Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town (1970 TV Movie)

Fred Astaire: Narrator - S.D. Kluger

Photos 

Quotes 

• [when Santa's reindeer are first introduced] 

  Narrator : I'll bet you know their names.

  Children : Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner, Blitzen!

  [silhouette of ninth reindeer appears] 

  Child #2 : Don't forget...

  [reindeer's nose blinks red, revealing it to be Rudolph] 

  Narrator : No, that's another story.

• Narrator : And that is the story of Santa Claus.

  Little Girl : He's so wonderful. Everybody must love him.

  Narrator : Well, most everybody. Oh, he's not considered an outlaw any more. But there still are some...

  Ebenezer Scrooge : Eh, bah, humbug.

  Disgruntled Retailer : Christmas is a bother. The noise, the crowd. I really wish it were outlawed.

  Businessman : How can they talk about Santa Claus when there is so much unhappiness in the world?

  Narrator : Poor, misguided folks. They missed the whole point. Lots of unhappiness? Maybe so. But doesn't Santa take a little bit of that unhappiness away? Doesn't a smile on Christmas morning scratch out a tear cried on a sadder day? Not much, maybe. But what would happen if we all tried to be like Santa and learned to give as only he can give: of ourselves, our talents, our love and our hearts? Maybe we could all learn Santa's beautiful lesson and maybe there would finally be peace on Earth and good will toward men. Hey, it's getting late, and I've got these letters to deliver. You better be getting home, too. And remember: behave yourselves, because Santa can still look into his magic snowball and see just what you're up to. And now that you know all about him, you can be darn sure that come snow or high water...

  Narrator : [starts singing]  Santa Claus is comin' to town!

• Narrator : So you want to know all about Santa, huh? Best place to start is at the very beginning, when Santa was just a little baby.

  Little Girl : You mean Santa was once... a baby?

  Narrator : Of course! Everybody has to be a baby at least once in their lives. Now this was years and years ago. Oh, way back.

• Narrator : Kris made a list of all the children and the toys they wanted. He checked it over once, then checked it over twice. He tried to figure out just who was naughty and who was nice.

  Kris : Well, I guess they're all pretty nice.

• [the mail vehicle approaches when the wheels were bumped and snow fell on top] 

  Narrator : Doggone thing always conks out when you... Well, hello there! My name's Special Delivery Kluger, S.D. for short. Oh, I've got lots of letters for Santa today, and every year, they're the same. Some ask for toys, but a lot ask questions. Like, you take this one. I bet one of you wrote it.

  Child : Dear Santa, why do you wear a red suit?

  Narrator : I thought so. And this one...

  Child : My turn. Dear Santa, why do you come down the chimney when I'm asleep?

  Narrator : How about these?

  Child : Why do you have whiskers?

  Child : Why do you live at the North Pole?

  Child : Why do you leave presents?

  Child : Why do you always come on Christmas Eve?

  Child : Why do some people call you Kris Kringle?

  Child , Child , Child , Child : Why? Why?

  Narrator : Now, hold on, hold on! I can answer all your questions because I know everything about Santa. Now, Santa is a busy man. He has no time to play. He's got millions and millions of stockings to fill on Christmas day. So you'd better write your letter now and mail it right away, because he's getting ready with his reindeers and his sleigh.

  Narrator : [singing]  So... you better watch out / You better not cry / You better not pout / I'm telling you why