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June 19, 2013

Christmas TV Picks: 74 Holiday Shows, Specials and Marathons

by Kim Potts, posted Nov 26th 2010 3:00PM
Christmas Rockefeller Center

We're all about the multitasking, so when you have to write out those holiday cards, wrap those gifts, select those dinner menus and bake the eight dozen Santa cookies your kid just told you he needs for the class party -- tomorrow! -- here's a big ol' list of TV goodies to make those holiday tasks a little more fun this season!
FRI., NOV. 26
Seinfeld'Seinfeld' Festivus Marathon – It's a Festivus miracle! 18 episodes of the 'Seinfeld' gang, ending with the classic episode 'The Strike,' which introduced us to the Costanza family holiday (11AM-8PM, TBS)

'30 Holiday Decorating Hits and Misses' – The network's experts share the best, and worst, ideas for getting your home decor all holiday-friendly. Hint: Clark Griswold's 'Christmas Vacation' lights extravaganza is a don't (8PM, HGTV)

SAT., NOV. 27
'Heroes' Marathon – Remember how great the first season of 'Heroes' was, and then ... well, the first season was really great, and you can watch the entire season again in this all-day block (9AM, G4)

'Bernie Mac Show' Marathon – All day with 'Bernie,' the sweet, funny, underappreciated family sitcom starring the late Bernie Mac (9AM-7:30PM, BET)

'Call Me Mrs. Miracle' – Doris Roberts, Jewel Saite, Lauren Holly and Eric Johnson star in this holiday tale, based on the Debbie Macomber book (8PM, Hallmark)

'Genevieve's Holiday Home' – 'Trading Spaces' fave Genevieve Gorder gives one family the holiday entertaining space of their dreams as they prepare to host a holiday celebration for family and friends, all while getting her own home holiday-ready (8PM, HGTV)

SUN., NOV. 28
'The Christmas Card' – Hallmark is repeating this 2006 gem, about a U.S. soldier in Afghanistan, who's inspired by a Christmas card he receives from a stranger. PS -- Wanna do something for the U.S. troops this holiday season? Check out Operation Care Packages (6PM, Hallmark)

Hot in Cleveland'Holiday Battle on the Block' – This three-part special pits neighbor vs. neighbor -- and gives each fam $5,000 -- to see who can whip up the most spectacular holiday display (8PM, HGTV)

'Hot in Cleveland' Marathon – Ah, we love us some Betty White. We do. And here's a chance for a bounty of Betty, as TV Land replays the entire first season of the sitcom (8PM, TV Land)

'November Christmas' – Sam Elliott, John Corbett and Sarah Paulson star in a new Hallmark Hall of Fame flick about a Rhode Island town that pulls together to help a family celebrate the holidays early when a little girl is diagnosed with a serious illness (9PM, CBS)

MON., NOV. 29
'Chuck' – Mama Bartowski (guest star Linda Hamilton) shows up for Turkey Day dinner with her fam, while Morgan and Jeffster try to handle the Black Friday sale at the Buy More (8PM, NBC)

'American Chopper: A Family Divided' – Talk about family drama! The Teutuls -- dad Paul Sr. and sons Paul Jr. and Mikey -- still haven't mended the rift viewers saw unfolding on their TV show, which the fellas discuss in this special (9PM, TLC)

'CMA Country Christmas' – Rascal Flatts, Brad Paisley, Sugarland and Darius Rucker perform (9:30PM, ABC)

TUES., NOV. 30
'Christmas in Rockefeller Center' – It's the 78th annual lighting of the Christmas tree in New York City, with performances by Josh Groban, Mariah Carey, Sheryl Crow, Annie Lennox, Susan Boyle and Jessica Simpson (8PM, NBC)

Rudolph'Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer' – Hermey the elf, Clarice the doe, Yukon Cornelius and, of course, Burl Ives in snowman form, help Rudolph discover that his nose so bright is a good thing (8PM, CBS)

WEDS., DEC. 1
'25 Days of Christmas' – From Dec. 1-25, ABC Family unspools its annual '25 Days of Christmas' programming block, full of holiday specials, holiday-themed movies and a lot of 'Harry Potter' movie airings, meaning, if you're looking for something, TV-wise, to get you in the holiday spirit, ABC Family is definitely the go-to destination in December (Throughout December, ABC Family)

THURS., DEC. 2
'Santa Claus Is Coming to Town' – Oh that Burgermeister Meisterburger! (8PM, ABC)

'The Santa Suit' – Kevin Sorbo stars in this new holiday flick about a toy company exec who only learns the true meaning of Christmas when he's stripped of all his rich-guy toys and has to play Santa to make a living (8PM, Hallmark)

'Scrooged' – Bill Murray gets all Ebenezer-y (8PM, AMC)

FRI., DEC. 3
CSI NY'CSI: NY' – Murder's still the name of the game, but, in a nod to the holidays, tonight's victim is found in a department store's Christmas window display in an episode called 'Shop Till You Drop' (9PM, CBS)

SAT., DEC. 4
'A Christmas Carol' – It's the 1938 version, which marked the film debut of June Lockhart, who starred with her parents, Gene and Kathleen Lockhart (9AM on Dec. 4, 11:45AM on Dec. 25, TCM)

'Top 40 of 2010' – The music network breaks down the top 40 videos of the year -- as chosen by viewers' votes -- and recalls the year's biggest music-related stories. Expect to hear the word "Kanye" a lot (7PM, FUSE)

'Celebrity Holiday Homes' – Sherri Shepherd, Trisha Yearwood and Brooke Burke get holiday makeovers for their houses (8PM, HGTV)

'Kung Fu Panda Holiday Special' – Jack Black as Po, along with Dustin Hoffman, Angelina Jolie, Seth Rogen, Jackie Chan and David Cross reprise their movie roles in this new holiday special, which finds Po having to choose between work or spending Winter Feast with his dad (8:30PM, NBC)

SUN., DEC. 5
Hasselhoff'Christmas With a Capital C' – Ted McGinley and Daniel Baldwin star in this movie about "the war on Christmas," based on the Go Fish song 'Christmas With a Capital C' (7PM, GMC)

'The Hasselhoffs' – No one loves The Hoff more than The Hoff himself, but viewers may also find him charming in this family reality series that revolves around the man, the myth and his two daughters (10PM, A&E)

MON., DEC. 6
'90210' – Adrianna throws a sick holiday party -- with a skating rink and elves -- but Victor provides the big bah humbug when he tells the press all about her little secrets (8PM, The CW)

'Battle of the Nutcrackers: Dance Off' – Each night this week, at 8PM, former ballet dancer Sarah Jessica Parker (yes, that one) and international ballet star Damian Woetzel host a different production of 'The Nutcracker,' and viewers are invited to vote for their fave, which will be announced on Christmas Eve (8PM, Ovation)

'Martha Stewart's Holiday Open House' – Jennifer Garner and Claire Danes stop by to help Martha with holiday crafts and baking (8PM, Hallmark)

'The Sing-off' – The season two premiere of this Nick Lachey-hosted, feel-good a cappella competition finds the crooners singing 'I've Got the Music in Me' (8PM, NBC)

TUES., DEC. 7
Peanuts'A Charlie Brown Christmas' – As much as we love Chuck and his little Christmas tree, why is Snoopy the bad guy here, just because he wanted to pimp out his doghouse to win the Christmas lights contest, huh, Charlie Brown? (Dec. 7 and 16, 8PM, ABC)

'Minute to Win It' – Guy Fieri hosts three holiday editions of the game show (including Dec. 14 and 21 installments), where contestants will snag big holiday prizes, and cash, handed out by Santa (8PM, NBC)

'Eureka' Christmas Special – 'Doctor Who' does it every year, so why can't American sci-fi shows get in on the action of annual Christmas specials? They can! As 'Eureka' proves with 'O Little Town' (9PM, Syfy)

'Warehouse 13' Christmas Special – Judd Hirsch guest stars as Artie's (Saul Rubinek) dad, while Paul Blackthorne ('24') is a workaholic being harassed by a thief dressed like Santa (10PM, Syfy)

WEDS., DEC. 8
'The Middle' – Marsha Mason and Jerry Van Dyke guest star as Frankie's parents, who spend Christmas with the Hecks and undo Frankie's intention of taking the focus off gifts (8PM, ABC)

'The Fabulous Beekman Boys Holiday Special' – Brent and Josh share their holiday cooking, crafting and entertaining traditions, as well as share bloopers from season 1 and a sneak peek at their 2011 second season (9PM, Planet Green)

MythBusters Obama'MythBusters' – In the 'President's Challenge' special, POTUS Obama challenges Jamie and Adam to test the myth of Archimedes Solar Ray, i.e. setting stuff on fire with mirrors and the sun (9PM, Discovery)

THURS., DEC. 9
'Community' – This sounds like another 'Community' instant-classic episode: Abed wakes up in stop-motion animation, which he takes as a sign that he and his friends must rediscover the meaning of Christmas (8PM, NBC)

'Shrek the Halls' – Donkey derails Shrek's attempt to celebrate his first Christmas, and Gingy is terrorized by the sight of Santa (8PM, ABC)

'30 Rock' – Jack's mom (Elaine Stritch) and dad (Alan Alda) return, as do guest stars Elizabeth Banks and Will Forte, to celebrate Christmas at Rockefeller Center (8:30PM, NBC)

'The Office' – Jim accepts Dwight's challenge to a snowball fight, but the real fun comes for Michael, when Toby takes a leave of absence and Holly (guest star Amy Ryan) is sent to Scranton to fill in for him. C'mon writers, with Steve Carell's impending exit, let's see those two crazy kids get back together (9PM, NBC)

Heat Snow Miser'The Year Without a Santa Claus' and 'A Miser Brothers' Christmas' – The Miser brothers, despite their misdeeds, proved so popular that they earned their own spin-off 'toon (9 and 10PM, ABC Family)

'Barbara Walters Presents the 10 Most Fascinating People of 2010' – The Biebs is among Babs' 10 most fascinating people o' the year (10PM, ABC)

'The Mentalist' – In 'A Jolly Red Elf,' the team investigates a Santa society when one Claus is killed (10PM, CBS)

FRI., DEC. 10
'Fred Claus' – Vince Vaughn and Paul Giamatti play the Claus boys, who disagree about how to handle the family business. You know, the one at the North Pole ... (8PM, TBS)

SAT., DEC. 11
'Sarah's Holiday Party' – Designer Sarah Richardson has the scoop on how to pull together a fantabulous holiday soiree for family and friends, from menus and cooking to decorating and gift-giving (4PM, HGTV)

'Frosty the Snowman' – Which came first: Frosty the song, or Frosty the TV special? Answer: The song, first recorded by Gene Autry in 1950, followed by the TV special in 1969 (8PM, CBS)

'White Christmas' – The 1954 Rosemary Clooney/Bing Crosby/Danny Kaye classic, in Technicolor (8PM, AMC)

Frosty'Frosty Returns' – The always awesome John Goodman is the voice of Frosty in this 1992 'toon, which also features the voice of 'Mad Men' star Elisabeth Moss as Frosty's pal Holly (8:30PM, CBS)

SUN., DEC. 12
'13 Days of Christmas' – The ha ha network kicks off a countdown to Christmas that includes marathons of 'South Park,' 'Futurama' and 'Tosh.0'; 'A Colbert Christmas: The Greatest Gift of All'; and stand-up specials with Aziz Ansari, Denis Leary and Ralphie May (8PM, Comedy Central)

'Extreme Makeover: Home Edition' – Mariah Carey pops in to help Ty and the team fashion a new home for the Gaston family, headed by Finis, a man who cut short his college education to raise his niece and nephews when their guardian died. Along with the big reveal, the Gastons will celebrate their swanky new abode with a holiday parade (8PM, ABC)

'Leverage' – Will Wheaton and Dave Foley guest star in 'The Ho Ho Ho Job,' which finds the team trying to bust up a scam involving Christmas Eve and a mall Santa (9PM, TNT)

MON., DEC. 13
Mariah Carey'How I Met Your Mother' – Alex Trebek guest stars as himself in this 'HIMYM' Christmas installment, in which Lily and Marshall get some surprising news and Barney discovers it is better to give than to receive during the holidays (8PM, CBS)

'Rules of Engagement' – Audrey's big goal for Jeff's office Christmas party: Make people laugh (8:30PM, CBS)

'Mariah Carey: Merry Christmas to You' – Mama-to-be Mariah celebrates the holidays with selections from her new CD, 'Merry Christmas II You' (9PM, ABC)

'Hawaii Five-O' – It's Christmastime in Hawaii, but no one's in the mood to celebrate, especially McGarrett, as his father's killer, Victor Hesse (guest star James Marsters) returns, and is threatening to detonate a bomb ... that he's strapped to Chin Ho! (10PM, CBS)

WEDS., DEC. 15
Psych'Psych' – The show's third Christmas special -- which will hopefully include a Christmas-y re-do of the infectious theme song -- guest stars Keshia Knight Pulliam (Rudy!) and Tony Cox, and has an 'It's a Wonderful Life' vibe, as Shawn has a series of dreams that leads to the takedown of a mobster (10PM, USA)

FRI., DEC. 17
'Santa Claus Conquers the Martians' – The 1964 flick, a 'Mystery Science Theater 3000' fave, is considered one of the worst movies ever, which makes it a must-see, of course (3:45AM, TCM)

'Christmas in Washington' – Ellen DeGeneres hosts, while Mariah Carey, Matthew Morrison, Andrea Bocelli and Maxwell perform at the annual D.C. holiday concert, which includes President and First Lady Obama in the audience (8PM, TNT)

'Yes Virginia' – Neil Patrick Harris and Jennifer Love Hewitt provide voicework for this 'toon special about the famous "Yes, Virginia, There Is a Santa Claus" letter, and for which, apparently, you had to have three names to be involved (8PM, CBS)

SAT., DEC. 18
Jeff Bridges'Saturday Night Live' – With two big movies out this month -- 'True Grit' and 'Tron: Legacy' -- Jeff Bridges hosts the show's holiday episode, with musical guests Eminem and the recently-sprung Lil Wayne (11:30PM, NBC)

TUES., DEC. 21
'Living in the Time of Jesus' – This fascinating three-part series uses input from biblical experts, archaeologists and other experts to examine 'Making a Living' (8PM), 'Healing the Sick' (9PM' and 'Crime and Punishment' (10PM) 2,000 years ago (8PM, NGC)

WEDS., DEC. 22
'12th Annual A Home for the Holidays' – Musical performances and real-life stories of adoption pepper this touching special (8PM, CBS)

FRI., DEC. 24
A Christmas Story'24 Hours of A Christmas Story' – Triple dog dare you to not tune in for at least part of this marathon, which should be a part of everyone's annual holiday traditions (8PM, TBS)

'It's a Wonderful Life' – The classic that topped AFI's list of the most inspirational American movies ever is never more powerful than in its Christmas Eve airings (8PM, NBC)

SAT., DEC. 25
'Doctor Who' Christmas Special – Michael "Dumbledore" Gambon stars in this installment of the annual 'Who' holiday special, a 'Who' take on 'A Christmas Carol' (9PM, BBCA)

MON., DEC. 27-31
'Back to the Future Leads AMC Into 2011' – Each night, beginning tonight through Dec. 30, the network will air all three installments in the 'Back to the Future' trilogy, back-t0-back, followed by an all-day marathon on Dec. 31, from 10:30AM-4AM. That's a lot of Michael J. Fox, which, we can all agree, is a fine, fine way to start the new year (6PM, AMC)

Doctor WhoTUES., DEC. 28
'Rudolph's Shiny New Year' – The sequel, because the original 'Rudolph' was just that good (8PM, ABC)

'The 33rd Annual Kennedy Center Honors' – Oprah, Merle Haggard and Paul McCartney are among this year's honorees (9PM, CBS)

THURS., DEC. 30
'Happy New Year, Charlie Brown' – The class assignment for holiday break: Read 'War and Peace' and write a report on it. Guess who doesn't get his done until the night before it's due? (8PM, ABC)

Marx BrothersFRI., DEC. 31
'New Year's Eve With the Marx Brothers' – If only we could travel back in time and actually spend NYE with the Marxes ... alas, this seven-movie marathon is as fun a way to ring in the new year we can think of short of that, especially since it includes 'Duck Soup,' 'Animal Crackers' and 'A Night at the Opera.' And two hard-boiled eggs. Honk! Make that three hard-boiled eggs (8PM, TCM)

'New Year's Eve.0' – 'Tosh.0' host Daniel Tosh hosts the network's countdown to midnight (9PM, Comedy Central)

'Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve' – Yep, Seacrest is back, too (10PM, ABC)

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Jane

For a more complete holiday viewing guide check out CHRISTMAS ON TV: 1,010 Holiday Specials, Episodes, Movies, & Marathons for all of December 2010.

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