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On the surface Holiday Affair (1949) is a standard Christmas-in-the-big-city movie – a less mawkish Miracle on 34th Street with touches of His Girl Friday, Holiday, Bachelor Mother and Remember the Night. Making the picture was anything but regular, from the legal troubles of the leading man to the sexual harassment of his co-star by the famously eccentric and lecherous owner of the studio. Holiday Affair was the second film Robert Mitchum made after he was released from a stint at Wayside, a prison farm in Castaic, California where he was sentenced to forty-three days after being arrested for marijuana...

The actor Maureen O’Hara, famed for her flaming red hair and her role in The Quiet Man, has died aged 95. Her family confirmed in a statement that the Irish-American film actress and singer passed away peacefully in her sleep on Saturday. “It is with a sad heart that we share the news that Maureen O’Hara passed away today in her sleep of natural causes,” a statement from the Fitzsimons family read.

A Winchester principal who bowed to some parents’ objections and scrubbed a seventh-grade field trip to “Miracle on 34th Street” said the classic Christmas tale is too focused on Santa Claus and doesn’t tie into the school’s curriculum. McCall Middle School Principal Evander French Jr. has axed the trip to a Dec. 19 performance of the play at the Stoneham Theatre, a Scrooge-like move that has angered parents. “The people who complained were concerned about the very narrow focus on Santa Claus,” French said yesterday... On Friday, an e-mail was sent to parents telling them the trip was canceled. French...

HOLIDAY BLUES Macy's stores boycotted for replacing 'Christmas' Effort punishes 'Miracle on 34th Street' icon, claims chain offending millions of customers -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Posted: December 1, 2004 1:00 a.m. Eastern © 2004 WorldNetDaily.com Immortalized in a 1947 Christmas movie classic, Macy's is now the focus of a boycott campaign protesting the department-store chain's replacement of "Merry Christmas" with politically correct greetings. 1947 Christmas classic "Miracle on 34th Street" featured Macy's department store A group called the Committee to Save Merry Christmas says Macy's and its umbrella Federated Department Stores have ignored several requests that "Merry Christmas" signs be returned and that...

HOLIDAY BLUESHo-Ho-Hollywood: Is it Santa or Satan?From socialist Asner to Thornton's foul-mouthed, drunken thief, 2003 Christmas film crop criticized Posted: November 18, 20031:00 a.m. Eastern © 2003 WorldNetDaily.com Remember "Miracle on 34th Street"? That was a Christmas movie of a different era. In 2003, Santa is being portrayed alternatively by an outspoken socialist radical and as a hard-drinking, profane, mean-spirited thief. In "Bad Santa," debuting this week, Billy Bob Thornton plays a foul-mouthed, drunken thief who poses as a mall Santa so he can pull off Christmas Eve heists. Billy Bob Thornton as Santa (Photo: Miramax) Christian film critic Ted Baehr says,...

<p>Top DISNEY executives continue to grow more and more disillusioned by subsidiary studio MIRAMAX, the DRUDGE REPORT has learned, this time over a controversial interpretation of a post-modern Santa Claus!</p> <p>Just weeks after releasing Quentin Tarantino's shock-samuri-slasher KILL BILL, the DISNEY family will distribute a twisted update of Miracle On 34th Street, BAD SANTA, featuring Santa Claus as you've never seen him before!</p> <p>Santa Claus, played by Billy Bob Thornton, is shown, drinking, sexing and robbing his way through the holidays.</p> <p>Santa says to a barmaid: "I'm an eating, drinking, f**king Santa Claus!"</p> <p>"Prove it!" answers the barmaid.</p>