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Nestor, the Long-Eared Christmas Donkey is a 1977 stop-motion animated Christmas special produced by Rankin/Bass. Based on the 1975 song of the same name, it tells the story of a donkey named Nestor who carries Mary to Bethlehem. Roger Miller sang the majority of its musical numbers, as well as voicing the narrator, Spieltoe.

Synopsis[]

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Santa Claus' donkey, Spieltoe, tells the story of a donkey with abnormally long ears named Nestor, his ancestor who lived in the days of the Roman Empire. Every animal in Nestor's stable ridicules him because of his ears. One year, while the animals in the stable are celebrating the winter solstice, Nestor's mother gives him stockings to cover his ears.

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That night, soldiers of the Roman Empire arrive and demand strong donkeys. They pick a bunch of them, including Nestor, but not his mother. He tries to get away and one of the soldiers grabs the socks on his ears. They come off. The soldiers thought Olaf, the owner of the stable, was trying to trick them. He says he will give Nestor to them for free, but they are angry so they force him to give them all the donkeys for free and do not take Nestor. They leave. Olaf is angry at Nestor because he did not get any money and at the same time lost all of his donkeys, and he throws him out the door, saying that he doesn't care if he freezes to death and tells him to never come back. His mother escapes the stable and finds him. There is a blizzard going on outside by then, so she finds shelter and uses her body to cover him up. He wakes up in the morning to find her frozen to death. He cries over her loss and walks away.

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A short while later, a cherub named Tilly falls out of the sky. She says they need to travel to Bethlehem, but she can't tell Nestor why. She only tells him a poem; "Your ears can do wondrous things no other ears can do. The sounds they hear will guide you on a path that's straight and true, and you will save another, as your mother once saved you." He disagrees at first, but she tells him that "He" wants him to. After he agrees they travel for many months across distant lands and even a sea. When they get finally get to the outskirts of Bethlehem, Tilly tells Nestor to stay there. He finds a stable to stay in and still nobody will buy him.

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One day a couple comes in. Their names are Mary and Joseph. Mary is expecting a baby, and is heavy with child, so she can't walk the miles to Bethlehem and they do not have much money. They take Nestor because of his "gentle eyes". While Mary, on his back, and Joseph are traveling to Bethlehem, they are caught in a sandstorm. In its midst, Nestor hears Tilly's voice, but recognizes it as his mother's, and she tells him to follow the voices of the singing angels. He guides Mary and Joseph through the storm, wrapping Mary in his ears. They soon arrive at Bethlehem and they find a stable to stay in. Mary delivers Jesus after pushing him out with labor and Nestor finds his way back home. When he gets there, he is considered a hero and all the animals become friends with him and dance around the Nativity scene. In the present-day, Spieltoe modifies a miniature Nativity scene so the donkey now looks like Nestor.

Songs[]

Availability[]

After acquiring the distribution rights for the post-1973 Rankin/Bass specials, Warner Home Video released Nestor, the Long-Eared Christmas Donkey on VHS in 1993. The special was later included, along with Rudolph's Shiny New Year, on Warner Home Video's DVD and Blu-ray releases of The Year Without a Santa Claus. It was also featured on a Warner Archive manufacture-on-demand DVD with The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus.

Trivia[]

Nestor-jingle-jangle

Jingle and Jangle's cameo.

Goofs[]

  • In one shot, the guard picks up Nestor by the tail, but in the next shot, he is holding Nestor by the ears.
  • The Roman guard pays Olaf with an American coin, specifically a nickel.
  • Olaf appears to be of Germanic ethnicity, suggesting his farm is on the Empire's northernmost reaches. Yet it appears to take Nestor only a few days to walk between there and present-day Israel. Divine assistance might be an attractive explanation, but is not expressly stated to be the case.
  • A wire is briefly seen on Tilly in her first scene.

Cast[]

Voice actor/actress Character(s)
Roger Miller Spieltoe
Brenda Vaccaro Tilly
Paul Frees Olaf
Donkey dealer
Santa Claus
Don Messick Roman soldier
Joseph
Thor
Linda Gary Nestor's mother
Mary
Iris Rainer Donkey Girl
Shelly Hines Donkey Girl
Eric Stern Nestor

External links[]

This page uses Creative Commons Licensed
content from Wikipedia (view authors).
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Rankin/Bass
Rudolph the Red-Nosed ReindeerCricket on the HearthThe Little Drummer BoyFrosty the SnowmanSanta Claus is Comin' to Town • "A Christmas Tree" • 'Twas the Night Before ChristmasThe Year Without a Santa ClausThe First Christmas: The Story of the First Christmas SnowFrosty's Winter WonderlandRudolph's Shiny New YearThe Little Drummer Boy, Book IINestor, the Long-Eared Christmas DonkeyThe Stingiest Man in TownRudolph and Frosty's Christmas in JulyJack FrostPinocchio's ChristmasThe Leprechauns' Christmas GoldThe Life and Adventures of Santa ClausSanta, Baby!
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