One of the great joys of the annual inundation of (frequently cloying) holiday-theme movies is that we get to see some of our favorite old TV actors once again.
Holiday programming that used to begin two or three weeks before Christmas is now up and seriously running by Nov. 1. It takes a lot of has-been actors to feed that ravenous machine.
Wait. That's unkind.
It takes a lot of veteran, beloved actors to fill that joyous, feel-good holiday genre that we all look forward to every Halloween when we decorate our homes and yards for Christmas.
Hallmark Channel has its "Countdown to Christmas." Hallmark Movies & Mysteries has its fair share. UP and TCM contribute their bit and ABC Family has "25 Days of Christmas."
We watch them all until we burst and cap it all off with TBS' annual 24-hour marathon of A Christmas Story.
That's a lot of tinsel and eggnog, but it's the favorite time of the year for many viewers.
We've previously given a roundup of what's headed our way for every channel except Lifetime, so here's a quick peek at a couple airing tonight on that channel.
• Becoming Santa, 6-8 p.m. today. I mentioned old favorites and this one certainly has them. Family Ties' Michael Gross and Meredith Baxter are reunited as Santa and Mrs. Claus. We loved them as Steven and Elyse Keaton back in the '80s.
In Becoming Santa, Gross and Baxter play the proud parents of Holly (Laura Bell Bundy, Hart of Dixie).
Holly has so far avoided introducing her toy designer boyfriend Connor (Jesse Hutch, Cedar Cove) to her family. She has put him off by only revealing that they live, um, "up north."
Well, as things begin to heat up between Holly and Connor, she decides she can't delay the fateful meeting any longer and takes him home to meet the folks at Christmas.
Yes, there's a bit of culture shock when Connor realizes he's actually headed to the North Pole. And there's some further awkwardness when they run into Holly's ex, Jack Frost (Tony Cavalero, Hart of Dixie).
OK. Maybe a lot of awkwardness.
The drama? Will Connor overcome any hesitation and embrace the True Meaning of Christmas and get on board to take his relationship with Holly to the next level? I'm not certain what the "next" level is, but the final level is becoming the next Santa.
Didn't happen: Wouldn't it have been swell for Family Ties fans if Lifetime could have managed a cameo from Michael J. Fox as an elf?
• Wish Upon a Christmas, 8-10 p.m. today. Lifetime doesn't slow down after the first movie. It's followed by a holiday tearjerker that features a supporting role for Alan Thicke, who played the dad on Growing Pains from 1985 to 1992.
(Kids, Alan is singer Robin Thicke's father.)
Wish Upon a Christmas stars Larisa Oleynik (Pretty Little Liars, Mad Men) as Amelia, a business executive who returns to her hometown to help a struggling, family run Christmas ornament company. Thicke plays Amelia's father.
The longtime employees see her as their savior who is being sent in to rescue the company.
The drama? They are heartbroken and shocked to learn that her cruel, cruel bottom-line plan to get the company back on track involves massive layoffs.
Naturally all of this takes place as Christmas is approaching. As Amelia prepares to implement her plan, she finds herself rekindling a romance with her high school boyfriend Jesse (Aaron Ashmore, Smallville), who is also a single dad and the owner of the company.
Will it all work out in time for everyone to discover the True Meaning of Christmas, or will everyone be fired and out on the street? You'll have to tune in to find out.
Style on 12/13/2015