A Cosmic Christmas

I saw A Cosmic Christmas when it first aired in 1977. At the time, I didn't think too much of it but over the years I've come to accept it as a Yuletide perennial just like Rudolph and Frosty. It doesn't feature any well known characters but it's not easy to forget. (how many kids have a goose for a pet?) The story is about Three Wise Men/aliens landing on earth and searching for the meaning of Christmas. The animation is actually a bit eerie at times. A Cosmic Christmas does a good job of examining the commercialism and hypocrisy that abounds during the season (the town mayor is a hoot!) The music is almost mystical and somewhat touching. Many Yuletide specials are synthetic, bland and predictable but this one is genuinely original and imaginative.

I remember when this showed on television in 1977, I think it was on Channel 7 (abc)? Everything about was/is great!! It is just so intriguing to see this idea taking place in space about this family and has a science-fiction flavor to it. I definitely loved the art style and animation. Nelvana is a company I definitely remember, along with other animation they such as Rome-0 and Julie-8(?), Animalympics(great, great, art work and animation, very, very, excellent with cool music) and there are still more that Nelvana made something about 2 racoons (I can't remember the name, and the other one had to do with Halloween) Their animation and art style is clearly evident but A Cosmic Christmas stands out just because, for me, because it had elements that I like such as star ships, well in this case a space wagon (if I recall this correctly) and the boy had an unusual pet, looked like a flying razor making funny sounds. This animation is another in a long list of little known productions from the late 70s that I remember very well in my childhood and it partly the reason I am a graphic artist. Oh, I did not like Rock n Rule because I have absolutely no interest in the subject and where they were going with the story. I saw the movie and I still feel that way. Nelvana since then have made animation but the quality of it has lessened. It is exactly like the Hanna-Barbera studios. Their most skillful and talented animators displayed their artistry in the 40s but as time went along the animation may have gotten smoother but the drawings in the passage of time and with different artists the designs became less detailed until by the mid 60s and early 70s Scooby doo(Ugh.) style of animating and design just prevailed. Which is why I do not respect HB today. Seems to have happened with the Nelvana animation house.

Dear Friends: My Daughter Stacey and I happened to find Cosmic Christmas in 1977 and we really enjoyed it. We have looked for it every Christmas and we were very sad that we missed it every year since then. I hope that it will be shown every year so that others will fall in love with "Cosmic Christmas" as much as we did. At that time in 1977, we were going through a very sad situation and because we had the opportunity of seeing "Cosmic Christmas", we completely forgot about the sadness we were feeling. It just left us with a wonderful and peaceful feeling and lifted our spirits. Stacey was so happy after seeing "Cosmic Christmas" and we only saw it that one time and have been looking for it ever since. Our sad situation had a very happy ending. Where can we purchase a copy of this wonderful and very beautiful show? Will it be shown again in the future? Thanks very much. Sincerely, Marge Pineda and Daughter, Stacey Cabral.

In 1977, I was a junior in college and a good friend and I were lamenting that Christmas was coming and we just didn't feel anything. There were lots of college parties going on that evening, but nothing focused on the meaning of the season. We went to his room in our fraternity and turned on his TV and stumbled on this. It was the perfect antidote to what we were feeling. The story was simple, but profound, the story telling was great, the animation was different and captivating. I loved the message of being involved and helping others.

I discovered we could stream it this year, and before Christmas, watched it with a couple of my grown children. Many thanks to the great team that put this together all those years ago.

Cosmic Christmas was heavily promoted prior to its release during the 1977 Christmas season. Our family watched it and loved every minute. The plot provided a new twist on the traditional Christmas story, and the characters where very well defined. The fact it was a Canadian production also sparked our interest. We have always been interested in the possibility of extra-terrestrial beings visiting planet Earth. We also believe they are most likely to come in a friendly fashion rather than as invaders, as is so often portrayed in films. Because of these interests and beliefs, Cosmic Christmas was very satisfying to watch. Our children were quite young at the time and it helped us talk to them about the possibility of visitors from space and the likelihood that they would be friendly and not something to be feared. We have never seen the film since then, and would very much like to see it again. Does anyone know if it is available?