"Mr. Hankey's Christmas Classics" is the fifteenth episode of the third season of the animated television series ''

South Park ''South Park'' is an American animated sitcom created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone, and developed by Brian Graden for Comedy Central. The series revolves around four boysStan Marsh, Kyle Broflovski, Eric Cartman, and Kenny McCormickand the ...

'' and the 46th episode of the series overall. An album of the same name consisting of versions of songs from the show as well as a number of additional songs was released the week prior to the episode's original air date, December 1, 1999.

Plot

The episode is styled as a

variety show Variety show, also known as variety arts or variety entertainment, is entertainment made up of a variety of acts including musical performances, sketch comedy, magic, acrobatics, juggling, and ventriloquism. It is normally introduced by a comp� ...

and features Mr. Hankey as the host; he sits by the fire in his sewer home and introduces shorts featuring unusual holiday songs. In a similar fashion to "

Starvin' Marvin in Space "Starvin' Marvin in Space" is the thirteenth episode and the 11th produced episode of the South Park season 3, third season of the animated television series ''South Park'' and the 44th episode of the series overall. It originally aired on Comed ...

", the episode was dedicated to

Mary Kay Bergman Mary Kay Bergman (June 5, 1961 – November 11, 1999), also briefly credited as Shannen Cassidy, was an American voice actress and voice-over teacher. She was the official voice of the Disney character Snow White from 1989 to 1999 and the lead fem ...

, the original voice of most of the female characters on the show up to that point, who had died by suicide less than a month earlier. Since the episode features audio from the ''Christmas Classics'' album, which had been recorded months earlier, it marks the final episode in which Bergman's voice is heard. During the performance of Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas, a brief montage of several of Bergman's characters are shown and some gather within Mr. Hankey's home afterwards to sing. During "The Dreidel Song", Gerald Broflovski sings of his admiration for Courteney Cox, who is according to him, ' hot' on 'that show'. During the "Christmas Time in Hell" song, Satan is singing along with various celebrities in Hell, including

Jeffrey Dahmer Jeffrey Lionel Dahmer (; May 21, 1960 – November 28, 1994), also known as the Milwaukee Cannibal or the Milwaukee Monster, was an American serial killer and sex offender who killed and dismemberment, dismembered seventeen men and boys b ...

John F. Kennedy John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), also known as JFK, was the 35th president of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963. He was the first Roman Catholic and youngest person elected p ...

John F. Kennedy Jr. John Fitzgerald Kennedy Jr. (November 25, 1960 – July 16, 1999), often referred to as John-John or JFK Jr., was an American socialite, attorney, magazine publisher, and journalist. He was a son of 35th United States president John F. K ...

Diana, Princess of Wales Diana, Princess of Wales (born Diana Frances Spencer; 1 July 1961 – 31 August 1997), was a member of the British royal family. She was the first wife of Charles III (then Prince of Wales) and mother of Princes William, ...

Gene Siskel Eugene Kal Siskel (January 26, 1946 – February 20, 1999) was an American film critic and journalist for the ''Chicago Tribune'' who co-hosted a movie review television series alongside colleague Roger Ebert. Siskel started writing for the '' ...

Mao Zedong Mao Zedong pronounced ; traditionally Romanization of Chinese, romanised as Mao Tse-tung. (26December 18939September 1976) was a Chinese politician, revolutionary, and political theorist who founded the People's Republic of China (PRC) in ...

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (20 April 1889 – 30 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his suicide in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the lea ...

Genghis Khan Genghis Khan (born Temüjin; August 1227), also known as Chinggis Khan, was the founder and first khan (title), khan of the Mongol Empire. After spending most of his life uniting the Mongols, Mongol tribes, he launched Mongol invasions and ...

Michael Landon Michael Landon Sr. (born Eugene Maurice Orowitz; October 31, 1936 – July 1, 1991) was an American actor and filmmaker. He is known for his roles as Little Joe Cartwright in ''Bonanza'' (1959–1973), Charles Ingalls in ''Little House on th ...

and

Jimmy Stewart James Maitland Stewart (May 20, 1908 – July 2, 1997) was an American actor and military aviator. Known for his distinctive drawl and everyman screen persona, Stewart's film career spanned 80 films from 1935 to 1991. With the strong morali ...

. A framed picture of comedian Andy Dick is also seen during the dance number.

Songs/scenes

# "Mr. Hankey, The Christmas Poo", performed by a postman (a reference to

Fred Astaire Fred Astaire (born Frederick Austerlitz, May 10, 1899 – June 22, 1987) was an American dancer, actor, singer, musician, choreographer, and presenter, whose career in stage, film, and television spanned 76 years. He is widely regarded as the "g ...

's character in

Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town "Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town" is a Christmas music, Christmas song written by John Frederick Coots, J. Fred Coots and Haven Gillespie, and first recorded by Harry Reser and His Orchestra. When it was covered by Eddie Cantor on his radio show ...

), Mr. Hankey and the students of South Park Elementary (students voiced by the voice actors of Ike Broflovski) # " Dreidel, Dreidel, Dreidel (The Dreidel Song)", performed by

Kyle Broflovski Kyle Broflovski () is a fictional character in the adult animation, adult animated sitcom ''South Park''. He is voiced by and loosely based on series co-creator Matt Stone. Kyle is one of the series' four central characters, along with his frie ...

, with

Eric Cartman Eric Theodore Cartman, commonly referred to as just Cartman, is a fictional character in the adult animated sitcom ''South Park'', created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone. He is voiced by Parker, and is one of the series' four main characters, ...

Stan Marsh Stanley "Stan" Marsh is a fictional character in the adult animation, adult animated television series ''South Park''. He is voiced by and loosely based on series co-creator Trey Parker. Stan is one of the series' four central characters, along ...

, and Gerald, Sheila and Ike Broflovski # " O Tannenbaum", performed by

# "Christmas Time In Hell", performed by

Satan Satan, also known as the Devil, is a devilish entity in Abrahamic religions who seduces humans into sin (or falsehood). In Judaism, Satan is seen as an agent subservient to God, typically regarded as a metaphor for the '' yetzer hara'', or ' ...

and the damned # "

Carol of the Bells "Carol of the Bells" is a popular Christmas carol, which is based on the Ukrainian New Year's song " Shchedryk". The music for the carol comes from the song written by the Ukrainian composer Mykola Leontovych in or before 1916; the English-la ...

", performed by Mr. Mackey # "

O Holy Night "O Holy Night" (original title: ) is a sacred song about the night of the birth of Jesus Christ, described in the first verse as "the dear Saviour", and frequently performed as a Christmas carol. Based on the French-language poem ''Minuit, ch ...

", incorrectly performed by

# "Merry Fucking Christmas", performed by Mr. Garrison # "

I Saw Three Ships "I Saw Three Ships (Come Sailing In)" is an English Christmas carol, listed as number 700 in the Roud Folk Song Index. The earliest printed version of "I Saw Three Ships" is from the 17th century, possibly Derbyshire, and was also published by ...

", performed by Shelley Marsh # A Christmas medley performed by

Jesus Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...

and

Santa Claus Santa Claus (also known as Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Father Christmas, Kris Kringle or Santa) is a legendary figure originating in Western Christian culture who is said to bring gifts during the late evening and overnight hours on Chris ...

as lounge singers, featuring: " Joy to the World", " Up On the House Top", " Away in a Manger", "

O Come All Ye Faithful "O Come, All Ye Faithful", also known as "", is a Christmas carol that has been attributed to various authors, including John Francis Wade (1711–1786), John Reading (1645–1692), King John IV of Portugal (1604–1656), and anonymous Ciste ...

", "

Hark! The Herald Angels Sing "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing" is an English Christmas carol that first appeared in 1739 in the collection ''Hymns and Sacred Poems''. The carol, based on , tells of an angelic chorus singing praises to God. As it is known in the modern era, it ...

", "

Silent Night "Silent Night" () is a popular Christmas carol, composed in 1818 by Franz Xaver Gruber to lyrics by Joseph Mohr in Oberndorf bei Salzburg, Austria. It was declared an intangible cultural heritage by UNESCO The United Nations Educati ...

", " Rio", and "

Let it Snow "Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!", also known as simply "Let It Snow", is a song written by lyricist Sammy Cahn and composer Jule Styne in July 1945 in Hollywood, California, during a heatwave as Cahn and Styne imagined cooler conditions. ...

" # "

Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" is a song written in 1943 by Hugh Martin and Ralph Blane and introduced by Judy Garland in the 1944 MGM musical '' Meet Me in St. Louis''. Frank Sinatra later recorded a version with modified lyrics. ...

", performed by Mr. Hankey and the cast. During the scene, Kenny is killed when a chandelier falls on him. # During the ending credits a reprise of "Dreidel Dreidel Dreidel" plays.

"Fighting the frizzies, at eleven."

After every commercial break, a live action segment featuring a news anchor is shown, saying "Fighting the frizzies, at eleven." In the DVD commentary, Stone and Parker indicate this is a reference to a bootleg tape of '' Star Wars Holiday Special''. The original tape featured a brief clip at the end from

WCBS-TV WCBS-TV (channel 2), branded CBS New York, is a television station in New York City, serving as the flagship of the CBS network. It is owned and operated by the network's CBS News and Stations division alongside Riverhead, New York–lic ...

featuring newscaster Rolland Smith informing viewers, "Fighting the frizzies, at eleven." However, while the original news ad was apparently referring to "frizzy" hair, the ending credits of this episode of ''South Park'' feature the news anchor boxing a man in a giant fuzzy suit. The announcements were followed by Hankey's show's logo, which is based on that of ''

Star Wars ''Star Wars'' is an American epic film, epic space opera media franchise created by George Lucas, which began with the Star Wars (film), eponymous 1977 film and Cultural impact of Star Wars, quickly became a worldwide popular culture, pop cu ...

''.

Reception

In September 2008, Russian prosecutors filed a motion to ban the series based on complaints received about this episode. The TV station was allowed to keep its license by agreeing not to re-air the program.

Album

The album features more songs than the show. Additionally, some of those featured in the show are slightly different than the aired versions. The album reached #33 on Billboard's 1999 Christmas albums. The duet between Santa and Jesus that appears in the episode was meant for the album, but music rights for

Duran Duran Duran Duran () are an English pop rock band formed in Birmingham in 1978 by singer Stephen Duffy, keyboardist Nick Rhodes and guitarist/bassist John Taylor (bass guitarist), John Taylor. After several early changes, the band's line-up settled ...

's " Rio" could not be cleared for the album in time.

Personnel

Credits are adapted from the album's liner notes.

Voices

Trey Parker Randolph Severn "Trey" Parker III (born October 19, 1969) is an American actor, animator, writer, producer, director, and musician. He is best known for co-creating ''South Park'' (1997) and '' The Book of Mormon'' (2011) with his creative part ...

– Stan Marsh, Eric Cartman, Mr. Hankey, Cowboy Timmy, Mr. Garrison, Juan Schwartz, Mr. Mackey, Adolf Hitler, Satan, Mr. Ose, "special celebrity guest" *

Matt Stone Matthew Richard Stone (born May 26, 1971) is an American actor, animator, writer, producer, and musician. He is best known for co-creating ''South Park'' (since 1997) and ''The Book of Mormon (musical), The Book of Mormon'' (2011) with his cre ...

– Kyle Broflovski, Kenny McCormick, Gerald Broflovski *

(posthumous role) – Shelley Marsh, Wendy Testaburger, Sheila Broflovski *

Isaac Hayes Isaac Lee Hayes Jr. (August 20, 1942 – August 10, 2008) was an American singer, songwriter, composer, and actor. He was one of the creative forces behind the Southern soul music label Stax Records in the 1960s, serving as an in-house songwr ...

– Chef

Personnel

– electric and acoustic guitars *

– bass guitars, drums and percussion *

Marc Shaiman Marc Shaiman ( ; born October 22, 1959) is an American composer and lyricist for films, television, and theatre, best known for his collaborations with lyricist and director Scott Wittman, actor Billy Crystal, and director Rob Reiner. Shaiman ha ...

– piano and keyboards, arrangements and orchestrations *

Harvey Cohen Harvey R. Cohen (September 13, 1951 – January 14, 2007) was an American composer and orchestrator. Career Growing up in Boston, Cohen studied music at the University of Hartford and at the graduate level at Brooklyn College in New York City. ...

Mervyn Warren Mervyn Edwin Warren (born February 29, 1964) is an American film composer, record producer, Conductor (music), conductor, musical arranger, arranger, lyricist, songwriter, pianist, and vocalist. Warren is a five-time Grammy Award winner and a 1 ...

and Frank Bennett – orchestrations * Bruce Howell – guitars on "The Lonely Jew on Christmas" and "What the Hell Child Is This?" *

Neil Stubenhaus Neil Stubenhaus is an American bass guitarist. Career He started his musical training playing drums and switched to bass guitar at the age of 12. In one of his early bands, The Neighbourhood in 1969, he played with future Kiss guitarist Vinnie V ...

– bass guitars on "The Lonely Jew on Christmas" and "What the Hell Child Is This?" * John Robinson – drums on "The Lonely Jew on Christmas" and "What the Hell Child Is This?" *

Dan Higgins Dan Higgins (born January 28, 1957, in Boston, Massachusetts, United States) is an American saxophone and woodwind player. He has worked with such artists as John Williams, Seth MacFarlane, Aerosmith, Stevie Wonder, Neil Diamond, Al Jarreau, M ...

– saxophone on "What the Hell Child Is This?"

Production

* Trey Parker, Matt Stone and Marc Shaiman – production and performance * Bruce Howell – production on "Santa Claus Is on His Way" and "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing" * Nick Vidar –

recording A record, recording or records may refer to: An item or collection of data Computing * Record (computer science), a data structure ** Record, or row (database), a set of fields in a database related to one entity ** Boot sector or boot record, re ...

* Joe Atlas – photography * Monster X – design

Singles

* "Mr. Hankey, The Christmas Poo" UK no. 4 ; CD1 # "Mr. Hankey, The Christmas Poo" – Performed by Cowboy Timmy # "Cheesy Poofs (Theme)" – Performed by Eric Cartman # "Chocolate Salty Balls" (Karaoke Version) – Performed by

Chef A chef is a professional Cook (profession), cook and tradesperson who is proficient in all aspects of outline of food preparation, food preparation, often focusing on a particular cuisine. The word "chef" is derived from the term (), the di ...

; CD2 # "Mr. Hankey, The Christmas Poo" – Performed by Cowboy Timmy # "My Best Friends" (Snippet) – Performed by Eric Cartman # "Swiss Colony Beef Log" – Performed by Eric Cartman

References

External links

"Mr. Hankey's Christmas Classics"
Full episode at South Park Studios * {{DEFAULTSORT:Mister Hankey's Christmas Classics 1999 Christmas albums 1999 soundtrack albums 1999 American television episodes Cultural depictions of Adolf Hitler Depictions of Genghis Khan on television Cultural depictions of Mao Zedong Cultural depictions of John F. Kennedy Albums produced by Rick Rubin Fiction about the Devil American Christmas television episodes South Park season 3 episodes South Park albums South Park songs Television animation soundtracks Television episodes set in hell Television episodes about demons