Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas is an animated special based on the children’s book by Dr. Seuss. Legendary animator Chuck Jones directed this special, which first aired on CBS on December 18, 1966. Actor Boris Karloff not only narrated this special, he also provided the voice for the Grinch, and Thurl Ravenscroft provided the vocals for the song, “You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch.”
The plot of the special is very faithful to the original book; basically, a surly character with “a heart that’s two sizes too small” decides he wants to get rid of Christmas in the village of Whoville. However, since the action of the book only ran for twelve minutes, there had to be some additions made. The songs that appear in the special made up for the bulk of the missing time; however, a section where the Grinch and his dog, Max, advance Whoville from the mountain was also added. The special also added more color, since the original book was in red and black.
This DVD pressing of this classic Christmas special was released by Warner Bros. in 2000; this release of the special also includes Horton Hears a Who. The main menu allows you to choose to see either How the Grinch Stole Christmas or Horton Hears a Who. The menus for both specials include scene selection, languages, and special features. The soundtrack includes English, French, Spanish, and commentary. For subtitles, there is English, French, and Spanish. Each special has its own set of special features.
For How the Grinch Stole Christmas, there are seven special features. The first is a trivia game that includes twelve questions. For each question, there are three potential answers. If you answer correctly, you just move on the next question. If you answer incorrectly, you see a splash screen, and then you’re given another chance to answer the question. At the end of the game, you see a splash screen that thanks you for playing the game. There is no background music or sound effects included in the game. Personally, I would have enjoyed this feature a little better if there was some kind of background music included instead of the silence.
The next feature is “Pencil Tests,” and there’s only three screens of pencil tests. “Who’s Who in Whoville” includes biographies for Chuck Jones, Dr. Seuss, Boris Karloff, and June Foray. Next is “Commentary,” which takes you directly to the version of the special with the audio commentary, which is done by June Foray and one of the animators. Next is “Song Selections,” and you can choose from four songs: “Opening,” “Trim Up the Tree,” “Welcome, Christmas,” and “You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch.”
Next is TNT’s “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” special, which runs for 19 minutes and 18 seconds. This special, which originally aired in 1994, was hosted by Phil Hartman. The special includes interviews with Chuck Jones, Audrey Geisel, Albert Hague, Thurl Ravenscroft, Danny Elfman, and Tim Burton. The final feature is “Songs in the Key of Grinch” Interviews, which runs for eight minutes and two seconds; this feature includes interviews with Albert Hague and Thurl Ravenscroft.
There are only two special features for Horton Hears a Who. The first extra is “Pencil Tests”; like the other special, this one also has three screens. “Song Selections” includes four songs: “Doc Hoovey,” “Wickersham Brothers’ Song,” “We Are Here,” and “Be Kind to Your Small Person Friends.”
I always enjoyed watching Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas when I watched it on television as a child. I’m glad to own this DVD to be able to share this Christmas classic with my children. This is definitely a DVD worth having in your DVD collection if you enjoy this holiday special, if you’re a fan of Dr. Seuss, or if you’re a fan of Chuck Jones’ work.