Directed by:	Mike Nawrocki
Written by:	Bob Lee Jim Fisher Sean Roche
Release date:	December 14, 1991
Running time:	24 minutes
Rating:	TV-G
Available on:	VHS Laserdisc DVD (sort of)

Winnie the Pooh and Christmas Too is a 1991 Christmas special spun off from the Disney animated series The New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh.

Synopsis

Two days before Christmas, Christopher Robin writes out a letter to Santa Claus for him and his friends in the Hundred Acre Wood, asking for the following presents:

• Rabbit wants a new fly swatter to use against the bugs who constantly invade his garden
• Eeyore wants an umbrella to prevent snow from falling on his house
• Tigger wants a snowshoe so he can bounce in the snow
• Christopher Robin wants a sled "big enough for me and maybe a friend or two"

He sends the letter off into the wind -- but the next day, Winnie the Pooh realizes, after Piglet informs him, that he didn't ask for anything himself, so they go find the letter, which hasn't gotten very far. Afterwards, they, along with Tigger and Eeyore, go to Rabbit's house and rewrite the letter to include what Pooh wants (a pot of honey, of course). Along the way, each of them upgrades their desires (Rabbit wants a bug sprayer, for instance).

Following this, Tigger, Eeyore, and Rabbit go off to get a tree big enough for "the stuff we're gettin'", with help from a reluctant Gopher (he's supposed to be hibernating). In the meantime, Pooh and Piglet go back to the point where Christopher Robin sent the letter and cast it off into the wind again. But the wind shifts southward, and the letter follows Pooh all the way to his house. Knowing that the rest of the gang won't get their presents as a result of this, Pooh takes it into his (and Piglet's) hand to make sure the gifts are delivered.

Disguised as Santa, Pooh sneaks out and delivers Tigger, Rabbit, and Eeyore a super-bouncer barrel, a bug sprayer, and a mobile home, respectively - or rather, handmade versions of said items that break apart upon use. Demanding to know what's going on, the three of them corner "Santa", who insists that he is who he claims to be. But then, Piglet (who is disguised as a reindeer) slips and makes his sled fall downhill, thus loosening Pooh's disguise.

After explaining what happened, Pooh decides to try and deliver the letter to Santa by himself, leaving the rest of the gang behind to wait up for him. But he does not get very far in his journey before the wind suddenly takes the letter, so he gives up and goes back to the gang. Even after he tells them that he failed in delivering the letter, though, they're happy to have him back, because they've realized what Christmas is really about. Afterwards, Christopher Robin shows up and brings them the gifts they had originally asked for to begin with.

Broadcast history and availability

The special was first broadcast on ABC on December 14, 1991. It was prefaced with an introductory segment by then-CEO Michael Eisner, accompanied by the walk-around costumed characters of Pooh, Tigger, Rabbit, and Eeyore, who bring in a palm tree as a Christmas tree. To fill out the hour the special was scheduled for, it was followed up by the Donald Duck cartoons The Hockey Champ and Bearly Asleep, and ended with a sneak peek at Disney's most recent animated movie at the time, Beauty and the Beast. This was repeated the following year, but with a sneak peek at the next movie, Aladdin, at the end.

Subsequent broadcasts of the special were accompanied by The New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh episode "The Magic Earmuffs". The special left the network after 1999, and would eventually return on ABC Family's 25 Days of Christmas in 2008, where it was broadcast with some abrupt edits (including two scenes being cut entirely).

The special was released on VHS on November 13, 1994, with "The Magic Earmuffs" included as a bonus episode. The special and "The Magic Earmuffs" were also featured on a double-feature Laserdisc release titled Winnie the Pooh: Special Holiday Edition, which also included The New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh episodes "The Monster Frankenpooh", "Things That Go Piglet in the Night", and "Pooh Moon". Currently, the special itself has not had its own DVD release, but it is integrated as a flashback in the direct-to-video film A Very Merry Pooh Year, although it is slightly edited to match the main story in the film - Christopher Robin's lines are redubbed, and Rabbit's fur, which was oddly colored a light green in this special and the New Adventures series, is recolored yellow.

Cast

See also

• Christmas at Pooh Corner
• My Friends Tigger & Pooh: Super Sleuth Christmas Movie

External links

• Winnie the Pooh and Christmas Too at the Internet Movie Database