''Tukiki and His Search for a Merry Christmas'' is a 1979 animated

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year ...

television special A television special (often TV special, or rarely television spectacular) is a standalone television show which may also temporarily interrupt episodic programming normally scheduled for a given time slot. Some specials provide a full range of ent ...

produced by the Canadian-based

Atkinson Film-Arts Atkinson Film-Arts was an animation studio based in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The company is best known for producing the first two Care Bears television specials – '' The Care Bears in the Land Without Feelings'' and '' The Care Bears Battle th ...

. It was originally broadcast on CBC and in syndication on December 24, 1979.

Plot

Tukiki (voiced by

Adam Rich Adam Rich (October 12, 1968 – January 7, 2023) was an American actor. He was best known for his portrayal of Nicholas Bradford, the youngest son on the television series ''Eight Is Enough'', which ran for five seasons (1977–1981). A di ...

) is a small Eskimo boy who sets out to discover the meaning of Christmas along with a magical character known as North Wind (voiced by

Sterling Holloway Sterling Price Holloway Jr. (January 4, 1905 – November 22, 1992) was an American actor and voice actor who appeared in over 100 films and 40 television shows. He did voice acting for The Walt Disney Company, playing Mr. Stork in '' Dumbo'', A ...

). While on his journey, Tukiki visits different lands with varying cultures and customs. At each of these places, he learns something different about Christmas and is given gifts which he eventually takes back to give to his selfish arctic friends. The thoughtful giving of gifts brings about a change in Tukiki's homeland and suddenly harmony reigns where once was none, and through Tukiki's act of love, the true meaning of Christmas is discovered.

Cast

The voice cast included:

Principal characters

– Tukiki *

– North Wind

Other voices

* Sharon Burke *

Bob Dermer Bob Dermer (born 1946) is a Canadian actor who first made his contributions to Canadian television in 1965 as an actor in Ottawa on a late night serial called ''Milk and Honey'' which ran for 200 episodes. Prior to '' Readalong'', Dermer was also ...

* Fred Little *

Bill Luxton William Robert Luxton (born 1940) is a Falkland Islander farmer and politician who served as a Member of the Legislative Assembly for the Camp constituency from the 2009 general election until his resignation in 2011. Luxton was also a Memb ...

* Bernard McManus * Richard Perigrine *

Noreen Young Noreen Isabel Young CM (born September 11, 1952) is a Canadian producer, puppeteer and puppet builder. She grew up in Old Ottawa South, Ontario, with her two younger brothers, John and Stephen Brathwaite, then studied drawing and painting at th ...

Award nominations

1980 Genie Awards: * Outstanding Independent Film - W.H. Stevens Jr., Beryl Friesen * Outstanding Animation - W.H. Stevens Jr., Beryl Friesen * Outstanding Musical Score (Non-Feature) -

Hagood Hardy Hugh Hagood Hardy, (February 26, 1937 – January 1, 1997) was a Canadian composer, pianist, and vibraphonist. He played mainly jazz and easy listening music. He is best known for the 1975 single, "The Homecoming" from his album of the same na ...

Home media

''Tukiki and His Search for a Merry Christmas'' was released on VHS by Embassy Home Entertainment in 1986 which has long been out of print. On August 12, 2008, it was released as a manufacture-on-demand DVD-R as part of the "Holiday Classics" series by Phoenix Learning Group, Inc.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Tukiki 1979 television specials Animated television specials Canadian animated television films Canadian Christmas films Canadian television specials Christmas television specials CBC Television original films