A Chipmunk Christmas

The whole Chipmunks phenomenon started with the novelty track "The Chipmunk Song (Christmas Don't Be Late)" A slew of albums and a TV series followed. Then, the Chipmunks went away for nearly a decade. A Chipmunk Christmas was their return to television. The special featured updated character designs from Chuck Jones. His contributions to the style of the special are unmistakable. It's practically a companion piece to his work on things like The Phantom Tollbooth and How the Grinch Stole Christmas. Two years after the special, the Chipmunks would return to TV with a regular series that lasted eight seasons. And the popularity of the Chipmunks has continued to wax and wane ever since.

Rating: Harmonica%

Graveyard Shift

 

In this completely forgettable adaptation of a completely forgettable Stephen King short story, some rats in a local cotton mill are wilding out because of their rat boss, a giant flying rat. Hey isn't a flying rat just a bat? That's what the Germans would have me believe anyway. Anyway who gets called in to solve the monster problem? A salvage crew of course!

RATING: 44%

25 Days or Less of Christmas Songs - #15: The Chipmunk Song (Christmas Don't Be Late)

Grammy award winning "The Chipmunk Song (Christmas Don't Be Late)" was first released in 1958. Written and sung by Ross Bagdasarian, Sr., the track was credited to Dave Seville and the Chipmunks. Though initially created as a novelty record, the Chipmunks would go on to become a multi-faceted "musical" entertainment property that has lasted more than fifty years (Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel opens on December 23rd, 2009). I'm guessing it must have been a lot harder to annoy people in the 1950's, I'm gonna go ahead and blame that on the red menace. 

Rating: Nuts% 

(Image from amazon.com)