While CBS ditched their annual airings of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and Frosty the Snowman, ABC is holding on to the rights to Santa Claus Is Comin’ to Town. The Disney-owned broadcaster will continue its annual tradition of showing the 1970 Rankin/Bass Christmas special.
ABC, which has shown the special every year since its premiere, will air Santa Claus Is Comin’ to Town at 9 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Dec. 3. If you miss the ABC broadcast, Disney-owned cable channel Freeform will air the stop-motion special several more times throughout the holiday season:
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- Dec. 3, 9:55 p.m. ET
- Dec. 4, 1:30 p.m. ET
- Dec. 8, 12:55 a.m. ET
- Dec. 8, 4:30 p.m. ET
- Dec. 16, 10:25 p.m. ET
- Dec. 17, 6:15 p.m. ET
- Dec. 21, 4:35 p.m. ET
- Dec. 22, 1:20 p.m. ET
About Santa Claus Is Comin’ to Town
Santa Claus Is Comin’ to Town debuted on Dec.13, 1970, and retold the origins of Saint Nicholas. Mickey Rooney voiced the titular character, with Fred Astaire, Keenan Wynn, Robie Lester, Paul Frees and Joan Gardner also voicing characters. As the title would suggest, it heavily features the J. Fred Coots and Haven Gillespie composition “Santa Claus Is Comin’ to Town.” Rankin/Bass Productions artfully crafted the stop-moton special as their fourth Christmas special, following 1964’s Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, 1967’s The Cricket on the Hearth, 1968’s The Little Drummer Boy, and the traditionally animated Frosty the Snowman.
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