Frosty the Snowman (1969)
Retro Review #20: Fun for the whole family, except, perhaps, the adults.
Frosty the Snowman (1969) — Fun for the whole family, except, perhaps, the adults.
+ TV special, @ 26m
A v
Family Suitability
+ ✅4️⃣ OK for younger kids. (Grades K+) | Approved
Alignment with Judeo-Christian Values
+ ❎2️⃣ Good/Moderately Favorable
+ Based on song “Frosty the Snowman” (1950) ⭐ by Walter E. “Jack” Rollins and Steve Nelson
+ 7️⃣/32 Rankin/Bass TV specials ⭐
+ 4️⃣/? in Rankin/Bass holiday multiverse ⭐
+ 2️⃣/? in Rankin/Bass animated holiday universe ⭐
+ 1️⃣/2 Frosty TV specials ⭐
Frosty the Snowman (1969)
Grade: A v (12.0) / HOF: 2
EQ 👍A- | 📖B+ 👥A- 📽️A 🎼A-
DW 😎8.8 | 🌚8 🌝11
POPCAP 💯n/a 🍿n/a 🧢n/a
L-R ☮️n/a ◀️n/a ▶️n/a 🛐n/a
Frosty the Snowman was a jolly happy soul.
And no wonder! The kids all loved him and he scored high ratings when he debuted immediately after the fifth showing of “A Charlie Brown Christmas”.
For “Frosty…”, Rankin/Bass returned to the base-it-on-a-song formula of previous Christmas successes, but switched from stop-motion back to standard animation for just the second time in a Christmas special. This time it worked.
I can’t point to any aspect of this special that’s particularly outstanding. It’s just that all facets are very good. “Frosty…” is a fun, colorful, almost flawless cartoon that will captivate most young children.
For adults, you can enjoy the nostalgia of seeing it again for the first time in decades via a crisp HD transfer. You might also get a kick out of the narrator, who looks like a cartoon version of actor and comedian Jimmy Durante. Sounds like him too, because the character is voiced by Durante in his last ever film role.
Unfortunately, just like “The Little Drummer Boy” all of the humor is targeted at making children giggle. It's my belief that all programs made for kids should include a few laughs for the parents too, just to be fair. But more importantly, a few chuckles for the grownups are the key to reaching the pinnacle of cartoon success.
“Frosty…” is good, but not quite pinnacle material. So sure, you’d rather watch it with a kid who’s enthralled with it for the first time. You’ll probably even watch the kid more than the cartoon. But if you don’t have a child handy as an available excuse, then just tell everyone that you’re a huge fan of Jimmy Durante!
Onwards!
+ last viewed (~5) 2025-12-10, HDX7, 1.33, 1M
+ first viewed ~1969, bw?, sd2, 1.33, 1
+ 👨👩👧👦🎈⛄🎄🎅🎶🦄🧙🛡️🐾🐾🐰
Family Suitability Detail
+ ✅4️⃣ OK for younger kids. (Grades K+) | Approved
+ 😡+4 😵💫+4 🤬+4 🤭+4 🫣+4
Judeo-Christian Values Detail
+ ❎2️⃣ Good/Moderately Favorable
+ ✝️ +1 ➕😇❤️❤️
+ ✡️ +2 ➕🌗🌗💎🤍
+ 🗽 +1 ➕🇺🇸🚓
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