Miracle on 34th Street: The Making of a Christmas Classic

by Jeffrey Paul Thompson

Despite having been made into three TV movies, a radio drama, a stage play, a Broadway musical, a feature-film remake in color, and a book adaptation, the 1947 black-and-white film of Miracle on 34thStreet still remains the favorite version of this modern Christmas classic. The American public seems to echo what Macy’s stated when declining to participate in the 1994 “We felt there was nothing to be improved upon.” In many ways, it is a perfect film in the sense that there really is nothing that could have been done the story, the casting, the acting were all spot-on. The decade from 1941–1951 saw a bumper crop of classic Christmas including Christmas in Connecticut, Holiday Inn, and It’s a Wonderful Life, but with the exception of the latter film none have had the staying power of Miracle on 34th Street. This book describes the origins of the story, the casting and production of the film, its marketing and publicity, and even how it elevated the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade from a local New York event to a national celebration. Finally, it looks at the film’s legacy, including its high ranking among best Christmas movies of all time as well as its placement as ninth overall on the American Film Institute’s list of the most inspiring films.

Genres: Nonfiction, Holiday

270 pages, Hardcover

First published August 6, 2024

Reviews

[Susan McAulay · Rating 1 out of 5]

There are too many glitches that made this ARC entirely unreadable. Text would jump and then go back. Eventually, I caught on but I gave up.

[Alex Sarll]

An exhaustive look at the best Christmas film of all, packed with anecdotes and information from the first pitch, through various script drafts, casting, production and last-minute deleted scenes, to its deserved status as a seasonal classic. Which, rather spoiling the usual narrative of these things, was obvious from the first previews, and that despite the baffling (though, given Thompson's thoroughness, here fully explained) decision to release it in June. Sometimes it can feel a little too overstuffed in terms of adjoining material – the summaries of the careers of any noticeable actor in the film, and indeed of ones who were only considered for it but ultimately not used; the full histories of the department stores around which it's set. But I say that who, until I read this, hadn't even fully realised that Miracle shares a child actress with one of my other favourite films of the time, The Ghost And Mrs Muir, let alone that she was filming the two simultaneously (and my word Natalie Wood's mum sounds like the very epitome of the stage mother). And the store stories are important, not just because I now know the name Lazarus Straus – sounds like he should be fighting Doc Savage, in fact sold glassware – but because the use of the real Macy's and Gimbels, rather than the usual Hollywood stand-ins, was crucial to the air of realism the film was determined to maintain – and which many of its adaptations and remakes have fumbled, with disastrous results. Realism might sound like a strange word to use of a film about Santa Claus, but of course that's exactly why it comes off rather than collapsing into sickliness – and besides, Thompson has also found two real court rulings from the decades prior to the film which prefigure its climactic scene, not to mention the various other ways it bled into reality: Edmund Gwenn really was the Santa in the Thanksgiving parade, really did work in the Macy's grotto for a stretch during filming. And of course, the story has been used to bolster publicity by the businesses who agreed to participate and, in some cases, are still reaping the rewards decades later. This is the one uneasy note, that a film which – like most Christmas films, to be fair – celebrates intangibles over commercialism, should have nevertheless been assimilated by capitalism. It's not something Thompson really gets into, though at the least he provides the information better enabling the reader to consider it. And he can hardly be blamed for electing to keep his book a love letter, not when the recipient is so eminently deserving.

(Edelweiss ARC)

[Bargain Sleuth Book Reviews · Rating 5 out of 5]

For this and all my other book reviews, visit www.bargain-sleuth.com

Thanks to Edelweiss and Lyons Press for the digital copy of this book; I am leaving this review voluntarily.

I did not grow up watching a lot of Christmas movies, unless you count Rankin & Bass Christmas specials. I was an adult when I first saw classics like It’s a Wonderful Life, White Christmas, and Miracle on 34th Street. Yet, I do have to say that Miracle has to be my favorite of all the wonderful holiday films over the years. I was happy to take a look inside the making of the film.

What’s interesting about Miracle is that it wasn’t a book adapted into a movie. It was always set out to be a screenplay which could then be adapted into a book. It went through several iterations before it became what you see on the screen. The casting of Maureen O’Hara, Edmund Gween, John Payne, and little Natalie Wood was genius, although at the time, it might not have looked that way.

The book goes on to detail the casting of the picture, the making of the film, the tie-in with Macy’s and the filming in New York around the Thanksgiving Day Parade (which celebrates their 100th anniversary this year!). Then, the film crew was brought back to Los Angeles and filmed some interior shots they didn’t get in New York.

Of course, this book doesn’t just detail the making of the film, but also the production of the subsequent book, the advertising and publicity involved, as well as the attempts at remakes over the years. In all, it shows that the original film is something that can’t be bottled up and repeated. Sometimes, movie magic just happens.

I know that tomorrow (because tonight there’s a Green Bay Packers game on), I’ll be watching and reading Miracle on 34th Street. I happened to get the book some years ago when the publishers put out a commemorative edition that looked like the 1st edition. I have never read it, yet from reading this book, I know there are some changes to the subplots that I’m very interested in reading.

[Mme Forte · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm going to try not to be unkind, but I don't know if that's possible. This is definitely negative and I apologize in advance for how it might sound.

Nearly unreadable.

The writing is like they took somebody's blog and published it. Which is not a problem if it remains a blog. When it becomes a book, however, it requires more engineering. The writing is stilted and amateurish. The repeated use of "ended up" is just one example of this -- and I don't mean a few times in the book, I mean multiple times on a page. There are other ways to express this! You could look them up!

The production is almost laughable. Several photos are rotated 90 degrees so that, if it's an image of a magazine cover, you're only seeing the top half of it and that's turned on its side. One caption says something can be seen in the lower right corner of the cover. No, it can't, because that part has been lost in rotation. On another page, there's a photo of Maureen O'Hara at some awards do. It is accurately captioned (I assume). Below it is the same photo of Maureen O'Hara with another caption identifying it as an image of something that it definitely is not. It's like a middle-school yearbook staff put this thing together. The publishers should be ashamed.

In the end, I guess, it's on me for finishing this regardless of the faults. I should have spent my time more wisely.

[Sam · Rating 4 out of 5]

A thoroughly researched and beautiful book. Well written and fascinating in its historic detail on the production, cast, and release of the classic film. I only ding a star because of the seeming hatred the author had for the 95 remake of the film. While I don't think anybody would argue its in anyway superior to the original, I found it odd that he was able to dispassionately discuss the differences of the other tv and radio adaptations and their shortcomings, but seemingly had it out to really tear the remake down even in the blurbs beneath the photos. I agree with him for the most part on some of the critiques (the villains are far too mustache twirly, the implications that Kriss has inappropriate fondness for children is icky, and the changed ending not right) I overall the remake at least had its heart in the right place, and a fun companion piece to the original.

All that said, its a wonderful book, I learned alot not only about the film but of Hollywood history itself and will be checking out the the many many classic films he sights throughout.

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another fantastic case of library bookish serendipity! Thank you OPL! Have been on the struggle bus connecting with fiction. Decided to browse the nonfiction new releases and walked away with this gem!

Miracle on 34th street is a favorite of mine! One I watched multiple times with my father.Loved learning more about the making of this holiday gem.And yes, it should be watched in the original black and white.

The book provided many details about the rise of the Christmas movie. Prior to the 1940s, holiday movies were not really a thing. Learned a lot about Hollywood in general, I was aware of the contracts stars had at the time with specific studios. This depicted the challenges of using stars from other studies. Also provide insight on how the film was originally shown and marketed. Lots of historical information about each person involved in the film from writer, directors to actors. Details about upbringing, other work in Hollywood, etc.

Learned about the many iterations of books and movies after the original.

Thoroughly enjoyed this inside look at the making of a holiday favorite.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent and well-researched book about this Christmas Classic! If you are a mega-fan of Miracle then I definitely recommend! Loved it!