Frosty Returns
| ''Frosty Returns'' | |
|---|---|
| Distributed by | Classic Media CBS Television Distribution |
| Directed by | Bill Melendez Evert Brown |
| Produced by | Eryk Casemiro Bill Melendez |
| Written by | Oliver Goldstick |
| Starring | Jonathan Winters John Goodman |
| Music by | Mark Mothersbaugh |
| Production company | Broadway Video CBS Productions |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Original channel | CBS |
| Release date | December 1, 1995 |
| Preceded by | Frosty's Winter Wonderland |
Frosty Returns is an animated Christmas television special featuring the character Frosty the Snowman. It was first released direct to video in 1993. It was then aired on December 1, 1995. The special is not a direct sequel to the original 1969 special, and the two were produced by different companies (Rankin/Bass produced the original, while this special was made by Lorne Michaels' Broadway Video, the company that owned the original special at the time; in association with CBS Productions, whose parent company is the very network that currently airs both this and its 1969 predecessor), and feature different characters, setting and voice actors. Regardless, Frosty Returns, in addition to its CBS showings that follow the 1969 original, has been coupled with the original on DVD.
Jonathan Winters - in animated cartoon form (following the Rankin/Bass tradition of the narrator being a caricature of its' voice actor) narrates and John Goodman provides the voice of Frosty (Goodman took over from the late Jackie Vernon, who had died five years earlier). The special was directed by Bill Melendez and Evert Brown and features music by Mark Mothersbaugh.
Contents |
[edit] Cast
- Jonathan Winters as Narrator
- John Goodman as Frosty
- Elisabeth Moss as Holly
- Michael Patrick Carter as Charles
- Brian Doyle-Murray as Mr. Twitchell
- Andrea Martin as Ms. Carbuncle
- Jan Hooks as Lil
[edit] Synopsis
The series begins with a musical number showing that Beansboro Elementary School is canceled for the day due to a seven-inch snowfall, while the adults incessantly complain about the problems snow and ice cause, and the children enjoy the opportunity for playing with it. (Later in the special, however, many of the same children are shown in school the next day rallying for the elimination of snow.)
Frosty (voiced by Goodman) arrives in the town of Beansboro and meets young Holly DeCarlo (voiced by Elisabeth Moss), a relatively lonely young girl with only one friend, a tone-deaf, somewhat geeky character named Charles who apparently has a knack for climatology, while Holly has a knack for amateur stage magic. Meanwhile, evil Mr. Twitchell (voiced by Brian Doyle-Murray) is the inventor of "Summer Wheeze", an aerosol spray that makes snow instantly disappear through unexplained means. He hopes to use the product to win over the people of Beansboro so that they will "make me their king" (Twitchell seems not to realize that the "king of the winter carnival" to which he alludes is only an honorary title and has no real power). When one of the members of the town council voices concern about the environmental impact of the untested product, Mr. Twitchell has her dropped through a trapdoor.
To Twitchell's delight, and Frosty's dismay, the town of Beansboro falls head over heels for "Summer Wheeze", delighting Twitchell but causing Frosty to be concerned, not unreasonably, about his safety. Holly gets Frosty to appear at the annual Beansboro Winter Carnival to persuade the townspeople to rethink their newfound hatred of snow. Singing about the joy of winter to the town, Frosty is unanimously declared king of the carnival, a title which Mr. Twitchell had hoped to win. Holly and Frosty, however, allow Mr. Twitchell to still wear the cape and ride the sled of the carnival king.
[edit] Continuity
Despite its association with the 1969 special, Frosty Returns has a notable lack of continuity with it. For example, Frosty has a different physical appearance and is able to live without his top hat. In the original special and its other sequels, the removal of Professor Hinkle's hat from Frosty's head causes him to become a regular snowman again. The hat he wears in Frosty Returns is not the same one from the original, since he is shown to have gotten it from Holly.
The reason behind his living without his hat may be that in a previous special, Frosty's Winter Wonderland, he received a kiss from his wife Crystal which allowed him to live without his hat.
[edit] Political undertones
The plot of this particular special is markedly more politically aware than its predecessors and successors, alluding to climate change, environmentalism corporate enterprise, and instead of a Christmas celebration, the term "winter carnival" is used. In fact, the word Christmas is not used at all and Charles makes mention of creating a "fertility goddess" in the snow, possibly a reference to Frey, the Scandinavian Fertility God and a deity associated with peace and prosperity during winter solstice. Santa Claus is never mentioned either.
The use of aerosol cans hints to the use of fluorocarbons, which were used as propellants for decades before their potential to deplete the ozone layer was discovered in the 1970s. However, fluorocarbons had already been banned from aerosol cans in the United States at the time the special was produced, although the stigma associated with them remained. Trucks are used in the special to spray "Summer Wheeze" around the town, alluding to the use of DDT trucks in the 1950s.
Frosty no longer has a corn cob pipe. The Frosty song, when sung, uses humming or whistling through the corn cob pipe section, thus avoiding all references to smoking.
[edit] References
[edit] External Links
- Mahalo article
- Frosty Returns Movie Sounds
- Frosty The Snowman and Frosty Returns at CBS.com
- Holiday Central at CBS.com
[edit] See also
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