This DVD contains three holiday titles from Arthur Rankin Jr. and Jules Bass.

The Year Without a Santa Claus
Even Santa can suffer a case of the holiday blues. In this 1974 stop-motion holiday family favorite, a sparkly eyed Mrs. Claus (voiced by Shirley Booth) sings and tells about the year her hubby felt too weary and too unappreciated to prepare for his annual Christmas rounds. Mickey Rooney stars as the voice of Santa, a rosy-nosed puppet who travels incognito to Southtown in search of his tiniest reindeer, Vixen, and two well-meaning elves. Seems Mrs. Santa sent them to find proof of Christmas spirit--but all they've discovered is ambivalence about Santa's year off. Luckily, when Santa arrives and befriends a buck-toothed lad named Ignatius Thistlewhite, spirits begin to lift rapidly. Adult fans of this cousin to the 1970 television special Santa Claus Is Coming to Town will remember it as the Heat and Snow Miser movie. Their vaudevillian theme songs, complete with trombone and piano riffs, are hard to forget, but other treasured musical moments include "I Believe in Santa Claus," "I'll Have a Blue Christmas Without You," and "Here Comes Santa Claus." --Liane Thomas

Nestor the Long-Eared Christmas Donkey
The wondrous story of Christ's birth is told by an unlikely source: Nestor, a gentle donkey with incredibly long ears and a first-hand knowledge of life in a stable. This simple tale, which takes place in the days of the Roman Empire, is about a humble couple about to take a long journey to Bethlehem and a small, insignificant donkey that is destined to help them along. By all outward appearances, Nestor does not deserve such a privilege. Stable animals tease him incessantly for his long appendages until, finally, he is cast out of the barn into the winter cold. Snow and ice bring about even greater calamity for Nestor until he receives a dose of divine goodness. Nestor meets Tilly, a heavenly cherub (voiced by Brenda Vaccaro) who imparts guidance to the despairing burro and tells him that soon he will be chosen to participate in a miracle involving a star, a baby, a lowly stable, and some travelers named Mary and Joseph. Short and sweet, this stop-motion Christmas gem from Arthur Rankin Jr. and Jules Bass is narrated by Roger Miller. Get out the hanky for an understated holiday classic that will appeal to families of all ages. --Lynn Gibson

The Year Without A Santa Clause / Nestor , The Long-Eared Christmas Donkey / Rudolph's Shiny New Year

Wonderful Christmas Stories for the whole family to get together and enjoy a full evening of togetherness while enjoying these wonderful Christmas Classics .

Don't listen to the whole "Nestor is too depressing for children" bit.

The year without a Santa Claus is GREAT and Rudolf's Shiny New Year was good but Rankin/Bass put there heart into Nestor.

All around the web we see people critizing Disney. But Nestor DEPRESSING. Okay it's a little sad about what happened to him in his first years but it's meant to touch you emotionally like Bambi's mother's death. SO, if you say Nestor to depressing than your saying Bambi is too. What I suggest is that if your children suffered the loss because of death (human and animal) Bambi and Nestor may not be a good show for them. But to those kid's who hadn't make Nestor as much of like the other's on this disc.
God Bless

CLASSIC

Just like I remembered it when I was a kid. My son (11) also enjoyed it alot! The figures are still a great way to do animation.