Frosty's Winter Wonderland

This is the Frosty the Snowman sequel that I remember. It's not the cheesy "Frosty Returns" that is so sappy about the environment. I mean, come on, it's a Christmas special, and a thing to look forward to. I groan every time Frosty Returns comes on because I know it is not this movie, the original sequel to Frosty the Snowman. I don't know who decided to let the other have precedence, but whoever did needs to be fired or shot, whichever is more painful. In this delightful tale, the children realize that Frosty is lonely and they decide to make a "wife" for him. They get married, but will they live happily ever after? Not if Jack Frost has anything to say about it! Enjoy this one if you ever get to see it.

Frosty's kind of lonely, so the kids think of making him a wife, Crystal. But will Jack Frost let them be happy?

While maybe not as powerful or memorable as the original, this cartoon deserves very much to be in the must-see canon of Christmas specials. The team of Rankin and Bass (not to mention Romeo Muller) consistently pumped out good specials year after year. Did they ever make a bad one?

Personally, I like this one better than some of the others simply because it has Andy Griffith, an actor I am quite fond of. With all due respect to Burl Ives and Fred Astaire, Griffith is the kind of guy who excelled at telling folksy stories (even if this was typecasting him).

This has been my favorite Rankin Bass special since childhood! In the lighthearted sequel to "Frosty the Snowman", we find Frosty (the incomparable Jackie Vernon) returning to the children once "someday" finally comes. Yet Frosty is unhappy... he has spent three lonely seasons in the North Pole, and even when he's reunited with his beloved band of kids, he's still lonesome (they always have to go inside, and they can't bring him along 'cause, well, he'll melt). Even worse, Frosty's popularity has incurred the wrath of Jack Frost (Paul Frees, Rankin Bass's favorite villain). He's determined to steal Frosty's magic hat to regain his popularity. Meanwhile, the kids conjure up the perfect cure to Frosty's blue Christmas: a snow-wife! So they build a lovely snow-wife named Crystal (Shelley Winters), who comes to life via the magic of love. She and Frosty hit it off immediately, but Jack Frost is now doubly jealous. Will the "icy miracle" of Frosty and Crystal's wedding melt Jack Frost's envious heart before it's too late? By 1976, Rankin-Bass's hand drawn animation took on a different, more Anime-inspired look, and it works. I thought Frosty looked better in this one, with more expressive eyes, smaller shape and a nice new scarf (hope it's not too warm). Andy Griffith is the narrator this time around, and he's absolutely superb. His familiar, down-home voice really fits the mood, and he also gets to display his most underrated gift: his excellent singing voice. The entire cast is in fine form, especially Vernon, who is the ONLY voice of Frosty in my mind. Winters is also good; her normally harsh voice is so warm and tender, you almost forget that this is the same brassy dame from "Lolita" and "A Double Life". Happy Birthday! What a great sequel!!

When I was a kid I had the vinyl version of this show and loved it. Too bad it wasn't included in the DVD version instead of the lame "Frosty Returns".

This is a charming addition to the original and well worth the half hour.

"Frosty's Winter Wonderland" is an animated short film made tor the1976 Christmas season by Rankin-Bass Productions. It follows the first film made about this fictional character that was created in the mid-20th century. The first film was "Frosty the Snowman" in 1969. This film picks up with Frosty returning from the North Pole to visit the children as he promised he would.

And, in this fairy tale story, Jack Frost is a villain. He tries to stop Frosty from coming to life by stealing his magical hat, but gets a wrong hat. In the meantime, the kids help build a snow woman to be a companion for Frosty. When the children go to their homes at night, Frosty gets lonely. Crystal and Frosty frolic in the snow and foible the plot of Jack to make Frosty lifeless. Finally, they win Jack over so that they can all return to the North Pole and let the rest of the world have its seasons once again.

Andry Griffith narrates this story. Jackie Vernon is the voice of Frosty and Shelley Winters is Crystal. Paul Frees provides the voice for Jack Frost, and Dennis Day is Parson Brown.