The Star of Christmas
Encyclopedia
The Star of Christmas is the eighteenth episode of the VeggieTales
animated series and the second holiday special in that series. It was released on October 29, 2002 and re-released September 5, 2006 in Holiday Double Feature with its earlier episode The Toy that Saved Christmas
. Like the other holiday episodes, it has no “A Lesson in...” subtitle and the countertops. A message, however, is that you can't teach people to love through pomp and flash, but rather that love must come from the inside; Jesus
was sent on Christmas
to help enable such a change, and He is the true "Star of Christmas".
The show is set in London in 1882 and has a definite Charles Dickens
quality to it. Indeed, the sequel, An Easter Carol
, features the same characters and the same setting and is a direct parody of the Dickens' classic A Christmas Carol
.
This wanted to go in a VeggieTales compliation A Silly Little Thing Called Love
.
The story of The Star of Christmas centers on two would-be operatic composers who are based on W. S. Gilbert
and Arthur Sullivan
. VeggieTales has spoofed Gilbert and Sullivan
's work in Lyle the Kindly Viking
and (specifically The Mikado
) in Sumo of the Opera
. In this episode however they spoof the people, Gilbert and Sullivan, themselves.
. While Millward is content to see their work featured on billboards and in newspapers, Cavis believes they can make a difference in crime-ridden London by staging a grand musical that will move the citizens to greater expressions of love. Their opportunity arises when Millward's Uncle Nezzer grants them the use of his theater on Christmas Eve. They plan the huge production of a new musical called "The Princess and the Plumber". Unfortunately, the script is not yet complete, and the premiere is only three days away.
Seymour Schwenk (Sullivan's and Gilbert's middle names), their friend and an inventor, shows up in an experimental rocket car (a direct reference to Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
) and delivers a box of light bulbs to them. Cavis maintains that if their production is glitzy and bright (electric lights are still a novelty at this time and were first introduced at the Savoy Theatre
for Gilbert and Sullivan's Patience
) then it will be a bigger hit and reach more people. He plans to integrate the lights directly into the scenery itself (and, soon, the costumes as well).
However, they still have much work to do. They need to convince the city's premiere talent, Constance Effie Pickering, to star in the lead role, and they need to get a commitment from Prince Calvin Fredrick to attend the premier. While Cavis and his assistant Bob Winston work on Pickering and the Prince, Millward struggles to complete the script. Everything comes together, and Cavis starts feeling confident that their production will be a huge success. The Prince tells Pickering that her pipes are corroded they water can't drain and her toilet exploded, she's flushing in vain.
After noticing a flyer for a Christmas pageant planned to debut on the same night at a local church, Cavis goes to investigate. He observes Edmund Gilbert preparing a low-budget children's play, and concludes that it poses no threat to their grand production. However, the pageant intends to feature an object called the "Star of Christmas". Wondering aloud about this as he leaves the church, Cavis is overheard by Arthur McHollingshead. Arthur, a historian, reveals that the Star of Christmas is an ancient relic that has not been seen by the public in 79 years. He rushes off with great excitement to report the news, which promptly makes the front page headline the following morning.
Faced with the prospect of losing their audience (and in particular the Prince) to the pageant, Cavis vows to make their own production greater and flashier. But they can't compete with the Star of Christmas, and in desperation Cavis and Millward go to the church to steal the Star. They are caught, however, and narrowly escape from the aged "Moyer the Destroyer" who was left to guard the relic. With the Star and the flashy lights, Cavis is certain that "The Princess and the Plumber" is now a guaranteed success. But during dress rehearsal, the excessive amount of lights (a suspected fire hazard all along) ignite the curtains. In minutes the theater goes up in flames and with it the Star of Christmas. As they stand and rue this terrible turn of events, an officer named Dwiglight Howarde arrives with Moyer LaGumtree, and Cavis and Millward are arrested.
In the jail, they meet a prisoner, Charles Pincher, who laughs at their efforts to spread love by means of an elaborate stage production. He claims that real love does not expect fame or wealth in return, that real love makes sacrifices to help others without expectation of personal gain. That kind of love, he says, is extremely rare.
As if on cue, Edmond and his father, Jesse, arrive at the jail to release Cavis and Millward. They have chosen not to press charges for the theft of the Star. Cavis is moved, and he expresses his desire to attend the pageant. But the pageant starts in ten minutes and there is not enough time to get there. Just then Seymour shows up in this rocket car. He entrusts Millward to drive the vehicle and try to get them all to the church on time. It's a harrowing ride fraught with collisions and near-misses, but they do arrive just as the pageant is about to start to crash through a bakery and a bank.
The pageant goes on with the Prince and Miss Pickering and everyone else in attendance. Cavis finally learns that Christmas is not about glitz and grand productions; he understands that it is about a baby in a manger, Jesus, who is the real "Star of Christmas". After the play, Moyer shows up and says that the real Star of Christmas (the object) is actually safe, and that they actually took the Turtle of Damascus, which most people consider a hoax. The episode ends with Cavis and Millward performing a selfless act at last: they bring cookies and a gift to Charles Pincher in his jail cell, Cavis says, smiling warmly, "Merry Christmas Mr. Pincher".
finished. Towards the end/before it wrapped, Mike Nawrocki
was said he would be on his Sunday drive around the time of New Year's Eve. They were at a cafe, the same cafe they used for the premiere of "Larryboy and the Rumor Weed". There was Lisa Vischer singing "O Come, O Come Emmanuel" during the "Star of Christmas" premier.
DVDs with a variety of additional features intended to appeal to both children and adults alike. This section itemizes the content of the DVD.
VeggieTales
VeggieTales is an American series of children's computer animated films featuring anthropomorphic vegetables in stories conveying moral themes based on Christianity...
animated series and the second holiday special in that series. It was released on October 29, 2002 and re-released September 5, 2006 in Holiday Double Feature with its earlier episode The Toy that Saved Christmas
The Toy that Saved Christmas
The Toy that Saved Christmas is the sixth episode of the VeggieTales animated series and the first holiday special in that series. It was released in October 1996 on VHS. Unlike its predecessors it does not feature an opening/closing countertop. Like the other holiday episodes, it also has no "A...
. Like the other holiday episodes, it has no “A Lesson in...” subtitle and the countertops. A message, however, is that you can't teach people to love through pomp and flash, but rather that love must come from the inside; Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
was sent on Christmas
Christmas
Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
to help enable such a change, and He is the true "Star of Christmas".
The show is set in London in 1882 and has a definite Charles Dickens
Charles Dickens
Charles John Huffam Dickens was an English novelist, generally considered the greatest of the Victorian period. Dickens enjoyed a wider popularity and fame than had any previous author during his lifetime, and he remains popular, having been responsible for some of English literature's most iconic...
quality to it. Indeed, the sequel, An Easter Carol
An Easter Carol
An Easter Carol is the twenty-first episode in the VeggieTales animated series, released in early 2004 on DVD and VHS format. It lacks a subtitle, but the lesson it conveys is to remind viewers of the Christian significance of Easter. It is longer than most episodes, running to approximately 49...
, features the same characters and the same setting and is a direct parody of the Dickens' classic A Christmas Carol
A Christmas Carol
A Christmas Carol is a novella by English author Charles Dickens first published by Chapman & Hall on 17 December 1843. The story tells of sour and stingy Ebenezer Scrooge's ideological, ethical, and emotional transformation after the supernatural visits of Jacob Marley and the Ghosts of...
.
This wanted to go in a VeggieTales compliation A Silly Little Thing Called Love
Silly Little Thing Called Love
Silly Little Thing Called Love is a compilation video featuring previous episodes of the animated television series VeggieTales.-Stories:* The Story of Fibbler-O-Loo * "Duke and the Great Pie War"* "Madame Blueberry"...
.
The story of The Star of Christmas centers on two would-be operatic composers who are based on W. S. Gilbert
W. S. Gilbert
Sir William Schwenck Gilbert was an English dramatist, librettist, poet and illustrator best known for his fourteen comic operas produced in collaboration with the composer Sir Arthur Sullivan, of which the most famous include H.M.S...
and Arthur Sullivan
Arthur Sullivan
Sir Arthur Seymour Sullivan MVO was an English composer of Irish and Italian ancestry. He is best known for his series of 14 operatic collaborations with the dramatist W. S. Gilbert, including such enduring works as H.M.S. Pinafore, The Pirates of Penzance and The Mikado...
. VeggieTales has spoofed Gilbert and Sullivan
Gilbert and Sullivan
Gilbert and Sullivan refers to the Victorian-era theatrical partnership of the librettist W. S. Gilbert and the composer Arthur Sullivan . The two men collaborated on fourteen comic operas between 1871 and 1896, of which H.M.S...
's work in Lyle the Kindly Viking
Lyle the Kindly Viking
Lyle the Kindly Viking is the fifteenth episode of the VeggieTales animated series. It was released on March 24, 2001 and then in 2002 on DVD...
and (specifically The Mikado
The Mikado
The Mikado; or, The Town of Titipu is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert, their ninth of fourteen operatic collaborations...
) in Sumo of the Opera
Sumo of the Opera
Sumo of the Opera is the 24th episode in the VeggieTales series. Subtitled "A Lesson in Perseverance", it teaches viewers the importance of working through adversity to accomplish one's goals...
. In this episode however they spoof the people, Gilbert and Sullivan, themselves.
Synopsis
The episode is set in London in 1882. It begins with Cavis Appythart and Millward Phelps—jingle writers who decide to make their big break into musical theatreMusical theatre
Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and dance. The emotional content of the piece – humor, pathos, love, anger – as well as the story itself, is communicated through the words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an...
. While Millward is content to see their work featured on billboards and in newspapers, Cavis believes they can make a difference in crime-ridden London by staging a grand musical that will move the citizens to greater expressions of love. Their opportunity arises when Millward's Uncle Nezzer grants them the use of his theater on Christmas Eve. They plan the huge production of a new musical called "The Princess and the Plumber". Unfortunately, the script is not yet complete, and the premiere is only three days away.
Seymour Schwenk (Sullivan's and Gilbert's middle names), their friend and an inventor, shows up in an experimental rocket car (a direct reference to Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (film)
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang is a 1968 musical film with a script by Roald Dahl and Ken Hughes, and songs by the Sherman Brothers, loosely based on Ian Fleming's novel Chitty Chitty Bang Bang: The Magical Car. It starred Dick Van Dyke as Caractacus Potts and Sally Ann Howes as Truly Scrumptious. The...
) and delivers a box of light bulbs to them. Cavis maintains that if their production is glitzy and bright (electric lights are still a novelty at this time and were first introduced at the Savoy Theatre
Savoy Theatre
The Savoy Theatre is a West End theatre located in the Strand in the City of Westminster, London, England. The theatre opened on 10 October 1881 and was built by Richard D'Oyly Carte on the site of the old Savoy Palace as a showcase for the popular series of comic operas of Gilbert and Sullivan,...
for Gilbert and Sullivan's Patience
Patience (opera)
Patience; or, Bunthorne's Bride, is a comic opera in two acts with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert. First performed at the Opera Comique, London, on 23 April 1881, it moved to the 1,292-seat Savoy Theatre on 10 October 1881, where it was the first theatrical production in the...
) then it will be a bigger hit and reach more people. He plans to integrate the lights directly into the scenery itself (and, soon, the costumes as well).
However, they still have much work to do. They need to convince the city's premiere talent, Constance Effie Pickering, to star in the lead role, and they need to get a commitment from Prince Calvin Fredrick to attend the premier. While Cavis and his assistant Bob Winston work on Pickering and the Prince, Millward struggles to complete the script. Everything comes together, and Cavis starts feeling confident that their production will be a huge success. The Prince tells Pickering that her pipes are corroded they water can't drain and her toilet exploded, she's flushing in vain.
After noticing a flyer for a Christmas pageant planned to debut on the same night at a local church, Cavis goes to investigate. He observes Edmund Gilbert preparing a low-budget children's play, and concludes that it poses no threat to their grand production. However, the pageant intends to feature an object called the "Star of Christmas". Wondering aloud about this as he leaves the church, Cavis is overheard by Arthur McHollingshead. Arthur, a historian, reveals that the Star of Christmas is an ancient relic that has not been seen by the public in 79 years. He rushes off with great excitement to report the news, which promptly makes the front page headline the following morning.
Faced with the prospect of losing their audience (and in particular the Prince) to the pageant, Cavis vows to make their own production greater and flashier. But they can't compete with the Star of Christmas, and in desperation Cavis and Millward go to the church to steal the Star. They are caught, however, and narrowly escape from the aged "Moyer the Destroyer" who was left to guard the relic. With the Star and the flashy lights, Cavis is certain that "The Princess and the Plumber" is now a guaranteed success. But during dress rehearsal, the excessive amount of lights (a suspected fire hazard all along) ignite the curtains. In minutes the theater goes up in flames and with it the Star of Christmas. As they stand and rue this terrible turn of events, an officer named Dwiglight Howarde arrives with Moyer LaGumtree, and Cavis and Millward are arrested.
In the jail, they meet a prisoner, Charles Pincher, who laughs at their efforts to spread love by means of an elaborate stage production. He claims that real love does not expect fame or wealth in return, that real love makes sacrifices to help others without expectation of personal gain. That kind of love, he says, is extremely rare.
As if on cue, Edmond and his father, Jesse, arrive at the jail to release Cavis and Millward. They have chosen not to press charges for the theft of the Star. Cavis is moved, and he expresses his desire to attend the pageant. But the pageant starts in ten minutes and there is not enough time to get there. Just then Seymour shows up in this rocket car. He entrusts Millward to drive the vehicle and try to get them all to the church on time. It's a harrowing ride fraught with collisions and near-misses, but they do arrive just as the pageant is about to start to crash through a bakery and a bank.
The pageant goes on with the Prince and Miss Pickering and everyone else in attendance. Cavis finally learns that Christmas is not about glitz and grand productions; he understands that it is about a baby in a manger, Jesus, who is the real "Star of Christmas". After the play, Moyer shows up and says that the real Star of Christmas (the object) is actually safe, and that they actually took the Turtle of Damascus, which most people consider a hoax. The episode ends with Cavis and Millward performing a selfless act at last: they bring cookies and a gift to Charles Pincher in his jail cell, Cavis says, smiling warmly, "Merry Christmas Mr. Pincher".
Production
The studio was on a tight schedule in early Christmas 2003 to get the film done. Then, the air condition was left on, and a heat wave never hit Big Idea. Most people slept in their offices trying to get The Star of ChristmasThe Star of Christmas
The Star of Christmas is the eighteenth episode of the VeggieTales animated series and the second holiday special in that series. It was released on October 29, 2002 and re-released September 5, 2006 in Holiday Double Feature with its earlier episode The Toy that Saved Christmas. Like the other...
finished. Towards the end/before it wrapped, Mike Nawrocki
Mike Nawrocki
Michael Nawrocki is an American voice actor, writer, animator and director. He is the co-founder and Executive Vice President of Big Idea Entertainment, the company best known for bringing computer-animated vegetables to life in the popular VeggieTales series...
was said he would be on his Sunday drive around the time of New Year's Eve. They were at a cafe, the same cafe they used for the premiere of "Larryboy and the Rumor Weed". There was Lisa Vischer singing "O Come, O Come Emmanuel" during the "Star of Christmas" premier.
Cast of Characters
- Bob the Tomato as Cavis Appythart
- Larry The Cucumber as Millward Phelps
- Pa Grape as Seymour Schwenk
- Junior Asparagus as Edmund Gilbert
- Dad Asparagus as Reverend Gilbert
- Madame Blueberry as Miss Constance Effie Pickering
- Jimmy Gourd as The Plumber
- Jean Claude as Bob Winston
- Scooter Carrot as Moyer LaGumtree
- Mr. Nezzer as Ebenezer Nezzer
- Archibald Asparagus as Arthur McHollingshead
- Jerry Gourd as Officer Dwilight Howarde
- Charles Pincher as the Prisoner
- Mr. Lunt as Prince Calvin Fredrick
- Laura Carrot, Percy Pea, and Annie the Celery as Ray Buczumi, Benny McHollingshead, and Rachel Horraceson
- The French Peas as the Frarie Peas: Moe Oakley, Curly-Joe Bess, and Christopher Fine
Songs
Due to the format of the show, this episode does not contain the usual "What We Have Learned" or "VeggieTales Theme". It does contain five original (short) compositions and one Christmas traditional:- First Big Break, sung by Cavis Appythart
- We Are the Frarie Peas, sung by the Frarie Peas
- Plumber, You Dropped Your Possum, sung by Millward Phelps
- Flushing in Vain, sung by Miss Constance Effie Pickering and the Plumber
- Plugged Up Love, sung by Miss Constance Effie Pickering, the Plumber, and the Frarie Peas
- O come, O come, EmmanuelO come, O come, EmmanuelO come, O come, Emmanuel is a translation of the Latin text by John Mason Neale and Henry Sloane Coffin in the mid-19th century. It is a metrical version of a collation of various Advent Antiphons , which now serves as a popular Advent hymn...
, sung by Lisa Vischer over the closing credits
DVD Content
Big Idea has consistently packed the VeggieTalesVeggieTales
VeggieTales is an American series of children's computer animated films featuring anthropomorphic vegetables in stories conveying moral themes based on Christianity...
DVDs with a variety of additional features intended to appeal to both children and adults alike. This section itemizes the content of the DVD.
Chapters
- 1. Cavis Has an Idea!
- 2. Cavis and Millward's Big Break
- 3. Miss Effie Pickering
- 4. Planning the Pageant
- 5. A Bigger Spectacle!
- 6. Stealing the Star
- 7. A Disastrous Rehearsal of The Princess and the Plumber
- 8. Christmas Eve in Jail!?!
- 9. Race to the Church
- 10. The Church Pageant
- 11. Merry Christmas, Mr. Pincher
- 12. Ending Credits