Known for Art
Born
January 1, 1929
Died
July 23, 2022 (age 93)
Filmography
27 films, 1 show


The Leprechauns' Christmas Gold
1981 · 24m · US
Sent in search of a Christmas tree, cabin boy Dinty Doyle lands on a mysterious, uncharted Irish island where he accidentally releases a bad-tempered banshee from her pine tree prison. Leprechaun Blarney Kilakilarney knows that in order to survive, the banshee will try to swipe his clan's pot of Christmas gold. With some magical assistance from Lord Patrick, the king of the wee folk, Dinty and Blarney make a plan to outwit the gold-hungry hag before Christmas morning dawns.


Pinocchio's Christmas
1980 · 49m · US
As Geppetto prepares for Christmas, Pinocchio joins a puppet show to earn money for a present. There he meets and elopes with the beautiful girl puppet, Julietta, leaving Geppetto alone and worried.


Jack Frost
1979 · 48m · US
Pardon-me Pete, the official groundhog of Groundhog Day, tells the story of Jack Frost, who falls in love with a beautiful young woman and begs Father Winter to make him human so that she can see him. His request is granted, but only on the condition that by the Spring he has a house, a bag of gold, a horse and a wife. But Jack finds that life as a human is more complicated than he thought.


The Stingiest Man in Town
1978 · 50m · JP
An animated adaptation of A Christmas Carol from Arthur Rankin Jr. and Jules Bass -- the duo behind some of the most enduring Christmas specials ever (including Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer). Reinvented as a 49-minute musical, this charming cartoon stars the voice of Walter Matthau as the bedeviled Scrooge and Tom Bosley as the Jiminy Cricket-type narrator, B. Humbug, Esq. It features animation by Japanese studio Topcraft, known for their work on other Rankin/Bass films such as The Hobbit, The Flight of Dragons, and The Last Unicorn.


Nestor, the Long-Eared Christmas Donkey
1977 · 25m · US
Nestor the donkey is a bit of an oddity--his long ears are enough for six donkeys and stretch all the way to the ground. One night, when Nestor is locked out in the cold, he begins to wander the desert.


The Easter Bunny Is Comin' to Town
1977 · 50m · US
The Mailman decides to stop another deluge of letters by answering questions about the Easter Bunny: Sunny, a baby rabbit found and adopted by Kidville (a town of only kids--even a kid mailman). And when Sunny goes delivering eggs to the nearby town (which he has to dye to fool Gadzooks, the mean bear on the mountain), he discovers that there are no kids in the town, and that the rightful (kid) ruler is being suppressed by his aunt. But the young king likes Sunny's dyed eggs and jelly beans. So Kidsville, with the help of an old train engine, makes a few plans (and a decoy chocolate rabbit) to distribute them.


Rudolph's Shiny New Year
1976 · 50m · US
Rudolph must find Happy, the baby new year, before the midnight of New Year's Eve.


Frosty's Winter Wonderland
1976 · 25m · US
Years have passed since Frosty left for the North Pole, but his promise is kept when he hears news of the first snowfall of the season, and decides to return.


The First Easter Rabbit
1976 · 25m · US
A beloved toy stuffed rabbit is rescued by a fairy to be the first Easter Rabbit.


The Year Without a Santa Claus
1974 · 51m · US
Feeling forgotten by the children of the world, old St. Nick decides to skip his gift-giving journey and take a vacation. Mrs. Claus and two spunky little elves, Jingle and Jangle, set out to see to where all the season's cheer has disappeared. Aided by a magical snowfall, they reawaken the spirit of Christmas in children's hearts and put Santa back in action.


'Twas the Night Before Christmas
1974 · 25m · US
When a town learns that Santa Claus has struck it off his delivery schedule due to an insulting letter, a way must be found to change his mind.


Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town
1970 · 51m · US
A postman, S.D. Kluger, decides to answer some of the most common questions about Santa Claus, and tells us about a baby named Kris who is raised by a family of elf toymakers named Kringle. When Kris grows up, he wants to deliver toys to the children of Sombertown. But its Mayor is too mean to let that happen. And to make things worse, the Winter Warlock lives between the Kringles and Sombertown.


Cricket on the Hearth
1967 · 49m · US
A delightful, animated musical version of Charles Dickens' classic tale. A Cricket on the Hearth, tells the story of a poor toymaker and his daughter whom a helpful Cricket named Crocket befriends on Christmas morning. When tragedy strikes the family, it's Crocket who comes to the rescue and restores peace and happiness.