Well, it's time for more musings on Christmas animation as the Holidays close in. In our most beloved Holiday TV Specials and movies, I've finally paid more attention to the ways the main characters usually seem to have a special dog, or some other unique animal companion involved in their story. Most recently, Jack Skellington from The Nightmare Before Christmas comes to mind, with his poltergeist pooch buddy, Zero. Naturally, Zero leads the reindeer team through through the fog with his glowing pumpkin nose.
(copyright Disney)
Rudolph doesn't really fit in this article, since he was ostracized very early on. He didn't become buds with Ol' Saint Nick until much later, when Santa finally appreciated his talents very late in the game. Once in a blue moon, Santa's reindeer do get some comments in, now and then, but they are still basically treated as beasts of burden.
Even The Grinch, with his hostility towards Christmas, and just about the entire world in general, still had his friendly and faithful canine companion Max. Since Chuck Jones portrays The Grinch as this cranky, and even somewhat tragic character, the fact that he keeps Max around proves that The Grinch is not a complete monster.
(original copyright Chuck Jones/MGM, now Turner-Time Warner)
A bigger leap occurred when Frosty the Snowman was assisted by the cute magician's rabbit, "Hocus Pocus". This new companion, and fellow traveler seemed to be a writer's contrivance, but a good one. The "mystically challenged" magician, Professor Hinkle, throws away his top hat when his magic act for the schoolkids goes wrong. Hocus hops away with the Hat to where the kids have built Frosty, and Karen places The Hat on Frosty's head. After seeing the Hat bring Frosty to life, Professor Hinkle grabs it back when he realizes that the old top hat can actually generate real magic. (The Hat seemed to have some built-in moral compass that resisted Hinkle's selfish motives, but I'm being pedantic here.)
Fortunately, with a sneaky, but clever bit of subterfuge, Hocus returns the Hat to Karen to let her restore Frosty back to life. Hocus is the key player in Frosty's origin, but then allows himself to become somewhat overlooked. It's clear that Hinkle and Hocus didn't have a good relationship at the start, so the rabbit is more than happy to join Frosty and Karen on their adventure. Since Frosty is almost a blank slate in this TV special, he comes to rely quite a bit on Hocus for guidance to save Karen while on his journey to the North Pole.
(original copyright Rankin/Bass)
As characters for the very young viewers to relate to, all the dogs, rabbits and even a penguin become helpers, comrades, and witnesses to the main characters' actions and feelings. They also offer clues and inspiration to the main characters, sometimes accidentally; as with Max landing in the snow, and popping up looking like Santa to give The Grinch his perfectly, wonderfully, awful idea.
Which leads us to the heart of this article:
Scrooge had no dog.
After being stranded alone for the Holidays due to Covid last year, the corrosive effects of isolation became painfully apparent for me. No one should be alone, especially during the Holidays. It's a wonder there aren't more Scrooges in the world, and I've seen how becoming like Scrooge can happen all too easily. The usual unreasonable social and emotional expectations of the season are tough enough. In the meantime, let's hear it for those magical fuzzy buddies who are always there to bail us out!
