12 Days of Christmas Movies, Day 2

"How the Grinch Stole Christmas" (1966)

"Your brain is full of spiders, you have garlic in your soul / Mr. Grinch"

Boris Karloff is a motherfucker’s motherfucker. Bypass that Jim Carrey foray into this tale, because that’s more a showcase for Mr. Rubberface himself (and I say that not as a compliment) as opposed to a true tale of holiday redemption. Nope, for the true Seuss hookup on Christmas, look no further than the animated special of 1966, the one with the fantastic eponymous tune, "Mr. Grinch," an interesting holiday song in that it bears not one mention of Christmas; it’s a tune that would be perhaps better suited for a Halloween compilation. Nevertheless, The Grinch’s quest to steal Christmas from the Who’s Christmas cheer and the subsequent enrichment of his half-sized heart, as narrated by Boris "Frankenstein’s Monster" Karloff, stands as another Christmas classic. But one question remains unanswered: Are these Who’s the same Who’s* that Horton the elephant swears his service in protection to?

* Cue up a reference to Jim Neidhart in 5, 4 ...