The Thanksgiving Treasure

Watched these specials back in 1973 with my new husband, 36 years later this Christmas we still remembered them and how much we enjoyed them. There was something so heart wrenching about the little girl Addy. her father played by Jason Robards was less than loving and sympathetic to a little girl that was as strong in spirit as her father. I am sure they would be less polished than the movies we have now but life was not politically correct back then, but much more real. They need to blow the cobwebs off some of these old specials it would blow the minds of the young people of today. I for one would love for my children and grandchildren to watch them.

"The Thanksgiving Treasure" is the second holiday film based on stories by Gail Rock. Around 1972, the then-CBS film and TV critic related her childhood experience to fellow workers on a holiday outing, about growing up in a small town in Nebraska and not having had a Christmas tree for the first years of her youth. That led to CBS making a throw-away film for the Christmas season that year. Well, it turned out to be such a hit that it repeated for years on TV. And, right away, Rock's compatriots wanted a sequel or something more.

So, she then wrote a book that told the whole story about "The House Without a Christmas Tree" and then wrote also about a Thanksgiving experience one year. That resulted in this CBS TV film for the 1973 holidays, with all of the same main characters.

Another person wrote the screenplay based on Rock's story which mixed some fiction with actual events and experiences. This too, is a very good and moving story, filmed in a sort of storybook fashion. It has some narration at the start and finish - by Patricia Hamilton who portrays Addie (Gail Rock) as an adult. And, it has scene breaks with segues from live action to storybook paintings of the respective scenes. The same techniques were used in the first film. They are very good and add to both films and the impression that they are real life stories.

While this film is also very good, the plot isn't as engrossing as that of "The House Without a Christmas Tree." That is a more gripping story for the reason behind Addie's father not getting a Christmas tree. And then, all of the shenanigans and clever ways that Addie tries to get a tree only then to show her care and charity for a poor classmate by taking the tree she won by lottery at school, to that girls' home at night.

Two more stories based on Gail Rock's small-town upbringing would follow. In 1975, CBS TV made and aired "The Easter Promise," and in 1976, the last of her four books was made into a film, "Addie and the King of Hearts." The three main leads were all on hand for those films as well. The last film won an Emmy for and it won an Emmy for graphic design of the montages created by Norman Sunshine for the segues from live scenes to stills and back. These all make good films for viewing by the whole family over the Thanksgiving holiday and Christmas seasons.

Here are some favorite lines from this film.

Addie Mills, "What is heavier - a pound of gold or a pound of feathers?" Cora Sue, "A pound of gold, naturally." Addie, "Uh uh, neither. A pound is a pound the world round, no matter what it consists of."

Addie, "What word is pronounced wrong by the best scholars?" Cora Sue, "I give up." Addie, "W-R-O-N-G, wrong, dodo."

James Mills, "Tell Miss Thompson to have him (Walter Renquist) for dinner - boiled."

Addie, "I think you better come too, Grandma." Grandma, "Yeah, I think I better had."

Addie, "How many soft-boiled eggs could a giant eat on an empty stomach? Give up? One. After that his stomach would no longer be empty."

Addie, "What's the best material for kites?" Cora Sue, "Flypaper."

Addie, "What did the mother turkey say to the baby turkey?" Cora Sue, "Uh, what?" Addie, "Shame on you, you bad little turkey. If your father saw what you did, he'd roll over in his gravy."

Addie, "What did one kangaroo say to the other? Isn't it terrible when the children have to play inside?"

I sought this movie out because it was the sequel to The House Without a Christmas Tree, another movie that I greatly enjoyed. I had hoped that it would equal the quality of the first film, but it actually surpassed it. Like its predecessor, this movie uses a holiday (in this case, Thanksgiving) as a backdrop to the story, but the movie is not about the holiday itself.

From reading the brief plot summary, I had thought this was going to be a typical morality tale, something like "Love your enemies and they'll become your friends and everything will turn out hunky dowry." Although the element of showing kindness toward one's enemies does form the heart of the narrative, the plot is actually more nuanced than that. There is no neat resolution to the characters' problems. Addie, especially, experiences some of the jarring losses that are bound to occur when one is growing up. Although her initiative and iron nerve initially pay off, they are not enough to cushion her from the blows that are to come.

As in the first movie, Mr. Mills is far from understanding Addie's actions--it is kindly Grandma who bridges the gap between the two of them. The movie also occasions many opportunities for adults to reflect on how their behavior affects children. One sees how Addie is greatly affected by all of the adult main characters in the movie. Her father, her grandmother, her teacher, and Mr. Rehnquist all influence her in different ways.

This movie is a great movie for parents to watch with their children. The movie deals with some pretty heavy topics, and children who empathize with Addie's great sadness near the end of the movie will likely have a lot of questions. Although the movie contains nothing grossly inappropriate, children under 5 or 6 are unlikely to get much out of it.

The production values are similar to The House Without a Christmas Tree. This is a made-for-television movie, and was apparently filmed on videotape instead of film. Although it has interspersed action scenes, it is mostly dialog-driven. Unlike its predecessor, this movie makes copious use of authentic rural, outdoor settings.

Overall, seeing this movie makes me wish that the Mills family could have had their own television series. However, whether or not the good writing that we see here could have held up for season after season is a matter open to debate.

I watched this movie as a kid and sure would like my kids to see it. Why isnt it on anymore? Very touching! Cast played great roles.I Also enjoyed the movie "The House without A Christmas Tree". Same Cast..same great performances.

This is a heartwarming holiday classic created by the same folks that gave us The House Without A Christmas Tree. It is the touching story of a little girl's unlikely friendship with a lonely old man during the holidays. It stars Lisa Lucas, Jason Robards and, the late, Mildred Natwick. The setting is a small town in Nebraska in the late 40s. It gives us some true insight about human kindness. This was released as a movie for television in 1973 after the success of The House Without A Christmas Tree.