Twas the Night Before Christmas: A Prestige Christmas Special
Twas the Night Before Christmas: A Prestige Christmas Special
Earlier today, you may have heard (or you might hear later) our General Manger Justin Adis reciting Clement Clarke Moore’s “A Visit from Saint Nicholas” (commonly referred to as “Twas the Night Before Christmas”) on the radio. In the spirit of Christmas Eve and the holidays season, as well as a “thank you” to our customers, we decided to forgo the traditional commercial format and offer listeners a rendition of this classic tale.
Of course, Prestige Imports’ take on this Christmas staple is just one of many. To this extent, I thought it would be fun to list a few of my favorite (primarily comedic) renditions:
1) John Malkovich on Saturday Night Live
Malkovich skewers Moore’s poem by interjecting his own, bleak side notes about the horrors of the holiday season in a matter-of-fact, deadpan delivery to a group of wide-eyed children. Brilliant.
2) Nick Offerman on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon
Offerman, like Malkovich before him, also parodies Moore’s poem. But unlike Malkovich, Offerman recites the piece in an exaggeratedly terse manner and in a truncated form. Basically, he gives a “realistic” Cliff Notes version of the story.
3) Tracy Morgan and Jimmy Fallon on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon
OK, this is another Fallon-produced version; but in this recitation, Morgan and Fallon exchange lines. The former comedian plays the comedic role, while the latter acts as the straight man. If you’re a fan of Morgan’s absurdist urban-based humor, you’ll love this one; he’s spot on in this clip.
4) Charlie Murphy(WARNING: super NSFW)
Morgan may have referenced a “pimp named Sugar Plumb,” but Murphy takes the urban humor to levels that Morgan could never deliver on network television program. Murphy pulls no punches, lacing his rendition of the poem with references to angel dust, crack, the Wu Tang Clang, and glocks.
5) LeVar Burton on The Reading Rainbow
All right, there’s nothing funny about this last rendition; Burton plays it straight. But I grew up in the 80s watching The Reading Rainbow, and Burton’s voice has a soothing, nostalgic effect upon me–which is perfect for a story that’s supposed to invoke childhood joy within all audience members.
From all of us at Prestige Imports to everyone in the Denver and Front Range areas: Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays.
Image by Eric Kilby and courtesy of Creative Commons
