Festive Facts About Your Favorite Holiday Movies

December marks that time of year when you and your friends and family gather together. You’re either catching up, drinking Egg Nog, or indulging in hours of classic Christmas films. Of course, all of the movies that are associated with the most wonderful time of the year set a high bar for the holiday season.

No matter what your favorite Christmas movie is, you’ll be impressed with how some of these films actually made changes without people realizing it.

It’s A Wonderful Life Was A Box Office Bomb

RKO Radio Pictures/MovieStillsDb

Considering it became an all-time classic, Frank Capra’s film earned $3.3 million in box office revenues. But, it recorded a loss of $525,000 at the box office, leaving the director to come up with another project. Scrambling to finance his company’s next big production, the next film he directed would be State of the Union.

Despite the failure, it was nominated for five Academy Awards, including one for Best Picture.

There Was Supposed To Be A Laugh Track For A Charlie Brown Christmas

Lee Mendelson Films/MovieStillsDb

Back in the sixties, it was a standard procedure to have a laugh track over any half-hour sitcom. The Flintstones were notorious for using a canned studio audience to help cue viewers for jokes. When it came to A Charlie Brown Christmas, executive producer Lee Mendelson told Charles Schulz he didn’t see the Peanuts special being any different.

Schulz left the room before coming in and continuing as if nothing had happened. Mendelson got the hint.

How The Grinch Stole Christmas Almost Never Happened

MGM Television Warner Bros. Television Distribution/MovieStillsDb

Today’s studios and production companies provide funding for projects of interest. However, for specials like A Charlie Brown Christmas and How The Grinch Stole Christmas, they had to rely on company sponsorship to get made. Charlie Brown found its financier from Coca-Cola, but for The Grinch, it struggled to find a benefactor.

Eventually, The Grinch was produced by The Cat in the Hat Productions in association with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios and a Christmas classic was born.

John Hughes Flight From New York To Chicago Inspired Planes, Trains, And Automobiles

Paramount Pictures/MovieStillsDb

Long before he became a screenwriter, Hughes used to work as a copywriter for the Leo Burnett advertising agency in Chicago. Hughes had an early morning presentation in New York and planned to be home on an evening flight. But, thanks to mother nature giving Chicago a snowstorm, his flight had been canceled that night, so he stayed in a hotel.

The plane he eventually got on ended up being diverted to Denver, then Phoenix. The Breakfast Club director didn’t make it back until three days after.

Ralphie’s Dad Never Had A Name In A Christmas Story

MGM/UA Entertainment Co./MovieStillsDb

Since the film’s release, fans have pointed out one particular instance. In Bob Clark’s scene, it appears as if Ralphie’s father does have a name: Hal. The reason why is because they believed that in the exchange between the two neighbors, Swede asks of the leg lamp, “Damn Hal, you say you won it?”

Nevertheless, the film’s original screenplay confirmed the following: Swede’s actual line is, “Damn, hell, you say you won it?”

A Muppet Christmas Carol Was The First Movie Without Jim Henson

Buena Vista Pictures Distribution/MovieStillsDb

The mastermind behind the beloved Muppets characters passed away on May 16, 1990. Just two years after his death, The Muppet Christmas Carol debuted on December 11, 1992. Steve Whitmire took over Henson’s role as the voice of Kermit the Frog. The film is dedicated to Henson and his recently deceased collaborator Richard Hunt.

Hunt was responsible for his long-time performances of these characters Scooter, Beaker, Janice, Statler, and Sweetums.

Four Plot Lines Were Cut From Love Actually

Universal Pictures/MovieStillsDb

Director Ricard Curtis aimed to include a total of 14 love stories. The plots before production involved a girl with a wheelchair and one with a boy who records a love song for a classmate who breaks up with his drummer. Other plot lines included an African couple supporting each other during a famine.

Another storyline that was ultimately scrapped followed a school headmistress revealing her long-time commitment to her lesbian partner.

“Frosty The Snowman” Was A Hit Song Before It Was On The Small Screen

DreamWorks Classics NBCUniversal Television Distribution/MovieStillsDb

Jack Rollins and Steve Nelson wrote the iconic jingle in 1950. Essentially, it was their way of capitalizing on the success of “Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer” by Gene Autry. From a sales standpoint, the record wasn’t as huge as Autry’s single. However, Little Golden Books published the song title as a children’s book.

Then, almost 20 years later, a twenty-five-minute television special appeared and it followed with four more sequels.

The Plot For The Nightmare Before Christmas Was Inspired By The Collision Of Holiday Store Decorations

Buena Vista Pictures Distribution/MovieStillsDb

Director Tim Burton explained how the movie came about in the film’s DVD commentary. The Beetlejuice director revealed that seasonal changes did not mark his childhood in Burbank, California. However, when it came to fall and winter, there was a melding of Halloween and Christmas in stores eager to make the most of both shopping seasons.

Burton claimed that planted the seed for his tale of the king of Halloween intruding on Christmas.

The Puppets From Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer Were Recently Discovered

NBCUniversal Television Distribution/MovieStillsDb

The puppets somehow resurfaced in an episode of Antiques Roadshow in 2016. It wasn’t all of them, just Santa and Rudolph. A woman who worked for Rankin/Bass had sorted out the puppets in her attic since the seventies. Prior to that, she let her kids play with them, with Rudolph losing his nose, and Santa losing some of his eyebrows.

After their trip to Antiques Roadshow, they have since been displayed at the Center for Puppetry Arts.