Best Holiday Movies: Dreaming of a "White Christmas" in Mississippi

Christmas has been my favorite time of the year as long as I can remember, thanks to the traditions I was given as a child. Always knowing that we were going to visit my grandparents on my mom’s side on Christmas Eve and then spend Christmas Day with my dad’s parents – it was a wonderful feeling that I’ve never forgotten. 
Over the years, I have lost family members, and the Christmas traditions have changed a little. But the love and heartfelt cheer of the season have never wavered. For me, that special Yuletide feeling often starts with a song or a movie, so here are two of my all-time favorite Christmas films.
“White Christmas”
One of my favorite Christmas movies of all time is the 1954 classic “White Christmas,” starring Bing Crosby as Bob Wallace, Danny Kaye as Phil Davis, Rosemary Clooney as Betty Haynes and Vera-Ellen as Judy Haynes.

The movie follows the singing duo of Wallace and Davis as they meet up with a sister act simply called Sisters. Betty and Judy Haynes are booked in a rural Vermont bed-and-breakfast run by ol’ General Waverly, who used to be Wallace and Davis’s commander during WWII. The inn is struggling financially as Vermont has not seen snow in a while, making it hard to get tourists to come stay for the holidays.
When the boys find out that it’s their old general’s inn, they want to help him out and put on a show, inviting the whole platoon to join in and honor Waverly on Christmas Eve. And finally, at the close of the show – wouldn’t you know it? It begins to snow.
This movie has always been special for me because I really like the music and the storyline. And like General Waverly, I’ve always dreamed of a white Christmas here in Mississippi.

“Home Alone”
It never fails around Christmastime – I always turn to a movie that my cousin Melissa and I used to watch this time of year. (And, yes, I know she is reading this and remembering the movie too). “Home Alone” stars Macaulay Culkin as Kevin McCallister, a young boy who gets left at home while his family spends Christmas in Paris.

Kevin gets left behind because he had to spend the night alone in the attic, and his parents, running late to catch a flight at the airport, miscount the number of kids on the trip. Kevin wakes up and realizes he has the house all to himself.
Meanwhile, two burglars, Harry and Marv, are roaming through the neighborhood, robbing people’s houses and trashing each house by leaving the water on in the sink. They refer to themselves as the “Wet Bandits.” Soon, they try to scheme their way into the McCallisters’ house.
Relying on his wits, Kevin has to defend the house against the two men while his family tries to get back home to him.
It’s always been great to watch a kid devise clever ways to protect his house while learning what it means to have your family around.
Hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas!

Adam Brown is the sports editor of HottyToddy.com. He can be reached at adam.brown@hottytoddy.com.
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