''Twas the Night Before Christmas'' is a Christmas television special loosely inspired by the 1823 poem " A Visit from St. Nicholas" by Clement Clarke Moore. It first aired December 7, 1977 on ABC. Directed by Tim Kiley, it stars Paul Lynde, Anne Meara, Martha Raye, and Alice Ghostley.

Plot

The story is set on Christmas Eve in a New England town in the late 1890s. The Cosgrove family's home is in an uproar over the holidays. The patriarch, Clark Cosgrove ( Paul Lynde) is frazzled by the gift demands of his loud children. His wife Nellie ( Anne Meara) runs into endless friction with Clark's formidable mother ( Alice Ghostley), who lives with them. Nellie's inebriated father (

Foster Brooks Foster Brooks (May 11, 1912 – December 20, 2001) was an American actor and comedian best known for his portrayal of a lovable drunk in nightclub performances and television programs. Early life Brooks was born in Louisville, Kentucky on ...

) and cat-loving mother ( Martha Raye) arrive for the holiday, and tensions arise between the mothers-in-law. A German uncle ( Howard Morris) is also arriving, but complications ensue when a traveling salesman ( George Gobel) is mistaken for the uncle. Adding to the tumult is a visit from a caroling neighbor (

Anson Williams Anson Williams (born Anson William Heimlich, September 25, 1949, in Los Angeles, California) is an American actor, singer, and director, best known for his role as gullible, well-intentioned singer Warren "Potsie" Weber on the television series ...

). During the night, Clark's mother-in-law's cat escapes from the house and winds up on the roof. Clark goes to retrieve the cat and creates a ruckus, waking the house. When the children ask if the noise came from

Santa Claus Santa Claus, also known as Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Kris Kringle, or simply Santa, is a Legend, legendary figure originating in Western Christianity, Western Christian culture who is said to Christmas gift-bringer, bring ...

, Clark initially wants to dispel the myth of Santa Claus. Instead, he appeases them by reciting ''A Visit from St. Nicholas.''"The Bootleg Files: 'Twas the Night Before Christmas," Film Threat, December 22, 2006
/ref>

Cast

* Paul Lynde as Clark Cosgrove * Anne Meara as Nellie, Clark's wife * Alice Ghostly as Clark's mother *

as Nellie's father * Martha Raye as Nellie's mother * Howard Morris as German uncle * George Gobel as Traveling salesman *

as Caroling Neighbor

Production

''Twas the Night Before Christmas'' was part of a series of American Broadcasting Company (ABC) television specials starring Paul Lynde to fulfill a contract with him after previous efforts to establish a

star vehicle In the motion picture industry, a star vehicle (or simply vehicle) is a film written or produced for a specific star, regardless of whether the motive is to further their career or simply to profit from their current popularity. It is designed to ...

for him, '' The Paul Lynde Show'' and '' The New Temperatures Rising Show'', had flopped in the ratings. Whereas previous offerings, most notably the 1976 production of '' The Paul Lynde Halloween Special'', relied on a sketch comedy revue format, ''Twas the Night Before Christmas'' retained a narrative format where Lynde and his castmates remained in character for the entire show.Wilson, Steve & Florenski, Joe. (2005) "Center Square: The Paul Lynde Story. Advocate Books. (Pages 188-189). Lynde's casting as a relatively straight, dramatic lead fulfilled a longstanding wish of his for more serious roles. Lynde was responsible for casting Martha Raye as his mother-in-law, telling an interviewer: "It's my chance to repay her for all the times she used me in her NBC ''Comedy Hour'' back in the 1950s." George Gobel's casting in this production was an apparent coincidence and not related to his appearance three years earlier in a holiday special of the same name. For the climactic recitation of ''A Visit from St. Nicholas,'' Lynde was not allowed to rely on cue cards because director Tim Kiley felt they would distract the child actors in the cast. Lynde would later recall: "I had to do the poem five different times for five different camera angles. If America thinks I did this with cue cards, I'll kill myself."

Broadcast

''Twas the Night Before Christmas'' was broadcast by ABC on December 7, 1977. Reviews were not favorable, with '' The New York Times'' dismissing its plot as "anemic" and adding its "conceptual hugger-mugger was fatal.""TV VIEW; From Clinkers to Charmers In the Holiday Stocking," New York Times, December 18, 1977 (fee access required)
/ref> '' Variety'' complained that "an inept script and a subpar performance by Paul Lynde worked against the best efforts of a charming cast in this ABC yuletide special." The broadcast ranked 30th for that week's

Nielsen ratings Nielsen Media Research (NMR) is an American firm that measures media audiences, including television, radio, theatre, films (via the AMC Theatres MAP program), and newspapers. Headquartered in New York City, it is best known for the Nielsen rat ...

. However, it later received an Award of Excellence from the Film Advisory Board. ''Twas the Night Before Christmas'' was never rebroadcast by ABC or any other U.S. television network. To date, it has not been made commercially available on DVD and, except for a one-time screening at a New York City retro film and television festival in 2001, it has not been seen since its only telecast.

References

External links