Classic Christmas Movie Quotes
"Strange, isn't it? Each man's life touches so many other lives. When he isn't around he leaves an awful hole, doesn't he?"
It's a Wonderful Life
(Clarence the angel to George Bailey)
Desperate to strike a decisive victory during the Revolutionary War, this General led 2,400 troops on a daring nighttime crossing of the icy Delaware River, December 25, 1776.
General George Washington
Bless all the dear children in thy tender care,
And take us to heaven, to live with Thee there.
Away in a Manger
Born in 280 AD, and believed to be the root of the Santa legend, this Turkish monk traveled the countryside assisting the poor and sick, and even used his own money to provide a dowry for three impoverished sisters who were to be sold into slavery by their father.
Saint Nicholas
Silk _______ Stuffer
Stocking
"Didn't I ever tell you about Bumbles? Bumbles bounce."
(Yukon Cornelius to Rudolph)
During this war, on the evening of December 24, scores of German, British and French troops laid down their arms in a spontaneous holiday ceasefire, singing Christmas carols and crossing no-man's land to greet one another and shake hands.
World War II
He led them down the streets of town, right to the traffic cop,
And they only paused a moment, when he heard him holler, "Stop!"
Frosty the Snowman
In 1809, a book by Washington Irving (of Headless Horseman fame) reinvented Santa from a "lanky bishop" to a jolly, portly, bearded old man, and was the first to suggest this magical method of entering homes on Christmas Eve.
Climbing Down the Chimney
Jumping _______ Frost
Jack
“It came without ribbons, it came without tags. It came without packages, boxes, or bags.”
How the Grinch Stole Christmas
(Narration)
This brilliant English scientist, the first to recognize gravity as a natural force, was born on Christmas Day in 1642.
Sir Isaac Newton
No more let sins and sorrows grow,
Nor thorns infest the ground;
Joy to the World
Clement Moore's 1822 poem, "A Visit From Saint Nicholas" (now more commonly referred to as "Twas the Night Before Christmas") was the first to introduce us to 8 of Santa's special helpers, without whom Christmas would be grounded.
Santa's Reindeer
(Rudolph didn't come along until 1939, when a Montgomery Ward store in Chicago asked one of its ad-men to write a story for the department store's own children's book.)
Forbidden _______ Cake
Fruit
"I made it link by link, and yard by yard; I girded it on of my own free will, and of my own free will I wore it.”
A Christmas Carol
(Marley's Ghost to Scrooge)
In 1968, as a part of this Apollo mission, astronauts Frank Borman, Jim Lovell and William Anders spent the night before Christmas orbiting the moon, the first men to do so.
Apollo 8
Yea, Lord, we greet Thee,
Born this happy morning;
Jesus, to Thee be the glory giv'n;
Word of the Father,
Now in flesh appearing,
O, Come All Ye Faithful
From the earliest illustrations, Father Christmas wore robes of different colors, but in the 1880s, American cartoonist Thomas Nast introduced the red suit with white fur lining and buckled black belt, in his cover illustration for this iconic American magazine, which has been in publication since 1821.
The Saturday Evening Post
Gift _______ Table
Card
"If you're really Santa Claus, you can get it for me. And if you can't, you're only a nice man with a white beard, like mother says."
Miracle on 34th Street
(Susan Walker to Kris Kringle)
Often called the “Father of Europe,” this Frankish warrior king united much of the continent under the banner of the Carolingian Empire, and was crowned Holy Roman Emperor in the year 800.
Charlemagne
Come and trim my Christmas tree
With some decorations bought at Tiffany;
I really do believe in you
Let's see if you believe in me
Santa Baby
Despite his many stellar qualities, Santa was one of these until the short story "A Christmas Legend," by James Rees appeared in Harper's Magazine in 1849, introducing a very special new character to Santa's life story.
A Bachelor
(Rees introduced "Goody" Claus as Santa's wife, who has also be called Mary, Gertrude and Carol.)
Five _______ Light
Star