Santa Claus Is Comin’ to Town (1970): story, voices and special
Santa Claus Is Comin’ to Town is the 1970 Rankin/Bass stop motion television special that imagines how Kris Kringle became Santa Claus. It uses the familiar song as the starting point for an origin story involving forbidden toys, a mountain journey and acts of kindness.
Kris Kringle, Sombertown and the Winter Warlock
Kris brings toys to children in a town governed by the joyless Burgermeister Meisterburger. His encounters with schoolteacher Jessica and the Winter Warlock turn familiar Santa traditions into pieces of a fairy-tale biography. The transformation of an intimidating figure through kindness is a different kind of victory from simply defeating a villain.
Who provides the voices?
Fred Astaire voices the mailman narrator S.D. Kluger, while Mickey Rooney voices Kris Kringle. Keenan Wynn voices the Winter Warlock and Paul Frees supplies the Burgermeister’s voice. The combination of narration, songs and miniature stop motion figures is central to the special’s identity.
Find the right version
Look for the 1970 television special rather than a recording of the song or a different Santa film. Listings often use Comin’ instead of Coming and identify a running time around 51 minutes. Broadcast slots may run longer because of advertising, while edits can vary. The special is a standalone story; no other Rankin/Bass program is required first.
Sources and further reading
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