7 Facts About 1966’s ‘How the Grinch Stole Christmas’ That’ll Make Your Heart Grow Three Sizes
You, like generations of Americans, likely grew up watching the hit 1966 animated special How the Grinch Stole Christmas. You probably know all the songs in this holiday classic, and that it was based on a Dr. Seuss book.
But there’s a lot more to know about the Grinch. Like, for example, that the Green One was modeled on Seuss himself. Or that, when it was released, it was the most expensive animated film ever! Take a trip to Who-ville and learn some more fun facts about the beloved animated classic.
1Chuck Jones and Dr. Seuss met making films for the military
Photo by Al Ravenna/PhotoQuest/Getty Images
The story of the Grinch starts almost two decades before the special, when animator Chuck Jones and writer Dr. Seuss collaborated on a series of films to support the US war effort during World War II. The films, called “Private Snafu,” were cartoons designed to teach humorous lessons to enlisted soldiers. Both men were already accomplished: Jones had spent the prior decade working for the animation studio that produced Looney Tunes, while Geisel had already published a number of books, including Horton Hears a Who.
After the war ended, the two men stayed in touch, and in the early ’60s, began discussing adapting one of Seuss’s books for TV — a discussion that eventually yielded The Grinch.
2The Grinch was based on Dr. Seuss (and wasn’t originally green)
Courtesy of Everett
In the Dr. Seuss book, the Grinch was rendered in black and white. Jones, who directed the special, gave the Grinch his signature green color, making the adaptation distinct from the original book.
Interestingly, the image of the Grinch was based on Dr. Seuss himself; he was inspired by seeing himself looking rather disgruntled in the mirror after a holiday. “I wrote the story about my sour friend, the Grinch, to see if I could rediscover something about Christmas that obviously I’d lost,” Seuss stated in a 1957 interview.
3It was the most expensive animated film of its time
Everett Collection
The half-hour cartoon took 10 months and 25,000 drawings to complete. CBS poured a whopping $315,000 into How The Grinch Stole Christmas, which would amount to more than $2.8 million today. (For comparison, 1965’s A Charlie Brown Christmas was budgeted under $100,000.)
4“You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch” was sung by Thurl Ravenscroft, not Boris Karloff
Ravenscroft, who sang the song, is best known as the voice of Tony the Tiger from the beloved Frosted Flakes TV commercials. He was picked to sing in the special because he had a deep voice, like Boris Karloff, who played The Grinch.
Ravenscroft didn’t receive any screen credits for his singing, an oversight Dr. Seuss attempted to rectify by sending letters to every major American columnist identifying Ravenscroft as voice behind the song. Ravescroft is also part of the chorus on the other two songs.
5Dr. Seuss was originally against casting Boris Karloff as the Grinch
Courtesy of Everett
Dr. Seuss was initially uninterested in animating this or any of his books, due to some bad experiences developing his film The 5,000 Fingers of Dr. T. But director/producer Chuck Jones managed to persuade him. Seuss also thought Karloff’s voice might make the Grinch too scary. But Jones, a lifelong lover of Rudyard Kipling, was inspired to cast Boris Karloff as the Grinch after hearing a recording of Karloff reading Kipling’s Jungle Book stories. Coincidentally, Benedict Cumberbatch, who did the voice of the Grinch in the 2018 version of Dr. Seuss’ The Grinch, also did the voice of Shere Khan in Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle (2018).
The Grinch was the last character Karloff voiced before his death in 1969.
‘Grinch’ Star Boris Karloff’s Daughter Reveals One Big Secret Behind Her Father’s Performance (Exclusive)
6The Grinch film inspired a romance
While working on the film, Chuck Jones met his future second wife, Rick O’Shay comic strip writer Marian Dern, when she came to interview Dr. Seuss for TV Guide. The two remained married until his death in 2002.
7Dr. Seuss wrote all of the animated special’s songs
Dr. Seuss wrote all of the lyrics for the original songs, which included “Welcome Christmas,” “Trim up the Tree,” and “You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch.” Broadway composer Albert Hague wrote the music.
If you’re looking to watch How the Grinch Stole Christmas, it airs a number of times this Christmas season, including on Christmas Day, Dec. 25, at 8 pm EST on NBC. You can also buy or rent it from Amazon Prime.
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PUZZLER: Holiday Movies
December 2022
Enjoy hours of fun as you puzzle along to all these holiday classics. The issue is packed with trivia, crosswords, word finds, Sudoku, scrambles, criss crosses and more!
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