Carney. But the series lasted only a single filmed season (the lost episodes collected elsewhere were kinescope segments from Gleasons earlier variety shows), so theres only one Christmas show here. But its a hoot, as are the other five episodes especially TV or Not TV and The Golfer.
Frasier: Christmas Episodes (CBS/Paramount, 1993-2004, eight episodes). Kelsey Grammer, David Hyde Pierce, John Mahoney, Jane Leeves and Peri Gilpin were a grand comedy ensemble for this long-running spinoff of Cheers, as demonstrated by these Christmas-themed episodes, all of them very funny.
A Very Brady Christmas (CBS/Paramount, 1988). This ones a TV-movie reunion that brought back almost the entire cast of the original 1969-74 blended-family sitcom. Only Susan Olsen, who played Cindy, was absent, with Jennifer Runyon taking over the role. The shows huge fan base made this the second-most-watched TV movie of the year.
Sabrina the Teenage Witch: The Christmas Episodes (CBS/Paramount, 1996-2003, six episodes, TV-movie, featurette). The holiday episodes here are gleaned from the silly magical sitcom based on the comic book character, with Melissa Joan Hart in the title role. Included is the TV movie Sabrina Goes to Rome (1998) and its promotional featurette.
Murdoch Mysteries: Once Upon a Murdoch Christmas (Acorn, 2016, featurette). This Christmas special has turn-of-the-20th-century Toronto Detective William Murdoch (Yannick Bisson) investigating a train robbery, which leads him to Toronto businesses being robbed in the days leading up to Christmas. For the uninitiated, this is a witty Canadian mystery series about a detective using at-the-time innovative technology to solve crimes.
The Carol Burnett Show: Carols Lost Christmas (Time Life, 1967-78, three episodes; eight-page booklet). These three December shows are from Burnetts first four seasons and havent been seen in more than 40 years. Highlights include Jonathan Winters as Saint Nick and early incarnations of the regular skits The Old Folks, Carol & Sis and The Charwoman. A funny non-Yule courtroom skit was penned by Neil Simon and features Burnett's old buddies Garry Moore and Durwood Kirby, who gave the comedian her start on The Garry Moore Show.
Peanuts Holiday Collection: Deluxe Edition (Warner, 1965-73, three episodes, six bonus episodes, three featurettes). This 4K/Blu-ray release includes three classic animated CBS specials: A Charlie Brown Christmas, Its the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown and A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, along with six more "Peanuts specials.
Emmet Otters Jug-Band Christmas: 40th Anniversary (Sony, 1977, deleted/alternate scenes, lost song, featurette, bloopers). Jim Henson created this hourlong HBO family-friendly special based on the 1967 book by Russell Hoban (The Mouse and His Child), using Muppets and his stock company of familiar voice actors (including Frank Oz). The special is charming, witty and fun, with songs by Paul Williams and an introduction by Kermit the Frog.
The Honeymooners: Christmas Laughter (CBS/Paramount, 1955-56, b/w, six episodes). This ancient sitcom is still hilarious, thanks to sharp writing and the singular comic chemistry of Jackie Gleason and Art Carney. But the series lasted only a single filmed season (the lost episodes collected elsewhere were kinescope segments from Gleasons earlier variety shows), so theres only one Christmas show here. But its a hoot, as are the other five episodes especially TV or Not TV and The Golfer.
Frasier: Christmas Episodes (CBS/Paramount, 1993-2004, eight episodes). Kelsey Grammer, David Hyde Pierce, John Mahoney, Jane Leeves and Peri Gilpin were a grand comedy ensemble for this long-running spinoff of Cheers, as demonstrated by these Christmas-themed episodes, all of them very funny.
A Very Brady Christmas (CBS/Paramount, 1988). This ones a TV-movie reunion that brought back almost the entire cast of the original 1969-74 blended-family sitcom. Only Susan Olsen, who played Cindy, was absent, with Jennifer Runyon taking over the role. The shows huge fan base made this the second-most-watched TV movie of the year.
Sabrina the Teenage Witch: The Christmas Episodes (CBS/Paramount, 1996-2003, six episodes, TV-movie, featurette). The holiday episodes here are gleaned from the silly magical sitcom based on the comic book character, with Melissa Joan Hart in the title role. Included is the TV movie Sabrina Goes to Rome (1998) and its promotional featurette.
Murdoch Mysteries: Once Upon a Murdoch Christmas (Acorn, 2016, featurette). This Christmas special has turn-of-the-20th-century Toronto Detective William Murdoch (Yannick Bisson) investigating a train robbery, which leads him to Toronto businesses being robbed in the days leading up to Christmas. For the uninitiated, this is a witty Canadian mystery series about a detective using at-the-time innovative technology to solve crimes.
