Ice Age: A Mammoth Christmas DVD
If you enjoy the Ice Age franchise and can’t wait for the latest sequel, Ice Age: Continental Drift next year, you’ll be glad to know that you can spend time with your favorite Arctic herd this holiday season with Ice Age: A Mammoth Christmas. This new animated special will air on Fox TV on Thanksgiving night and the Ice Age Christmas DVD will be released two days later, on November 26.

In this new animated film, Sid breaks Manny’s favorite holiday decorations and goes to the North Pole to explain it all to Santa Claus after Manny convinces him he’s now on Santa’s Naughty List. Crash, Eddie, and Peaches accompany Sid, leaving Diego, Manny and Ellie frantically searching for Peaches. Of course, Sid can’t stay out of trouble and ends up destroying Santa’s workshop on Christmas Eve, so it’s up to our favorite prehistoric herd of misfits to set things straight and make sure Christmas isn’t canceled.

Elf on the Shelf: An Elf’s Story DVD
Since Elf on the Shelf was published, thousands of kids have joined in the fun holiday tradition of having a scout elf visit their home and bring back regular reports to Santa Claus on whether they’ve been naughty or nice. Now those kids can get a look at what it’s like to be one of Santa’s secret helpers.

Elf on the Shelf: An Elf’s Story will make its debut on CBS TV the day after Thanksgiving, and the new Christmas DVD for 2011 will be released the next day, November 26. This animated tale follows the adventures of Chippey, a scout elf who is assigned to a boy named Taylor. Taylor is uncertain whether he believes in Santa Claus and Christmas magic, and when he breaks the most important Elf on the Shelf rule, both he and Chippey discover that true belief in Christmas isn’t something that can be taught.

Disney’s Prep and Landing DVD
This animated Disney Christmas special first aired in 2009, but Disney is releasing it for the first time on DVD this year. The story follows Wayne, an elf in Santa’s elite “Prep and Landing” unit, a team of elves who work with military precision to ensure every house is ready for Santa’s arrival before he gets there. Their job is to ensure the path is clear for Santa to get in and out of the house quickly, safely and without a hitch. But Wayne has been doing this job for a long time and was just defeated in his quest for a promotion. Now he’s willing to let his new trainee, Lanny, take over while he slacks off. It’s a recipe for disaster, and Wayne has to save the day so one little boy’s Christmas won’t be ruined.

Barbie: A Perfect Christmas DVD
Any Barbie movie is sure to be a hit with little girls, and this will be no exception. In this holiday tale, Barbie and her sisters Skipper, Stacie and Chelsea are on their way to New York for Christmas, but when a snowstorm diverts their flight, they end up stranded in the remote town of Tannenbaum. To their surprise and delight, they discover magical experiences and new friends. Barbie and her sisters then put on a musical performance for the whole town to enjoy and discover that “being together is what really makes A Perfect Christmas.

Beethoven’s Christmas Adventure
In Beethoven’s Christmas Adventure DVD, viewers will get to hear Beethoven talk for the first time ever! Beethoven comes to the rescue in this film after an elf takes Santa’s sleigh and all the toys, and then crash-lands in a tree. When Santa’s magical bag of toys ends up in the wrong hands, Beethoven and his human companion Mason have to save the elf, get the toys, and make sure Christmas comes for children around the world.

From: New Christmas DVDs 2011 on HubPages

Having one of Santa Claus’ “scout” elves visit during the Christmas season has become a popular Christmas tradition for many families since Elf on the Shelf was published in 2005. Since then, the children’s story written by Carol Aebersold and her daughters, Chanda Bell and Christa Pitts, has sold more than 2 million copies. Now kids who love the story of these special elves who help Santa knows who’s naughty and who’s nice can get a chance to see a special movie featuring the special elves.

“Elf on the Shelf: An Elf’s Story” will be aired on CBS on November 25, 2011 and “An Elf’s Story” DVD will go on sale the next day. The 23-minute special will be broadcast on November 25, and the DVD and Blu-Ray versions of the special will be available the next day. According to the official Elf on the Shelf and CBS websites, “The Elf on the Shelf: An Elf’s Story” will star Chippey, one of Santa Claus’ scout elves. Chippey’s job is to visit little kids and report to Santa Claus on their behavior so St. Nick knows who has been naughty and who has been nice. Chippey is assigned to a family with a young boy named Taylor McTuttle. The CBS press release says Taylor “struggles to believe in the magic of Christmas.” Chippey’s job is not only to report on the boy’s behavior, but to restore his faith in Christmas magic, too. But when Taylor breaks the rules, Chippey loses his magic powers.

The Elf on the Shelf website says that what happens then is “through the power of love and forgiveness, both of them learn that true belief cannot be taught.” CBS says the special carries the “timeless message that Christmas is something we carry in our hearts.”

Look for Elf on the Shelf: An Elf’s Story on CBS later this year!

“A Charlie Brown Christmas,” which debuted on CBS in 1965, was the first animated TV special starring the Peanuts characters created by cartoonist Charles M. Schulz. Although TV executives thought it would be a failure, the animated Christmas special won an Emmy award and a Peabody award, captured 50% of the TV viewers on its debut night, and is still popular today. Here’s some trivia you may not know about the special.

- The number of hairs on Charlie Brown’s head changes throughout the show. In some scenes, he has three hairs on the back of his head, and in others he has no hair at all.

- Composer Vince Guaraldi was invited to write the music for the special after a TV producer heard one of his songs while riding in a cab.

- Lucy calls Charlie Brown “Charlie” in a scene right before she talks about the commercialization of Christmas. This is the only time she ever calls him by his first name only in any Peanuts special. In all the other specials, she always calls him by his complete name – Charlie Brown.

- TV execs were sure “A Charlie Brown Christmas” would flop miserably. They didn’t like Guaraldi’s music, were concerned about Linus quoting the Bible, and wanted a canned laugh track to accompany the animation.

- The name of the Charlie Brown Christmas song that most people associate with the special is “Christmas Time is Here.”

- 50% of all TVs were tuned in to watch “A Charlie Brown Christmas” on the night it first aired in 1965.

During the holidays, millions of families sit down to watch classic family holiday movies such as A Charlie Brown Christmas, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, Frosty the Snowman and others that have become part of our popular culture. But what do you really know about these movies? Here is some fun trivia.

Remember the scene in How the Grinch Stole Christmas where the Whos hold hands in a circle and sing? The title of that song is “Fahoo Forays,” and if that doesn’t make any sense to you, it’s because the words are made up. Dr. Seuss invented some of the words of the song and tried to make them sound like classical Latin. Seuss was so successful that some people thought it was real Latin and wrote the studio to ask for a translation.

In A Year Without A Santa Claus, if you look closely when the little girl is writing the word Christmas with a crayon during the Blue Christmas song, you’ll notice that the letters seem to appear before she actually writes them.

The Grinch has blue eyes – but only after his heart grows while he’s standing on the top of Mt. Crumpet. Before that, his eyes are red.

June Foray, who was the voice of little Cindy Lou Who in How the Grinch Stole Christmas, was also the voice of the teacher in Frosty the Snowman and the drummer boy’s mother in The Little Drummer Boy.

In Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Hermey is the only elf who doesn’t have pointy ears.

- The only time Lucy ever calls Charlie Brown just “Charlie” in a Peanuts special is just before she discusses the commercialization of Christmas in A Charlie Brown Christmas. Thereafter, she always calls him Charlie Brown .

by Debora Dyess
Now that my grandchildren are old enough to watch TV, I’m getting a refresher course in animated Christmas movies. These films created great memories for me when I was little, and I hope they create the same magic for my grandkids. With a bag of popcorn, a mug of hot chocolate and your favorite little ones cuddled in your lap, there’s no better way to spend a cold December evening.

Mickey’s Christmas Carol – (1983) – Mickey Mouse and Christmas are both almost universally loved by children, and this movie brings the two favorites together. There is probably no one better suited to play the role of Ebenezer Scrooge than Scrooge McDuck – at least in the animated version. Then add in Mickey Mouse as the faithful and loyal Bob Cratchit and the rest of the Disney gang to round out the cast and you have a Christmas winner. This animated Christmas movie also has a super soundtrack. With Goofy, Jiminy Cricket and the Giant as the Ghosts, this animated version of Dicken’s classic tale isn’t too scary for the little ones and enjoyable for all ages.

A Charlie Brown Christmas – (1965) – This has to be one of the all-time best animated Christmas movies. Full of traditional Peanuts music and animation, this movie is still a charmer. Charles Schultz deftly scripts Charlie Brown’s search for the true meaning of Christmas without being too heavy-handed by giving Linus a center-stage recitation of the nativity story and having Charlie Brown save a scraggly tree. “Charlie’s search for the truth is the same search we all go through,” a preacher told me once. “The transformation of the tree is what happens in our lives with God’s love.”

How the Grinch Stole Christmas – (1966) While the Whos in Whoville prepare for a big Christmas celebration, the Grinch does not like Christmas one little bit. The trouble that ensues makes for one of the most beloved animated Christmas adventures ever created. In an effort to stop the special day, Grinch schemes and dreams and devises a wickedly elaborate plan … and some pretty good songs and chuckles, to boot. Even though I’ve seen this movie dozens of times, I still wait in anticipation for the Grinch to realize the true meaning of Christmas as he sits on the top of Mt. Crumpit listening to the Whos singing on Christmas morning. This animated tale of redemption and joy, all bundled up in Dr. Seuss’ weird words and crazy pictures, will always be a winner.

T’was the Night Before Christmas – (1974) – When I was little, I sometimes wondered if Santa might forget Christmas or our house… or me! I’d close my eyes for nights before Christmas, silently praying, “God, please let him know I believe in him.”

The characters in this movie want Santa to know they still believe in him, too. Put off by a letter from Albert Mouse, Santa Claus decides to skip this little town inhabited by talking mice. Everyone has to work together to convince Old St. Nick that they really do believe and really want him to bring gifts to their town. As if the plot weren’t clever enough to make it worth watching, the film also has a terrific soundtrack, including great songs like “Even a Miracle Needs a Hand.” And, of course, it has a happy ending, making this a wonderful seasonal movie.

In my opinion, these are some of the best animated Christmas movies ever created, and they’re as much a part of Christmas as a brightly decorated tree, Santa Claus or a nativity scene. And, while new animated Christmas movies may appear every year, none will take the place in my heart of these beloved favorites.

Adapted with permission from: Printable Santa Letters.com