Christmas Comes But Once a Year (1936) Color Classic Cartoon 

I had a VHS of this and other old holiday shorts that I watched as a kid in the 1990s. I always loved this one!

I used to watch this with my great grandma as a kid every year before she died. I can't watch this without crying now. Miss you Grammy Boonie.

This is the first time I have seen this since my daughter watched it and cried. She passed away from kidney disease and diabetes and had a soft heart for anyone unfortunate. She had a kind heart.

I like the way the smart inventor used normal everyday objects to built toys for the orphans. It's heartwarming.

This used to make me CRY at the beginning. I've never forgotten this cartoon and how simple gestures can mean beyond the world to someone, or multiple people.

This cartoon hurt to watch as a kid. It hurts even more to watch as an adult.

Oh. My. Childhood!!! I watched this when I was little and haven’t seen it in forever! I honestly forgot most of it except a scene or two. I have searched for a long time and instantly remembered it when it started playing. Love it.

One of the best Fleischer Bros. cartoons. It’s a shame that this studio eventually went under because they definitely were rivaling Disney in the 30’s. 😔

It breaks my heart to see these kids crying, knowing that they were given defective toys and their day was initially ruined. I'm glad that Professor Grampy saved the day, but Christmas should always start off happily. If you haven't done so already, make a donation to Toys for Tots or any other charity that gives to kids on Christmas.

The 3D effect they used while entering the house I’ve always loved.

I would always watch this as a child, and I plan to show it to my kids when I have them.:)

ALL children should watch this just to see how lucky they are 🎅🎅

Creativity, innocence, simplicity and love, that's Christmas. 🤶🎁🦌

That is very sad: seeing kids cry like that, and Grampy being a kind man with a big heart helped them because of it, especially when he has good ideas that don't fail.

My heart b r e a k s just like those toys everytime I watch those poor kids cry

My childhood, oh the memories. I still cry my eyes out for those poor kids when there toys break. But the old man was so kind and generous to help them it's so heartwarming

I bet after Prof. Grampy made the orphanage's Christmas much more merrier, he'd come back as a frequent visitor, much the orphans' delight and elation. His visits would be where he tells them all tall tales about the world to get them all excited and they would become very imaginative to the point of wanting to be something special from hearing Grampy's stories when they've all grown up after hopefully being adopted.

The part where the wee one's teddy deflates while they hug it is just...heartbreaking. I'm so glad Grampy was able to brighten up the kids' holiday overall

I remember this when I was little!!! I hardly remember the song but hearing makes me feel nostalgic, maybe cause it reminds me of being a small child enjoying Christmas. The part where the presents were breaking and the kids were crying actually broke my heart, it’s way too sad. I had tears in my eyes. I’m so happy for that guy who built presents for them and made their Christmas a great Christmas again! I just finished realizing how much I love this cartoon! I definitely have to put this on this Christmas, especially for my little siblings since they either don’t remember or haven’t seen it! What a sweet cartoon 💙

I love these old cartoons everything was so original and wonderful

I recalled to having seen this cartoon when I was about 6 years old. That was 27 years ago and I soon forgot about this. Anyway, it still brings me back my childhood memories too. 😊😇

This was a popular inclusion on a lot of Christmas-themed public domain VHS tapes in the mid-90s, when many 30s and 40s cartoons entered the public domain following the expiration of their copyright. GoodTime Entertainment released such a Christmas VHS as part of their Kids Klassics line (I believe it was their release of the Fleischer Brothers' Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer), and this was one of the major included shorts I remember seeing on that tape as a child.

This is still a great cartoon even today.

This is Grampy's only solo appearance. In all of his other cartoons, he was always alongside Betty Boop.

Even tho I was born in 2006 it gives me such a great feeling to watch again because I’ve seen this either with my grandparents or my parents but either way I’m happy I was able to watch these kind of cartoons when I was little before watching other tv shows

My great grandmother had this at her house when I was a kid and I watched it all the time

I saw this sooo many times when I was a kid!! I had the vhs and would watch it a lot during Christmas time!!

I used to watch this with my kids when they were small…it brings back wonderful memories ❤️

I’ve been searching my entire adulthood for this! I’m 28 and this was a classic favorite of mine from the 90’s :) you have no idea how much it means that this got uploaded!!

You got to give Grampy props. He goes out of his way to help the orphans.

I was just thinking of this cartoon this holiday season. I owned the VHS. The memories!🥲🎄🤗🎅🏿🎅🏼❤️

this film makes me cry every single time

Smart Inventor and Simple Gesture to make others happy is what make this scene special. Truly classic and heartwarming.😍

I watched this so many times as a kid and had no idea Grampy was a character from the Betty boop cartoons. When I recently saw him in a Betty boop episode my memory of this Christmas short resurfaced in my mind and I was so happy 😭

I remember being mesmerized watching him break down ordinary objects and turn them into toys, the attention to detail and whimsy in the animation is SO delightful. I'm amazed this is from '36, i watched it almost 70 years later as a kid!

I love this old cartoon. It just breaks my heart especially when that cute teddy bear loses its stuffing as the child is loving it. It made me cry even as a kid, but I'm very glad to have found it. Thanks for posting this!

I’m 40 years old and I still kicked my feet with excitement watching this !! Happy Holidays 🎄Merry Christmas Thank god for those early 90s vhs at Bargain Hunters. Simple times

I used to watch this in the 90’s on a VHS tape my mom had. Glad to see I wasn’t the only who was absolutely heartbroken by these kids crying. Poor babies I know it’s just a cartoon but I’ve always been really sensitive and can never watch it without crying with them. But I’m so happy he made it special for the kids, it really saved their Christmas

I remember watching this and somewhere in dream land as a kid and I’m glad I did :) when I have kids I’m showing them both of the animations

(6:20) In the end, Christmas has went from the heartbreaking to the heartwarming. And it's all thanks to Santa (Grampy) Claus. Merry Christmas.

The best vintage Christmas cartoon I have seen in terms of ingenuity. Using kitchen utensils to make toys and the painted Staircase.

Love how it went to claymation at the end! Merry Christmas everyone!

Blast from the past ! I appreciate what you do, Sir. I lost my 📼 years ago. I love the classics.

Man, I’ve been thinking about this cartoon for a while now, I remember watching this all the time my word my childhood- this cartoon and a few others were always my favorite to watch on Christmas, it’s so nice to watch it again

Omg!! Why don’t they play old Christmas classics 🥰 oh how I’ve been searching for this!

I use to have this movie as a kid and it always made me cry till this day. Those poor kids so adorable and looking foward to christmas for their toys. We neec more people like the professor and give some joy and happines and love to our less fortunate children.

I watched this as a kid, so happy to have found it on here. Sweet nostalgia

It's 2022, I'm 28 years old, and this is the most precious thing I've ever seen around Christmas time. Merry Christmas, everybody!!

I watch this every year! Nothing encapsulates my feelings about the spirit of the holidays better than this. Simple giving and gratitude!

Fun fact: The stamp at the end of this flick is the 1936 Christmas Seal stamp.

The good deeds that has been shown in this old toon, how the old inventor help put a smile on all of those little orphans by creating very special toys and dressing up as Santa, and making such a remarkable Christmas tree... It gives me that warm fuzzies. 😊

Loved watching this movie when I was a child. Wish they had it on DVD so my babies can watch it. Brings back good memories. Wish when we are younger time would go slower.

Emotionally driven, filled with nostalgia, and it hits you where it hurts. Every time I watch this, it makes me tear up because it reminds me of the stories my mom told us when we were children. She grew up with nothing, developed feelings of abandonment, and she and my dad continue to strive to give us a better life than they ever had. Christmas is the most celebrated holiday in our home because it was always downplayed when my parents were growing up.

I've missed these cartoons so much over the years

When I was a kid we had a VHS called "Chrismas Carols Cartoons Vol. 1" (or something like that) and this was on it. But I never knew the name of it because it was part of an anthology. Until THIS VERY XMAS (2022) I could never ever find it. I tried and tried for over 20 years to find the cartoon because it was my favorite Xmas thing ever. Thank you so much for uploading it and letting me FINALLY put the search to an end. Lol on the VHS it was in black and white so I have never seen it in colour until a few days ago. And side note.......GOD DAMMIT is the song way to catchy and gets stuck in your head. But I love it.......making a good Xmas with the little that you have and simply becauss you want to......ahhhh its so good. Thank you again for making one of my life goals come true. And Merry Xmas and Merry Holidays from me a 35 year old man who just had a wonderful Xmas gift by finding the name of this damn cartoon hahah.

What a very nice man he was at the right place at the right time, out of all the toys he created the train was my favorite

Still love watching this cartoon from a forgotten time and generation these days.

Loved the ingenuity and richness of color. One of my favorite cartoons during the holiday season

Thank you for uploading. I watched this only once when I was very little, but I always remembered how the old man helped those children have the best Christmas. I never thought I would see this cartoon again.

This movie always brings me so much joy

Omg I remember my parents buying me this VHS and how creative Santa was to those kiddos :-)

Beautiful, magical, precious! The best times, and it will never be like that ever again!

my mom used to show me this every christmas when i was younger i immediately recognized it because of the goofy sounds

Man oh man! What a gem!! I have never forgotten this episode since I first saw it as a small child. So great!

Although I do feel sorry for the orphans, I have to say I’m not surprised that all this happened. The toys they got looked like someone put them together from things thrown in the trash. And I agree with everyone else on the fact that the caretakers seem to be AWOL. I don’t know what’s worse here, being given ramshackle toys or being left alone In an equally ramshackle orphanage. I think we can all agree that they were lucky Grampy happened to be passing by.

I'm born in 97` and my grandma used to have the VHS of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer with this cartoon in it. I used to watch it every December when I was little.

I'm 52 and this is the first time I've ever seen this. ❤️

This is my favorite cartoon from when I was little.

I’ve watched some Christmas cartoons ever since I was born and it’s kinda became a tradition this one’s probably my favorite

Always broke my heart to see those kids cry over the state of their toys. Glad that inventor came in to save their Christmas

Dang i used to watch this at my grandmas this brings back so many memories ❤️

Had this on VHS in the 90s... Life was very different in the 90s. Super Nintendo, Cartoon Network, and biking outside all day No cellphones, laptops, and computers. It was a lot nicer then than now.

Professor Grampy, you are a genius, and a hero! You really know how to make children happy!

There is no greater ending that can be given that all those orphan kids are finally taken into brand new homes with a powerful family and they get new amazing toys so they can smile again.

Tengo 70 años me crié viendo Esos dibujos cuándo A mediados de los años 60 empezó a ver televisión en argentina era llegar del colegio por la tarde y poderlos ver qué maravillosa época

When I watched it as a kid, what I thought about the most was how touching and heartwarming the story is. Now, when watching it as an adult, the first thing which came to my mind was "making those children happy by giving them toys is nice and all, but what are those kids going to eat now (and how) that you've turned all the kitchen utensils into said toys?".

I can't believe the opening scene of the house turning and then the Christmas Tree at the end. It looks like 3d rendered images! The talent it took to make that work in the 1930s is just outstanding!

I bought this VHS at a yard sale yrs ago for .50 and my kids loved it. I’ve since lost it .. my grandson watched it on RU-vid and loved it.. Thx

We had this on VHS in black and white!! ❤❤ such great memories

My Grandmother sat me down in front of the Tv and told me i would never forget watching this and she was Right I Love you Nana🌼 Rest in heaven My Dearest Friend 💔😭 December 14th 1945-February 24th 2023 till i see you again ✝️🙏🕊️🌹

Im glad to see other people disturbed by this. I didn't think anything of it when I was little, but seeing this as an adult now when the whole reason for christmas now is to give children a magical time, seeing the orphans without any gifts crying makes me tear up. I just can't help it because I know that it is true for so so many kids. And I do all the Christmas Angels I can but it doesn't even put a dent in it. I think I got 13 this year but I cried then too seeing some little kids were asking for a toothbrush, or a pair of pants...god I'm crying again now...anyways, I loaded all of them up as well as I could with toys and fun clothes, and a nice expensive gift too appropriate for all their ages. And I try to get the older kids because at the end of the drive, the trees have all these left over kids tags from ages 8-15 who are looked over since everyone wants to get presents for the little kids and that's great, but the older kids don't want to be left out. God, they're all just so wonderful and innocent and it sucks the world is in such awful shape. I wanted to adopt some older kids (since come 6 or 7 years old, they have a pretty much 0% chance of ever having a family...and reading the info on the kids online waiting for adoption, I cry again because over half of their answers to MY BIGGEST DREAM is I WANT TO KNOW WHAT IT IS LIKE TO WAKE UP AND FIND OUT WHAT IT IS LIKE TO BE WITH MY OWN FAMILY CHRISTMAS MORNING...and I just...I just can't...), but although I have a masters in child psych and education and before becoming a teacher and Olympic Games translator, I worked in nurseries with infants to 4 year olds so I know everything about caring for children, unfortunately I was caught with drugs 20 years ago, I'm banned forever and the kids are left in a nasty program where ONE IN THREE KIDS in the system at the moment is R worded or beat regularly. I guess THATS a safer place for them. Poor kids. And all I ever wanted in life was to have a kid call me daddy and give them a joyous life. Knowing it will never happen for me is almost too hard to cope with ...

I remember this as a child on an old Vhs think it also had an old cartoon of Jack frost. I remember watching it with my mum. I lost her a few years ago and cant help but cry when I watch these but it's a strange sort of comfort in a way. I miss you so much mum the pain will never heal xx

I'm 61, and I've never seen this before. For me, it's a new Christmas classic!

I’ll aways remember the old VHS tapes that my grandma and grandpa had of old 30s/40s cartoons, including this one and other Fleischer cartoons. Watched these in the 90s in their old style 1930s bungalow house in the suburbs whenever we visited. We still have some of these old VHS tapes from them, I think. Every time I watch these-especially this one every Christmas-I want to cry.

The first couple minutes are so depressing but it makes the ending so much more happy

The beginning is some terrorifically sad, but its finish is totally joyful. Greetings for everybody from Colombia.

The 40s love orphans. You see em all the time in old cartoons like these

2:42 During Christmas, after seeing the children from the orphanage crying about their toys being broken-down so easily; Grampy feels sorry for them, before he uses his brainstorm to create new toys of his own - in which those made out of junks! 😊😊😊

Being able to make something I want out of anything I have is the gift that I would want this Christmas❤

Olden days are golden days beautiful childhood memories

This cartoon shows that Christmas is a time for thinking of others in need

I used to watch this as a kid, this year Im pregnant and our baby will be here soon. Im planning to show this to our little girl when she´s older.

Yea i remember going over to my grandparents place for the weekend and i saw they had a VHS tape of "Chrismas Classics".This was the first one that was on first.And i was hooked.Good times back in the day as a kid.

It's not Christmas without this sweet cartoon and sharing it with my great niece Jessica

I still close my eyes at the little kid with their teddy bear. I was made fun of by my "family" whenever that little kids bear came undone because I would cry, thinking that it could happen to my TeTe (teddy bear's name promounced TehTeh). I would run to get him and then be crying thinking he would disintegrate in my hands if I were to touch him. I would bawl for hours until my grandma would come give me the bear and hug me and calm me down. I still have tears now as an adult. I love the thoughts and inventions that Grampy made for those kids.

Man it’s been 5 years since I seen this in dvd this is still a good cartoon

When an act of kindness,changes everything. This Christmas season give to those who have less blessings than you. Merry Christmas and a happy new year!!!

Watched this one as a kid in the 90’s. I love how creative it is! What a treasure of a cartoon!

What happens when they need something from the kitchen? 😂 Love this cartoon!

Grampy has to be one of the most resourceful people I know.