Pinocchio’s Christmas is a 1980 animated Christmas special produced by Rankin/Bass Productions, basely loosely on the 1883 novel The Adventures of Pinocchio by Carlo Collodi.
Plot[]
It is Pinocchio’s first Christmas, and Geppetto is trying to figure out how to buy a Christmas present for his son. Unbeknownst to them, the Fox and Cat make plans to steal Pinocchio for a wealthy father who wants a unique gift. Geppetto sells his boots to buy an arithmetic book for Pinocchio as an early Christmas gift. But Pinocchio, who is secretly disappointed with the gift, behind Geppetto’s back sells the book back to the book vendor for money, which he can use to buy a present for Geppetto. However, when the Fox and Cat, whom he thinks are his only friends, learn that he has money, they con him into burying the coins in the snow, which they tell him will grow into a Christmas tree covered with gold and silver coins at sunset. Pinocchio does exactly that, but while he’s not there to keep an eye on the money, the Fox and Cat dig the coins out of the snow before he returns.
When Pinocchio returns and finds that the tree didn’t grow, as the Fox and Cat claim it did not so because he played hooky, he takes part in Maestro Fire-Eater’s Christmas puppet show, where is given the stage name of “Sir Larry Olive-Tree.” During the show, he befriends Julietta, a non-sentient girl puppet of Fire-Eater. After the show, Fire-Eater tells Pinocchio that he needs to change Julietta to resemble one of the Three Wise Men for a Christmas pageant next week. But Pinocchio, who finds her to be the most beautiful girl he has ever seen, decides to rescue her. He runs off, taking Julietta with him, which prompts Fire-Eater to call the nearby police captain to chase after him.
Pinocchio manages to elude the police captain and brings Julietta with him to his birthplace, the Forest of Enchantment. Pinocchio explains his backstory to her—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 him into a marionette and raised him as his son. Pinocchio then describes how he always ended up getting into trouble and because of it, none of the village children would play with him. The only ones who seem to get along with him are the Fox and Cat, who taught him how to tell lies and play hooky from school. He also mentions his first encounter with the Talking Cricket that Geppetto was friends with, who tried to lecture him about being a good boy, until Pinocchio drove him away after he 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 Cat show up, telling Pinocchio they know how he can bring Julietta to life: he must use a secret medicine, which he can only find if he goes on a sleigh ride over seven mountains and seven valleys.
Before Pinocchio can embark on that journey though, a blue light appears calling out his name, which scares away the Fox and Cat and causes Pinocchio to faint. It is soon revealed that the blue light is really a fairy named Lady Azura, who planted the seed that grew into the tree Pinocchio was originally born on. She orders her animal servants to take Pinocchio and Julietta back to her chalet. There, Azura brings in a doctor, whom Pinocchio recognizes as the Talking Cricket he met before. Pinocchio attempts to explain his terrible action of stealing Julietta from Fire-Eater by lying, which causes his nose to grow. Upon seeing what has happened to his nose, Pinocchio tells the truth and it returns to normal. Azura tells Pinocchio that the only gift he really need to give Geppetto is love, for that is the greatest gift anyone can give. With that, Pinocchio leaves Julietta in Lady Azura’s care, and the Cricket goes along with Pinocchio to make sure Pinocchio stays out of trouble.
Meanwhile, Fire-Eater creates a non-sentient replica of Pinocchio, but the audience sees through his ruse as the puppet is clearly not alive and has strings. As the angry audience boos at the fake Pinocchio, Fire-Eater pulls him from the stage and throws him out a nearby window. Geppetto, who was out looking for Pinocchio at night, happens upon the fake Pinocchio, believing it to be his son and thinks that Pinocchio is dead. Heartbroken, he takes the inanimate replica back to his house and cries over Pinocchio’s “death.” Fortunately, Pinocchio just so happens to be making his way home at that very moment, but he suddenly runs into the Fox and Cat again. To convince him to join them, they tell him he should go to the North Pole and get a job teaching Santa Claus’ toys how to dance. They bring Pinocchio to a sleigh driver they spoke to the previous night, who takes him to the home of his master the Duke, who needs a present to give to his children, whom he does not spend much time with. When the kids open up their present, Pinocchio puts the Duke in his place as he tells him what Christmas really means. Moved by the sentiment, the Duke’s heart melts and he decides to spend more time with his children.
Afterwards, Santa Claus arrives in his sleigh and brings Pinocchio and the Cricket back to Geppetto’s workshop, where Pinocchio is joyously reunited with his father and promises to always be a good boy. Lady Azura arrives with her servants and a now-sentient Julietta, and they all sit down to Christmas breakfast. During the meal, Lady Azura tells Pinocchio that while he may be led astray, he will also have many other misadventures (such as getting turned into a donkey getting swallowed by a whale). As long as he stays on the path of being a good boy, he will someday gain the reward of being a real boy.
Songs[]
- “I Never Know What Gifts to Buy”
- “Knock On Wood”
- “Let ‘Em Laugh”
- “It’s the Truth”
- “Love, The Perfect Gift for Christmas Day”
- “The Very Best Friend I Ever Had”
- “Dancin’”
- “Wicked Glee”
Voice cast[]
- Todd Porter—Pinocchio
- Alan King—Maestro Fire-Eater
- George S. Irving—Geppetto
- Bob McFadden—Talking Cricket, Sleigh Driver, Police captain, Butler, Headmaster
- Allen Swift—Fox, Mr. Cherry, Santa Claus
- Patricia Bright—Cat
- Diane Leslie—Lady Azura
- Gerry Matthews— Duke, Brenzoli
- Ray Owens—Guccimo, townsperson
The Children[]
- Carl Tramon—Jerrimy
- Tiffany Blake
- Alice Gayle
External links[]
Pinocchio's Christmas on Bing Videos