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ABC|Disney kicks off their annual “25 Days of Christmas” on Dec. 1, 2018. However, on November 23, the entertainment giant starts the celebration early with “Santa Claus Is Comin’ to Town,” and on the 26th the first two of six episodes of “The Great Christmas Light Fight.”
In its 6th Season, the competition is a colorful way to ring in the season. Each hour-long episode either Carter Oosterhouse or Taniya Nayak will judge the awe-inspiring holiday displays.
Four families show off their biggest, brightest, or most entertaining Christmas pageantry. The winner will walk away with the “coveted Light Fight trophy” and $50,000.
Choosing between these colorful works of art is a challenge of epic proportion ranging from folksy to traditional. The competitors offer both in-and-outdoor displays replete with Nativities, North Star, reindeer, snowmen, gingerbread people, Santa Clauses, Nutcrackers, and more.
No Christmas display is complete without lights. There are hundreds of thousands in every shade of the rainbow. Some of them are static or blinking, and others are explosive.
The families don festive holiday attire to walk cameramen through their yards and homes. All the time trying to persuade the judge that they have the winning displays. Viewers are treated to the events leading up to the lighting countdown.
Nayak is the judge on Episode 602, which airs from 8-9 p.m. ET. Competing are the Richardsons in Madison, Mississippi; Vaughns in Alexandria, Virginia; Salveson-Sangalli family in Port St. Lucie, Florida; and Hanleys in Cleveland, Texas.
Airing from 9-10 p.m. is Episode 601. Oosterhouse decides the winning family of this show. Competing are the Heides in Merrick, New York; Strycharz family in Wethersfield, Connecticut; Monashes in Seattle, Washington; and Wathorns in Ponca, Nebraska.
ABC|Disney airs Episodes 603 and 604 on Monday, December 3. On the 10th “The Great Christmas Light Flight Clip Show” will broadcast at 10 p.m. The special “showcases the most spectacular and over-the-top Christmas displays in America.” Episodes 605 and 605 will close out the season 17th.
The media group’s annual programming offers classic holiday fare as well as deck the hall themed episodes of weekly programs. There are numerous 30-minute perennial holiday treats with children as the target audience. Three of these are star Charlie Brown and gang, two before Christmas and on the 27th “Happy New Year, Charlie Brown.” Another is a “Frozen” spinoff starring the quirky snowman “Olaf’s Frozen Adventure.”
Movies showing during the “25 Days of Christmas” include Rodgers and Hammerstein’s 1965 cinematic treasure “The Sound of Music” and the 1991 classic “Beauty and the Beast.”
Among the specials presented is the 9th Annual “CMA Country Christmas” with host Reba McEntire; “The Wonderful World of Disney: Magical Holiday Celebration” from the Disney parks around the world; and on the 25th, “Disney Parks Magical Christmas Day Parade.”
Closing out 2018 is “Dick Clark’s Primetime New Year’s Rockin’ Eve with Ryan Seacrest.” Last year’s show was ranked the No. 1 music special. The 5 1/2-hour program on December 31 marks its 47th anniversary.
ABC Media Group states the times and dates may vary. Check local listings for updates.
Written by Cathy Milne-Ware
Sources:
ABC|Disney: The Great Christmas Light Fight
ABC|Disney: 25 Days of Christmas
All Images Courtesy of ABC|Disney – Used With Permission