Simple Gifts (1977)
A collection of animated Christmas shorts: An original Maurice Sendak piece about a boy with nothing to give for Christmas -- An excerpt from the early part of Virginia Woolf's "Orlando" set in a time of extreme cold in Tudor England -- A short based on the Toonerville Trolley -- A bittersweet excerpt from Moss Hart's autobiography "Act One" narrated by Jose Ferrer -- A reading from the Christmas day entry from the diary of 11-year-old Teddy Roosevelt -- A reading of a letter by Captain Edward James Hulse describing the surprising Christmas Truce of 1914 -- An animated version by R.O. Blechman of his own book "Tutto Esaurito" (No Vacancy) about the travels of Mary and Joseph.
Directors: Phillip Schopper, R.O. Blechman.
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Colleen Dewhurst as Self - Host |
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Hermione Gingold as Narrator (segment "The Great Frost") (voice) |
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José Ferrer as Narrator (segment "A Memory of Christmas") (voice) |
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Dean Wareham as Narrator (segment "My Christmas") (voice) |
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David Jones as Narrator (segment "December 25, 1914") (voice) |
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Paul Dooley as (segment "Lost & Found") (voice) |
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Claudette Sutherland as (segment "Lost & Found") (voice) |
| Writing | Virginia Woolf | Novel |
| Writing | Theodore Roosevelt | Original Concept |
| Directing | Phillip Schopper | Director |
| Writing | Fontaine Fox | Original Story |
| Directing | Michael Sporn | Assistant Director |
| Writing | Maurice Sendak | Writer |
| Directing | R.O. Blechman | Director |
| Editing | Joe Canestro | Editor |
| Writing | R.O. Blechman | Writer |
| Writing | Edward Hulse | Original Concept |
| Directing | Steven Parton | Assistant Director |
| Writing | Moss Hart | Novel |
| Production | R.O. Blechman | Producer |
| Sound | Arnold Black | Music |