"The Christmas Story" is the Christmas episode of the 1967 revival of the NBC series Dragnet; it aired as the fifteenth episode of the show's second season. This episode is a remake of a story originally called "The Big Little Jesus" which initially aired on the Dragnet radio series on December 22, 1953 while the TV adaptation first aired on Christmas Day the same year.
This holiday episode essentially replaced the previous Dragnet Christmas story, "The Big .22 Rifle for Christmas", which was considerably more dispiriting as it was about a young boy who died of an accidental self-inflicted gunshot wound three days before Christmas. Though it remains adherent to the rigid procedures set forth in the series from its beginning, "The Christmas Story" has a much happier and thought-provoking ending.
"The Christmas Story" is unique for Dragnet in that it is based on an incident that took place not in Los Angeles, but in San Francisco; deviating from the premise that every episode of the series was purported to have been transcribed from actual LAPD case files.
Aside from Webb, three other actors reprised their roles from the original 1953 episode (see below). It also features a young Barry Williams as an altar boy, less than two years before starting his iconic role as Greg Brady in The Brady Bunch.
Synopsis
Detectives Friday and Gannon are called to investigate a case of a missing Baby Jesus statue at the San Fernando Mission Church, which has a large Hispanic congregation. Father Xavier Rojas explains that it is missing from their Nativity scene. Though it is of little financial value, it would be very disheartening to the congregation if it was missing at Christmas Mass. However, as the theft occurred on Christmas Eve, that leaves only a few hours for Friday and Gannon to locate and recover it.
Despite their best efforts, Friday and Gannon cannot locate it and return to the church to give Father Rojas the bad news when a young boy named Paquito Mendoza comes in towing a red wagon behind him, in which is the Baby Jesus statue. He explains to Father Rojas that for a long time he had prayed for a red wagon, and this year he prayed to the child Jesus, promising that if he got one he would give Jesus the first ride. Needless to say, no charges are pressed and the boy returns the statue to its rightful place in the Nativity scene before going on his way. Gannon asks how the boy got the wagon before Christmas, to which Rojas answers that the firemen fix up old toys and give them to new children, adding that, "Paquito's family, they're poor", to which Friday, after a moment, quietly replies, "Are they, Father?"
Cast
| Jack Webb* | Sgt. Joe Friday |
| Harry Morgan | Officer Bill Gannon |
| Harry Bartell* | Father Xavier Rojas |
| Bobby Troup | Claude Stroup |
| Byron Morrow | Captain Mack |
| Ralph Moody* | Mr. Flavan |
| Herb Vigran* | Desk Clerk |
| Barry Williams | John Heffernan |
| Fernando Vasquez | Paquito "Paco" Mendoza |
(* denotes actors who reprised their role from the original 1953 version)
Differences in episodes
There are many similarities between both episodes, since the same script (with some revisions) was used. There remain some differences though:
- Friday's partner in the original is Frank Smith. Bill Gannon is his partner in the remake.
- The church was located in downtown Los Angeles in the 1950s version, and in the San Fernando Valley in the remake.
- The main suspect, Claude Stroup, was portrayed by James Griffith in the original, and by Bobby Troup in the remake.
- Friday is a bit rougher with the suspect in the original, pre-Miranda episode.
- When Friday realizes he can't locate the statue in time for Christmas Mass, he says to his partner morosely "Merry Christmas" in both episodes. In the original he tosses Smith's hat to him as they leave. In the remake he hands Gannon a miniature Christmas tree.
Availability
The episode was made available on the Dragnet 1968 DVD set, released by Shout! Factory (under license from Universal Studios) on July 6, 2010.