This half-hour short was produced by Bell Telephone for the Philadelphia area (near me, as it turns out--our local PBS affiliate WHYY usually runs it even today). Except for a bit of live-action, it is performed mostly by marionettes.

The first half of this half-hour short (after an intro by some Bell executives, and a short prologue showing Clement Clarke Moore getting the inspiration for his new poem) is a dramatization of "A Visit From St. Nicholas", or, as we know it, "Twas The Night Before Christmas." This does have its charming moments--the miniature sets are quite lovely and detailed--but the puppets for this segment have that slightly unsettling look that old toys or dolls had, the kind of look that the Elf on the Shelf tries to duplicate. Especially the Man In The Red Suit himself. So it could very well provide some good riffing fodder.

The second half is more reverent--and really quite impressive. This segment retells the Nativity featuring more realistic marionettes and sets. The puppeteers are to be commended--the puppets' movements are quite subtle and lifelike. Once you get past it looking a little like The Gospel According To Captain Scarlet, you may find yourself quite taken by it. That doesn't mean you couldn't still get riffs out of it...especially considering that one part of it recites, almost word-for-word, the segment of the King James Bible that another, far more well-known Christmas special would become famous for doing some years later...

Have a look here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8wFpuF3Ld7Q&t=1342s&ab_channel=GeorgeKlezaras