Simple Gifts

The story

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.

Cast

C Colleen DewhurstSelf - Host H Hermione GingoldNarrator (segment "The Great Frost") (voice) J José FerrerNarrator (segment "A Memory of Christmas") (voice) D Dean WarehamNarrator (segment "My Christmas") (voice) D David JonesNarrator (segment "December 25, 1914") (voice) P Paul Dooley(segment "Lost & Found") (voice) C Claudette Sutherland(segment "Lost & Found") (voice)