The Spirit of Christmas - Mabel Beaton Marionettes and Bell Telephone AT&T 

I loved this as a child, and now (I'm 68) I look forward to it every year.

Every time I watch this, I'm 10 years old again and sitting on the floor in front of the TV in my family's living room. Makes me misty-eyed. Love it!

This brings back memories. Growing up in the 50's this was as much a part of Christmas as our tree. Not only was it on tv every year, but they would also show it at the church Christmas party and school Christmas assembly. It was a treat to see it again and remember old times.

I grew up watching this in Massachusetts. We had presents galore but it was the nativity at the end of this that made Christmas magic for me. I'm 67 now and it still has that quality that no new technology can match. Thank you for sharing it.

I remember watching this on a small black and white tv when I was little. Love this.

This was absolutely the best Christmas special every year. Loved it as a child so happy to find it again. The marionettes were magical and narration by Alexander Scourby was poetic, wonderful voice. Loved this show so much. Thanks again.

Watching this again, yearly tradition! Grew up in South Jersey and my family watched this Philly program every year as a kid. Recently found out that everyone I knew in South Jersey grew up watching this as well. 🎄🎅🏻❄️

It was all we had at Christmas back in the day. As a child of that time, it was so exciting to watch this on Christmas Eve.

"Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night!"👍🎄🎀🎁🙏

I've always enjoyed this program especially at Xmas time, now 69 years in view !!

Thank you for posting this classic! I thought about it over the years . I was in single digits when this came out and seeing it now at 67 years old I wonder if this is how Clement Moore was inspired to write his classic poem. I never thought I would ever see it again. Thank you for making my Christmas special once again! Blessings to you!

What a lovely and endearing Christmas Film from my childhood. It's a treasure to keep in my heart.

ilovecomputers123 Another Year is Coming and I am Now 74 Thanks to God I survived the Virus and am watching these wonderful olds shows from My Youth Thank you again from having this on here. GOD BLESS YOU!

I remember watching this on WHYY tv 12 Philadelphia many , many years ago. I now have it on DVD. One of the greatest Christmas specials ever made!!

*The charm of this never gets old...* Just beautiful and heartwarming without commercial gimmicks. Merry Christmas! 🌟(Thank you for posting!!)

The TV Special ''The Spirit of Christmas'' (The Mabel Beaton Marionettes) is one of the greatest Christmas specials ever made. I love watching it every Christmas.

I remember first seeing this on public TV when I was a kid back in the 60s and I LOVE IT ! It brings back warm family memories , a time when things really weren't very complicated, when life was simpler....how I long for those days ...

I was just asking my husband if he remembered the Bell Telephone Christmas program with the marionettes. He said , "No". How could he not have seen this growing up across the river from Philadelphia! It always made my Christmas Eve. Thank you for sharing this. Brings back so many wonderful memories!

To whoever posted this, THANK YOU FOR SHARING!!! I had never seen this or even heard of it and I am so in love with the nostalgia of this. It's so quaint and simple and sweet. This should be a Christmas classic outside of Philly too! People don't appreciate the artistry of a craft such as marionettes anymore. I just loved this.

Merry Christmas 🎄🙏💗just beautiful.. it’s not Christmas until I watch this🤗🙏

This was on at Christmas every year in the Harrisburg/Lancaster area. We all looked forward to watching it. Thank you.

Best ever watch it every year wish they would show it on TV Doris legates

I remember watching this as a young child with my family every Christmas Eve. We went to church, came home, watched this and then went to bed. Got up in the morning and suddenly there was a Christmas tree and presents. I grew up in Philly and this was pretty much shown on TV in Philly. We also went to see the Enchanted Christmas Village, which was fantastic, displayed every year in a department store in center city. I'm glad my children got to see the village. There was a special Christmas train to Philly complete with carolers in old fashioned outfits so off we went from NJ to center city Philly to spend the day. It was an awesome day out for my children. I have wonderful memories of my childhood Christmases.

I was born in the late fall of 1978 in central Kentucky and grew up in northern Kentucky. The first time I ever saw the 1950 classic, excellent live action with the extremely talented actor, actress, and the beautiful, acquisitively detailed, expressive, masterfully works of art The Mabel Marionettes, the miniature costumes, the miniature furniture, the miniature props, the miniature shoes, the miniature sets, the beautiful orchestrions, the beautiful life-sized costumes, furniture, props, shoes and set of an edited version posted on You Tube of The Night Before Christmas on December 6, 2023. Thank you very much for posting the classic, excellent 1950 movie The Spirit of Christmas narrated perfectly by Alexander Scourby, sponsored by the Bell Telephone Company showing them making braille books with detailed, excellent miniature Christmas props for children and providing Christmas gifts for Children with the Story of the Nativity in its' complete unedited entirety! I have enjoyed and loved it! Merry Christmas 2023! Happy Holidays 2023! Peace on Earth! God Bless Us All! All Kinds of Blessings, Compassion, Empathy, Friendships, Forgiveness, Generosity, Good Cheer, Good Health, Goodwill, Happiness, Hope, Joy, Kindness, Laughter, Love and Peace for Us All! Happy New Year 2024! I now have a new classic Christmas movie to enjoy!

Finally found the full film-my elementary school used to play this on a reel to reel film projector every Christmas in the 70s/80s.

My brother and I, who grew up in Wallingford, PA, watched this at least every year from 1957 to 1962.

Seeing this once a year at a young age in the late-'50s through the early-'60s made a big impression on me. As some have said here it wouldn't have been Christmas without this presentation.

That was pretty good, I'm 54 and thought I had seen all of these old classics. I somehow missed this one....until now. I think I would have loved it more as a kid, then I could have had some warm nostalgic memories about it that I am bereft of.

It would never be Christmas without this

This is Wonderful. The marionettes are so beautiful. What a wonderful accomplishment and magical in it's own right. Merry Christmas.

Love hearing the voice of the late great John Facenda, too! Many Christmases we watched this program; when my twin and I were in grade school in the 1960's.

I watched this when I was little in the early 1960 !!!! It brings back such fond memories!!!! So happy I found this and can share with my grandchildren ❤️

I can Honestly say, That My Life as a Kid growing up in Wilmington Delaware was something that every Little kid should have. A house full of 5 sisters three brothers, loving parents. And of course the special Christman s' we all shared together. One of the highlights was waiting for this Program to come on Tv On christmas eve. How good does it get? Miss all of you and Grandpop and grandmom. Been so long without you all!

Loved these marionettes as a child

Oh my. This brought back memories of our childhood in the 50s. Watched it every Christmas it was on. This one and the Nativity story.

My grandma used to put this on when My family came over to her house on Christmas Eve. As scary as this was to me growing up, it is so nostalgic seeing it again.

I grew up watching these two shows on television, but back then in the 1950's they were in black and white! I loved watching these movies!! Thank you for posting these. It's like going back to my childhood!

I use to watch this at my Nanas house every year when i was a young child. Im so thankful for those memories Christmas will always remind me of her and how she made Christmas so special for me. I long for those days once more such a simpler time no phones or internet just happy to be. I still have that feeling in me that i would always get when Christmas time came around all because of her she was a special woman indeed . God Bless us all and have mercy let us be thankful because the time we live in feel like a twisted reality.

Watched it with my sister in Wilkes-Barre Pa. A few years ago WHYY in Philadelphia offered it as a premium for a donation, which I happily made. I sent the DVD to my sister who shared it with her grandkids. Thank you for posting!

I discovered this special on WHYY after I moved to Central Jersey. It reminds me of the whole 1950s Christmas aesthetic I grew up with - which is like being wrapped in a warm blanket, being fed a turkey dinner and given a ton of toys to unwrap after Christmas Eve service. Thanks for posting.

I remember this at home and also elementary school. Takes me back to my childhood and fond memories of those magical days.

ilovecomputers123 I watched this as a child and Longed to see it again. Thanks so much for this you have Made the Christmas Season wonderful for me! God Bless you! BE WELL!

Sweet...childhood memories are the best...the good ones..and, because they've been in our memory banks the longest...

I didn't know the title and haven't seen it in decades. Never forgot it and this year, I googled the description and here I am. Have to get a broom to brush the memories away! Warm all over!!

It's nice to see this in color. When I was a kid, most people had black and white TVs, so it wasn't shown in color.

I can't thank you enough for posting this. Its almost painful for me to watch. My Dad introduced me to this. (he was born in '46) he looked forward to this every Christmas and would let me know when it was on. I just lost my dad in 2019. I miss him beyond words. This, the original Dr Suess Grinch, and Alistair Sim's version of A Christmas Carol were his absolute favorite's. We watched all 3 together , from since I i can remember, up until his passing. Miss you Dad. 🕊️

I'm glad this is still on RU-vid. This was made in a time when The Bell System was still intact and controlled the nation's telecommunication network

I to discovered it on WHYY 1991 was in a volt by Bell Tel Co. Phila Pa. Saw this as a kid late 50's early 60's

Thank you for posting this. As with others, we watched this every year as children in the '50's and '60's. The story/narration is very good.

Found the Facebook page on my feed for this show, which seemed a little strange for August but I felt compelled to watch it. Was a yearly tradition in our house when I was a kid and for many years when I had my own kids. I still love it!

Back in the days of channels 3, 6 and 10, this would come on one time on each channel. We would be sure to watch it on each channel. I was amazed when channel 12 located the program and how popular it was, once again!

My mother was trying to describe this to me cause she couldn't find this anywhere. A few clicks and I found this. She was telling me how she used to watch this back when she was a kid (50's and early 60s). She is VERY happy now watching this.

IMDB lists the release year as 1950, but the earliest airdates I was able to track down: December 22, 1951 at 8:30pm on WFIL-TV (now WPVI-TV 6), December 23, 1951 at 2pm of WPTZ (now KYW-TV 3) AND 6PM on WCAU-TV 10

This is Christmas.... the true meaning!!!

Watched this every year as a child. It inspired me to take up marionettes. My friends and I had puppet shows at the local library in the children's reading room. Such wonderful childhood memories.

This is a beautiful Christmas story !!!😃🎄🎍❤👍

The Nativity segment is actually quite lovely if you can get past it looking like The Gospel According To Captain Scarlet And The Mysterons. Beautifully detailed sets and marionettes.

Loved it. My sister and I would look forward to this. Nothing else for kids at the time. All we had. Thank you for posting

Sadly, I cannot imagine them allowing to be shone the Nativity part of this video on TV much less public TV. In our quest to not hurt anyone's feelings we neglect to show the story of the most famous person in history to preach a message of peace and love.

Always a favorite from when I was kid. So glad they brought it back to TV... Definitely a must every year.

What I like about this poem is that it has a life of it's own. There is almost always a little change in each rendition. Here the narrator says, "He was dressed all in red". The original and most others read, "all in fur." A current version, I won't say which, changes clatter to chatter. All are good! Merry Christmas!

We have the CD but generally catch it on PBS. Childhood memories ❤️❤️

If you were a kid in Philadelphia you grew up with this !

I did not see this TV special being aired this year, so I feel blessed to have found it here. Thank you.

Thanks for posting this. I don’t live in Philly anymore and haven’t seen this in quite some time. So happy I can make this a part of my Christmas tradition again.

This is how I know it's December. I love watching this on PBS and it reminds me of simpler times, my Grandmothers, and my small Central NJ town where I grew up. Thanks for posting.

I think I saw my dad in Santa. Rest in Peace, Dad.

Waited every year for this

Thank God this isn’t taken away from us yet

I wish I could get these movies. They were part of my childhood too. So mystical

Thank you, very much, for posting this. It was so beautiful.

Lovely stories -- and told so expressively, with those little puppets. Merry Christmas!

We had three channels back then and watched it again and again.

Thank you Telephone Pioneers.

Thank you so very much for posting this!!! I remember it fondly, and it so wonderful to see 😊😊😊

Such a shame that they don’t have programs like this anymore! It makes you wonder how something so beautiful and meaningful could just be extinguished and replaced with what’s on TV now! I’m so thankful I grew up in the 50s and the 60s! Thank you so much for posting this! Merry Christmas and happy new year everyone! 🎄🎉🙏.

It defined Christmas for us as children. I love it so much.❤️🙏

I'm glad to see this is still in existence. I have a Christmas TV Guide from 1958, and it shows that this COLOR special ran on 2 channels in Philadelphia; Channel 3 WRCV (NBC) and Channel 6 WFIL (ABC). The callsigns changed long ago, but the channels are still there in Philadelphia.

Alexander Scourby, Blessed be the Name of the Lord. Thanks You ilovecomputers123 :)

One of the best Christmas shows I watch every year, I didn't see it on this year

A true classic

Lovely nativity scenes

Thank you for posting this video. It brings back many happy memories.

Ilovecomputers 123 I have Loved this since I was a very Young Child and at 73 I love the both of them more then I can ever Say. God Bless you For These Wonderful old Christmas Shows and that the Youth of today can see them here!

Here in Steeler country we watched this "spirit of Christmas' on KDKA-TV ( I think) - thank you, Ma Bell and ' ilovecomputers'!! Merry Christmas !! The Gospel: 'Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures: And that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the scriptures" 1 Cor.15:3-4

GLORY TO GOD IN THE HIGHEST AND PEACE AND GOODWILL TO MEN!!!! WHAT A SHAME THIS PROGRAM IS NOT SHOWN ANYMORE ON NATIONAL TELEVISION BECAUSE OF A GODLESS SOCIETY!!!! AMEN...

Thank you so much for posting these -- I was looking for them to share with my grandchildren. Such wonderful memories it brings!!! Thank you!!!!

They showed this at my grammar school in 1956.

Times have sure changed, haven't they.

Never saw this before and I’m 67. 😊

Thank you for posting this. This holds special memories from my youth. It was a yearly classic and must watch.

Two words: Alexander Scourby!

I love this .. I have it on DVD

It was either the late 80s or early 90s that I first saw this

Getting things ready for tomorrow and wondered if this would be listed-- so happy to see it again after so many years--grew up watching this...thanks.... made my night...Happy Holidays to all

Thank you for this! 🙂

The True Puppets of The Season!

Growing up in pa this is big

Wow! I remember this!

I remember a time when the pbs network use to show this and other Christmas Stuff on 7:00 p.m. on Thanksgiving night back then. Now they don't play nothing on regular TV anymore like they use too.