Eloise at Christmastime
Encyclopedia
Eloise at Christmastime is a live-action film based on the 1958 book of the same name written by Kay Thompson
and illustrated by Hilary Knight
. The film was produced by Handmade Films
and DiNovi Pictures for Walt Disney Television
with distribution handled by the ABC Television Network. It was released on both VHS
and DVD
in 2003 by Buena Vista Home Entertainment. As of 2009, the movie was shown in the 25 Days of Christmas programming block on ABC Family
, but it was not part of the block in 2010. In 2011 it will be airing on the Hallmark Channel
as part of their "Countdown to Christmas".
The film stars young Sofia Vassilieva
as Eloise
, a six-year-old girl who lives in the penthouse
at the top of the Plaza Hotel
in New York City
.
This story takes place immediately after the events of Eloise at the Plaza
; Eloise receives a package full of Spy stuff from her friend Leon, the supporting character in the previous film who did spy work with Eloise.
When Eloise does not find any packages from her mother, she then leaves the room in a large mess. She skips towards the lobby, and pushes into a long line at the check-in desk and interrupts a conversation between Mr. Salamone and two patrons, wishing to upgrade their current hotel suite to a park-side view room.
Eloise asks Mr. Salamone if there have been any packages from her mother in Paris, and he replies that there hasn't. He pushes her away, telling Eloise that he is currently very busy. Eloise pushes in the line again, offering Mr. Salamone some unnecessary assistance. Mr. Salamone declines, pushing Eloise away from the hectic line.
Eloise leaves, but is instantly back in a flash, when she notices a suspicious man waiting in the queue. She thinks that this patron is a spy, but Mr. Salamone declines, and instantly changes the subject so that Eloise can leave the line. He requests Eloise to look out for the hotel's Christmas Tree Delivery, which is due to be at the Plaza any moment. He tells Eloise to inform him when the delivery arrives.
Eloise leaves the line, and tells the "spy" that she is keeping her eye on him.
The main focal point of the story deals with the impending marriage
between Rachel Peabody, the hotel owner's daughter, and a bachelor named Brooks Oliver, who was chosen by Rachel's family to be her husband.
Eloise eventually learned that Oliver is into doing something suspicious. She also found out that Rachel had taken a liking to Bill, a room service waiter and one of her friends, four years earlier. When Mr. Peabody became aware of his daughter's relationship with Bill, he then sent his daughter to a university, hoping to break his daughter's ties with the waiter. Eloise then intervened with the relationship, much to the disappointment of Rachel's father.
She then succeeded at restoring Bill and Rachel's romance with each other; Oliver is then arrested for forgery
, and Mrs. Thornton, who was in danger of being evicted
, is granted a permanent stay at the Plaza. And to top it off, Eloise's mom arrives and they rejoice.
Kay Thompson
Kay Thompson was an American author, composer, musician, actress and singer. She is best known as the creator of the Eloise children's books.-Background:Catherine Louise Fink was born in St...
and illustrated by Hilary Knight
Hilary Knight
Hilary Knight is an American writer-artist who is the illustrator of more than 50 books and the author of nine books. He is best known as the illustrator of Kay Thompson's Eloise and others in the Eloise series....
. The film was produced by Handmade Films
Handmade Films
HandMade Films is a British film production and distribution company. Through a series of sales, and acquisitions, the company now known as Handmade Plc owns all the rights and assets of the original HandMade Films Ltd...
and DiNovi Pictures for Walt Disney Television
Walt Disney Television
Walt Disney Television was the former name of the television production division of The Walt Disney Company.-History:It was formed in 1983, as the Walt Disney Pictures Television Division, the name was later shortened to Walt Disney Television in the mid-1980s...
with distribution handled by the ABC Television Network. It was released on both VHS
VHS
The Video Home System is a consumer-level analog recording videocassette standard developed by Victor Company of Japan ....
and DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
in 2003 by Buena Vista Home Entertainment. As of 2009, the movie was shown in the 25 Days of Christmas programming block on ABC Family
ABC Family
ABC Family, stylized as abc family, is an American television network, owned by ABC Family Worldwide Inc., a subsidiary of the Disney-ABC Television Group division of The Walt Disney Company...
, but it was not part of the block in 2010. In 2011 it will be airing on the Hallmark Channel
Hallmark Channel
The Hallmark Channel is a cable television network that broadcasts across the United States. Their programming includes a mix of television movies/miniseries, syndicated series, and lifestyle shows that are appropriate for the whole family...
as part of their "Countdown to Christmas".
The film stars young Sofia Vassilieva
Sofia Vassilieva
Sofia Vladimirovna Vassilieva is an American actress. She is best known for playing the children's book heroine Eloise, in two made-for-television movies, Ariel Dubois in the Emmy-winning TV series Medium, and the cancer patient Kate Fitzgerald in the 2009 film adaption of My Sister's Keeper by...
as Eloise
Eloise (books)
Eloise is the name of the protagonist in a series of children's books written by Kay Thompson and illustrated by Hilary Knight.Eloise is a six-year-old girl who lives in the "room on the tippy-top floor" of the Plaza Hotel in New York with her Nanny, her pug dog Weenie, and her turtle Skipperdee. A...
, a six-year-old girl who lives in the penthouse
Penthouse apartment
A penthouse apartment or penthouse is an apartment that is on one of the highest floors of an apartment building. Penthouses are typically differentiated from other apartments by luxury features.-History:...
at the top of the Plaza Hotel
Plaza Hotel
The Plaza Hotel in New York City is a landmark 20-story luxury hotel with a height of and length of that occupies the west side of Grand Army Plaza, from which it derives its name, and extends along Central Park South in Manhattan. Fifth Avenue extends along the east side of Grand Army Plaza...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
.
This story takes place immediately after the events of Eloise at the Plaza
Eloise at the Plaza
Eloise at the Plaza is a live-action film based on the Eloise series of children's books drawn and written by Kay Thompson and Hilary Knight...
; Eloise receives a package full of Spy stuff from her friend Leon, the supporting character in the previous film who did spy work with Eloise.
Plot
The movie begins with a shot of the Hotel Lobby, with a large pink gift box leaning on the display table, in the middle of the room. The hotel manager, Mr. Salamone, asks one of the staff to take the box to the package room. Two of the staff take the gift box to the package room. When they leave, the box is opened and we see Eloise crawling out. Eloise is on a mission to find any presents in the package room from her mother, who has taken a trip to Paris.When Eloise does not find any packages from her mother, she then leaves the room in a large mess. She skips towards the lobby, and pushes into a long line at the check-in desk and interrupts a conversation between Mr. Salamone and two patrons, wishing to upgrade their current hotel suite to a park-side view room.
Eloise asks Mr. Salamone if there have been any packages from her mother in Paris, and he replies that there hasn't. He pushes her away, telling Eloise that he is currently very busy. Eloise pushes in the line again, offering Mr. Salamone some unnecessary assistance. Mr. Salamone declines, pushing Eloise away from the hectic line.
Eloise leaves, but is instantly back in a flash, when she notices a suspicious man waiting in the queue. She thinks that this patron is a spy, but Mr. Salamone declines, and instantly changes the subject so that Eloise can leave the line. He requests Eloise to look out for the hotel's Christmas Tree Delivery, which is due to be at the Plaza any moment. He tells Eloise to inform him when the delivery arrives.
Eloise leaves the line, and tells the "spy" that she is keeping her eye on him.
The main focal point of the story deals with the impending marriage
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
between Rachel Peabody, the hotel owner's daughter, and a bachelor named Brooks Oliver, who was chosen by Rachel's family to be her husband.
Eloise eventually learned that Oliver is into doing something suspicious. She also found out that Rachel had taken a liking to Bill, a room service waiter and one of her friends, four years earlier. When Mr. Peabody became aware of his daughter's relationship with Bill, he then sent his daughter to a university, hoping to break his daughter's ties with the waiter. Eloise then intervened with the relationship, much to the disappointment of Rachel's father.
She then succeeded at restoring Bill and Rachel's romance with each other; Oliver is then arrested for forgery
Forgery
Forgery is the process of making, adapting, or imitating objects, statistics, or documents with the intent to deceive. Copies, studio replicas, and reproductions are not considered forgeries, though they may later become forgeries through knowing and willful misrepresentations. Forging money or...
, and Mrs. Thornton, who was in danger of being evicted
Eviction
How you doing???? Eviction is the removal of a tenant from rental property by the landlord. Depending on the laws of the jurisdiction, eviction may also be known as unlawful detainer, summary possession, summary dispossess, forcible detainer, ejectment, and repossession, among other terms...
, is granted a permanent stay at the Plaza. And to top it off, Eloise's mom arrives and they rejoice.
Characters
- Sofia VassilievaSofia VassilievaSofia Vladimirovna Vassilieva is an American actress. She is best known for playing the children's book heroine Eloise, in two made-for-television movies, Ariel Dubois in the Emmy-winning TV series Medium, and the cancer patient Kate Fitzgerald in the 2009 film adaption of My Sister's Keeper by...
- Eloise - Julie AndrewsJulie AndrewsDame Julia Elizabeth Andrews, DBE is an English film and stage actress, singer, and author. She is the recipient of Golden Globe, Emmy, Grammy, BAFTA, People's Choice Award, Theatre World Award, Screen Actors Guild and Academy Award honors...
- Nanny - Kenneth WelshKenneth WelshKenneth Welsh, CM is a Canadian film and television actor . He is known to Twin Peaks fans as the multi-faceted villain Windom Earle, and has more recently played the father of Katharine Hepburn in Martin Scorsese's The Aviator.In 1984 he was nominated for a Genie Award as Best Actor for his...
- Sir Wilkes - Debra MonkDebra MonkDebra Monk is an American actress, singer, and writer.Monk was born in Middletown, Ohio. She was voted "best personality" by the graduating class at Wheaton High School in Silver Spring, Maryland. She graduated from Frostburg State University in 1963...
- Maggie - Gavin CreelGavin CreelGavin James Creel is an American actor, singer and song writer.Born in Findlay, Ohio, Creel received his Bachelor of Fine Arts in musical theatre at the University of Michigan in 1998. Creel, who is openly gay, is a regular on the LGBT RFamilyVacations cruise with Rosie O'Donnell...
- Bill - Rick RobertsRick Roberts (actor)Rick Roberts is a Canadian actor. His most substantial role to date is as Donald D'Arby in the series Traders, for which he was nominated for a Gemini Award. He played Elizabeth Berkley's husband in the Lifetime made-for-television movie Student Seduction. Roberts has also appeared in L.A...
- Brooks - Sara Topham - Rachel Peabody
- Corinne Conley - Mrs. Thornton
- Christine BaranskiChristine BaranskiChristine Jane Baranski is an American stage and screen actress, and is perhaps best known for her Emmy Award winning portrayal as "Maryanne Thorpe" in the sitcom Cybill, and her Emmy nominated portrayal of "Diane Lockhart" in The Good Wife...
- Prunella Stickler - Jeffrey TamborJeffrey TamborJeffrey Michael Tambor is an American actor, perhaps best known for his roles as George Bluth Sr. and Oscar Bluth on Arrested Development and Hank Kingsley on The Larry Sanders Show.-Early life:...
- Mr. Salomone - Araxi Arslanian - Head of Housekeeping
- Tannis Burnett - Miss Thompson
- Neil CroneNeil CroneNeil Crone is a Canadian voice actor and comedian who does the voices of Gordon the Big Engine, Splatter and Diesel 10 from the film Thomas and the Magic Railroad. He does Phillip the Concierge in the My Secret Identity episode "Sour Grapes"...
- Agent Kringle - Arlene DuncanArlene DuncanArlene Duncan is a Canadian singer/actress from Oakville, Ontario. She is currently in the CBC sitcom Little Mosque on the Prairie. Her half brother is Canadian Olympic sprinter Donovan Bailey.-External links:...
- Lily - Seann Gallagher - Rick
- Graham Harley - Walter
- Colm MagnerColm MagnerColm Magner is a Canadian actor, writer, and director now based in New York City. He has worked in theatre, television, and film in Canada since 1982, during which time he worked with some of Canada's most innovative theatre companies including Da Da Kamera, DNA Theatre, and the Necessary Angel...
- Thomas the Maitre'd - Debra McGrathDebra McGrathDebra McGrath is a Canadian actress and comedienne.-Education:Debra McGrath was born in Toronto in 1954. She studied theatre at Ryerson University.-Career:...
- Cornelia - Gerry Quigley - Jerry
- Julian RichingsJulian RichingsJulian Richings is an English-born Canadian actor. He appeared in over 50 Canadian films and 20 separate television series.-Life and career:...
- Patrice - Cliff SaundersCliff SaundersCliff Saunders ' is an American sports radio personality based in St. Louis, Missouri. Cliff is the co-host of the St. Louis Rams Post Game Show on 101 ESPN...
- Max - Tony Sciara - Assistant Chef Marco
- David SparrowDavid SparrowDavid Charles Arthur Sparrow is a Canadian actor born in England and living in Toronto.He has appeared in over eighty film and television roles, including the films Serendipity , The Hurricane, Shall we Dance and 16 Blocks and the television series Monk, Star Trek: Voyager, Corner Gas, Little...
- Charlie, the 59th Street Doorman - Victor A. Young - Mr. Peabody