A Rugrats Chanukah

Rugrats Chanukah", titled onscreen as "Chanukah" and sometimes called the "Rugrats Chanukah Special", is a special episode of Nickelodeon's animated television series Rugrats. The first episode of the show's fourth season and the sixty-sixth overall, it tells the story of the Jewish holiday Chanukah through the eyes of the Rugrats, who imagine themselves as the main characters. Meanwhile, Grandpa Boris and his long-time rival, Sholomo, feud over who will play the lead in the local synagogue's Chanukah play.

Raymie Muzquiz directed "A Rugrats Chanukah" from a script by J. David Stem and David N. Weiss. In 1992, Nickelodeon executives had pitched the idea of a Chanukah special to the production team, but the concept was revised and became the 1995 special, "A Rugrats Passover". After production of the Passover episode wrapped, the crew returned to the Chanukah idea. Nickelodeon broadcast "A Rugrats Chanukah" on December 4, 1996; the episode received a Nielsen rating of 7.9 and positive reviews from television critics. Along with other Rugrats episodes featuring Boris and his wife, the special attracted controversy when the Anti-Defamation League compared the character designs to anti-Semitic drawings from a 1930s Nazi newspaper.

Contents
[hide] *1 Plot
 * 2 Production
 * 3 Reception
 * 3.1 Critical response
 * 3.2 Anti-Defamation League controversy
 * 4 See also
 * 5 References
 * 6 External links
 * 6.1 Video

Plot[edit]
On Chanukah, Grandma Minka reads a book about the meaning of the holiday to the babies Tommy, Chuckie, Phil, and Lil. The babies imagine that they are the story's characters; Judah (Tommy) is outraged by King "Antonica", who has taken over the Jewish kingdom and forced Greek culture on its inhabitants. Judah leads an army of Jewish Maccabees to war against Antonica's Seleucid Empire, emerging victorious. The story is left unfinished as Minka stops to help make latkes in the kitchen with her daughter Didi.

Meanwhile, Grandpa Boris is furious that Shlomo, a rival from his youth in Russia, is pictured in the local newspaper for playing the Greek king in the local synagogue's Hanukah play, where Boris is portraying Judah. The babies find out about Shlomo and form the impression that he truly is the Greek king, whom they dub the "Meanie of Chanukah". At the play that night, they attempt to storm on stage to defeat the "Meanie of Chanukah", but are stopped and taken into the synagogue's nursery. Angelica is in the nursery already and, vehement in her desire to watch a Christmas special that is airing that night, convinces the babies to help her break out and steal a television set from the custodian's office.

Boris and Shlomo begin fighting on stage during the play, interrupting the production and inciting an intermission. Backstage, Shlomo and Boris argue once more, with Boris mentioning Shlomo's dedication to his business pursuits over familial values. Shlomo informs Boris that he had a wife who died before bearing him children, making Boris feel sympathy for his rival. Angelica sprints backstage, bumping into Shlomo and inadvertently destroying the television set. Shlomo unsuccessfully tries to console her, but eventually lets Boris take over. Tommy hands Shlomo the Chanukah story book Minka read to the babies earlier; Boris convinces Shlomo to read it to the children. In the conclusion of the story, the Maccabees rededicate the Holy Temple, and discover that there is only enough oil to light the Temple's eternal flame for one day; miraculously, it remains lit for eight. Shlomo's reciting dissolves both the babies' assertion of him as the "Meanie of Chanukah" and his and Boris' rivalry.

Production[edit]
Nickelodeon executives pitched the idea of making a Chanukah special to the Rugrats production team in 1992. Paul Germain, the show's co-creator, responded with a Passover special instead, as he considered it to be a "funny idea"[3 ] and of "historical interest".[4 ] "A Rugrats Passover" was completed in 1995;[1 ] [5 ] [6 ] the show was one of the first animated television series to produce a special for a Jewish holiday.[5 ] After production wrapped on "A Rugrats Passover", the crew considered creating the Chanukah special that Nickelodeon had originally pitched.[3 ] The episode was written by David Stem and David Weiss, and directed by Raymie Muzquiz.[1 ] By the time Weiss came to write the teleplay, he had abandoned Christianity and converted to Judaism.[7 ]

Paramount Home Video finished production of the home media version in July 1997; originally scheduling a release date of October that year,[8 ] Paramount instead pushed the VHS release into 1998 .[9 ] [10 ] In time for Christmas 1997, Paramount released the video Nickelodeon Holiday, which featured "A Rugrats Chanukah" and other holiday specials, such as "Hey Arnold's Christmas" for US$12.95 ($19.03 in 2015).[11 ] [12 ] On August 31, 2004, Paramount also released a DVD compilation titled Rugrats Holiday Celebration, which featured several holiday-themed episodes, including "A Rugrats Chanukah".[2 ] [13 ] Sarah Willson adapted the episode into the book, The Rugrats' Book of Chanukah, illustrated by Barry Goldberg and published by Simon & Schuster in 1997.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-14">[14 ]

Critical response[edit]
"A Rugrats Chanukah" was originally broadcast on December 4, 1996 on Nickelodeon. Repeated twice that night,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-16">[16 ] the episode received a Nielsen rating of 7.9 in the show's target demographic of children aged 2–11.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-17">[17 ] On December 1, 2001, CBS broadcast the episode for the first time on its network, at 8:30 p.m. Eastern Time. Carrying a TV-Y parental rating, it followed the Rugrats Christmas special, "The Santa Experience".<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-18">[18 ] Nickelodeon has aired the episode throughout subsequent holiday seasons.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-19">[19 ] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-20">[20 ] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-21">[21 ]

"A Rugrats Chanukah" received positive reviews from television critics, and is one of the most popular episodes of Rugrats.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-22">[22 ] Delia O'Hera of the Chicago Sun-Times called it a "multigenerational tale".<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-23">[23 ] Judith Pearl, in her book The Chosen Image: Television's Portrayal of Jewish Themes and Characters, described the episode as a "fun [treatment] of Chanukah".<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-24">[24 ] Chuck Barney of Knight Ridder and the Tribune News Service considered the episode a "hilariously imaginative take on the Chanukah legend".<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-25">[25 ]

In a 1999 issue of TV Guide, "A Rugrats Chanukah" was listed at number 5 in their "10 Best Classic Family Holiday Specials".<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-26">[26 ] TV Guide later wrote that "Nickelodeon's Rugrats secured its place in television history" with the episode, opining that it could "entertain a child of any religious denomination".<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-guide_15-1">[15 ] Ted Cox of the Daily Herald said that although the episode was not as good as the show's Passover special—which he considered "among the best holiday TV specials ever produced"—it was "still noteworthy".<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-27">[27 ] DVD Talk reviewer Francis Rizzo III wrote that the special "has a great historical opening".<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-DVD_2-2">[2 ] In Flickipedia: Perfect Films for Every Occasion, Holiday, Mood, Ordeal, and Whim, Michael Atkinson and Laurel Shifrin said that the special was "... a richer meal, even, for parents than for tykes".<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-28">[28 ]

Anti-Defamation League controversy[edit]
"A Rugrats Chanukah", along with other Rugrats episodes featuring Boris and his wife, Minka, attracted controversy when the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) charged that the two characters resembled anti-Semitic drawings that were featured in a 1930s Nazi newspaper. Nickelodeon's then-president, Albie Hecht (himself Jewish), professed bewilderment and called the accusation absurd.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-controversy_29-0">[29 ] The controversy resurfaced in 1998 after the ADL made the same claims about Boris' appearance in a Rugrats comic strip that ran in newspapers during the Jewish New Year. The organization was also offended by the character's recitation of the Mourner's Kaddish in the strip. Nickelodeon's new president, Herb Scannell, agreed with the criticism and promised never to run the character or the strip again.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-30">[30 ]

See also[edit]
==References[edit]==
 * 1996 in American television
 * Judaism in Rugrats
 * List of Rugrats episodes
 * 1) ^ Jump up to: a b c "Rugrats → Episode Guide → Specials → More → Rugrats chanukah" (Adobe Flash page). Klasky-Csupo. Retrieved 2009-10-25.
 * 2) ^ Jump up to: a b c Rizzo, Francis (2004-11-01). "Rugrats Holiday Celebration". DVD Talk. Retrieved 2009-10-25.
 * 3) ^ Jump up to: a b Swartz, Mimi (1998-10-30). "How raising the Rugrats children became as difficult as the real thing". The New Yorker. p. 62.
 * 4) Jump up ^ Elkin, Michael (1995-04-14). "Four questions for creator of 'Rugrats': Cartoon series offers a Passover plot for the younger set". Jewish Exponent.
 * 5) ^ Jump up to: a b O'Connor, John J. (1995-04-13). " ' Rugrats' Observes Passover". The New York Times. p. 16. Retrieved 2009-12-22.
 * 6) Jump up ^ Moore, Scott (1995-04-09). " ' A Rugrats Passover ' ". The Washington Post.
 * 7) Jump up ^ Brown, Hannah (2005-05-18). "Shrek's Orthodox author". Jerusalem Post: 24.
 * 8) Jump up ^ Olson, Catherine Applefield (1997-07-12). "Coming Attractions: After a somewhat sleepy spring, video retailers can prepare to deck their shelves with sackfuls of third-and fourth-quarter releases that aim to satisfy entries on just about everybody's wish lists". Billboard: 60.
 * 9) Jump up ^ "Rave Review". Sesame Street Magazine: 31. 2001.
 * 10) Jump up ^ Bassave, Roy (1998-12-15). "Videos, DVDs to stuff into stockings". Tribune News Service.
 * 11) Jump up ^ Block, Debbie Galante (1997-08-23). "Holi-disks for '97 marry Christmas to every conceivable musical genre". Billboard: 82.
 * 12) Jump up ^ McCormick, Moria; Garza, Morella (20 September 1997). " ' Best Ever' Holiday Vids Due". Billboard (Nielsen Business Media, Inc.): 64. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved 21 December 2011.
 * 13) Jump up ^ Hicks, Chris (2004-11-06). "Small fry will enjoy new DVDs". Deseret News.
 * 14) Jump up ^ "The Rugrats' Book of Chanukah". Chicago Jewish Star. 1997-12-18.
 * 15) ^ Jump up to: a b "Holiday and Christmas TV Classics". TV Guide. p. 7. Retrieved 2009-10-25.
 * 16) Jump up ^ Ribadeneira, Diego (1996-12-05). "Rites of Chanukah reach many". The Boston Globe.
 * 17) Jump up ^ "Nickelodeon drives kids TV marketplace in new season Grows While Competition Declines; Outperforms Broadcasters In Key Dayparts". Press release, Viacom. 1996-12-18.
 * 18) Jump up ^ McDonough, Kevin (2001-12-01). "Remake of 'Brian's Song' sings without excess: ; Story of friendship, love and loss still a tear-jerker; even 29 years later". Charleston Daily Mail.
 * 19) Jump up ^ McGuire, Mark; Wiley, Casey (2002-11-29). "A special Christmas from the Grinch to Spongebob, the networks are offering all sorts of holiday-themed shows". Albany Times Union.
 * 20) Jump up ^ "Nickelodeon's 'Ha-Ha Holidays' to Spread Chuckles and Cheer, December 5–29". PR Newswire. 2005-11-08.
 * 21) Jump up ^ Elber, Lynn (2005-12-16). "Check out holiday TV offerings". Post-Tribune.
 * 22) Jump up ^ Klein, Daniel; Vuijst, Freke (2000). The Half-Jewish Book: A Celebration. Villard. p. 36. ISBN 0-375-50385-4.
 * 23) Jump up ^ "Holidays are a good time for family video viewing". Chicago Sun-Times. 2000-12-08.
 * 24) Jump up ^ Pearl, Judith (1999). The Chosen Image: Television's Portrayal of Jewish Themes and Characters. McFarland & Company. p. 39. ISBN 0-7864-0522-8.
 * 25) Jump up ^ Barney, Chuck (2000-11-29). "Other holiday programming between now and Christmas". Knight Ridder/Tribune News Service.
 * 26) Jump up ^ "10 Best Classic Family Holiday Specials". TV Guide. 1999-11-27.
 * 27) Jump up ^ Cox, Ted (2005-12-01). "Seasonal all-stars The 12 top TV specials of Christmas – and other winter holidays.". Daily Herald.
 * 28) Jump up ^ Atkinson, Michael; Shifrin, Laurel (2007). Flickipedia: Perfect Films for Every Occasion, Holiday, Mood, Ordeal, and Whim. Chicago Review Press. p. 12. ISBN 1-55652-714-4.
 * 29) Jump up ^ Goldberg, Danny (2005). How The Left Lost Teen Spirit. Akashic Books. p. 216. ISBN 0-9719206-8-0.
 * 30) Jump up ^ Jackson, Wendy; Amidi, Amid (December 1998). "Rugrats Offends Media Watchdogs". Animation World Magazine. Retrieved 2009-12-19.

External links[edit]

 * "A Rugrats Chanukah" at the Internet Movie Database
 * "A Rugrats Chanukah" at TV.com

Video[edit]
&lt;img src="//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:CentralAutoLogin/start?type=1x1" alt="" title="" width="1" height="1" style="border: none; position: absolute;" /&gt; Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=A_Rugrats_Chanukah&oldid=637542186"Categories:
 * Rugrats: "Rugrats Chanukah" Episode, Nick.com
 * Rugrats Chanukah Clip, Nick.com
 * 1996 in American television
 * 1996 television episodes
 * 1996 television specials
 * 1990s American television specials
 * Hanukkah fiction
 * Jewish-related television episodes
 * Rugrats and All Grown Up! episodes