Though Elvis Presley did not write his own songs, he exercised creative control over his recording sessions. This sometimes necessitated pushing back against musical arrangements or refusing to record certain songs altogether. During one session, Elvis adamantly refused to record two songs, including one children’s holiday classic.
Elvis Presley was not happy when people tried to get him to record a children’s song
In 1957, Elvis was under a great deal of career and personal pressure. He was a rapidly rising star, but he worried all his success would slip from his grasp as the reality of military service loomed. His mother’s health was also declining. Therefore, his spirits were not high when he arrived at the recording studio in February of that year.
Elvis aimed to record five songs. During a break, however, music publisher Jean Aberbach placed the lyrics to “Here Comes Peter Cottontail” on Elvis’ music stand.
Elvis Presley was not happy when people tried to get him to record a children’s song
In 1957, Elvis was under a great deal of career and personal pressure. He was a rapidly rising star, but he worried all his success would slip from his grasp as the reality of military service loomed. His mother’s health was also declining. Therefore, his spirits were not high when he arrived at the recording studio in February of that year.
Elvis aimed to record five songs. During a break, however, music publisher Jean Aberbach placed the lyrics to “Here Comes Peter Cottontail” on Elvis’ music stand.
- 3/18/2024
- by Emma McKee
- Showbiz Cheat Sheet
Paul Coker Jr., whose character and production designs for the classic Rankin/Bass stop-motion and animated holiday specials and his many years as one of Mad magazine’s “Usual Gang Of Idiots” endeared him to generations of fans, died following a brief illness at his home in Santa Fe, New Mexico, on July 23. He was 93.
His death was confirmed to Deadline by his stepdaughter Lee Smithson Burd. “Paul was lucid and had his remarkable sense of humor until the end,” Smithson Burd said.
Hollywood & Media Deaths In 2022: Photo Gallery
Coker’s contributions to the production and character design of the Rankin/Bass specials helped create some of the most indelible holiday images of the last half-century. As either a character designer or production designer, Coker lent his talents to such Christmas and Easter specials as Cricket on the Hearth (1967), Frosty the Snowman (1969), Santa Claus Is Comin’ to Town (1970), Here Comes Peter Cottontail...
His death was confirmed to Deadline by his stepdaughter Lee Smithson Burd. “Paul was lucid and had his remarkable sense of humor until the end,” Smithson Burd said.
Hollywood & Media Deaths In 2022: Photo Gallery
Coker’s contributions to the production and character design of the Rankin/Bass specials helped create some of the most indelible holiday images of the last half-century. As either a character designer or production designer, Coker lent his talents to such Christmas and Easter specials as Cricket on the Hearth (1967), Frosty the Snowman (1969), Santa Claus Is Comin’ to Town (1970), Here Comes Peter Cottontail...
- 7/29/2022
- by Greg Evans
- Deadline Film + TV
Maury Laws, who as musical director for Rankin-Bass productions supervised the scoring of such animated TV classics as “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer,” “Frosty the Snowman” and “The Hobbit,” died March 28 in Appleton, Wisc. He was 95.
Laws’ greatest achievement in TV was arranging and conducting all of the music for the 1964 stop-motion animation version of “Rudolph,” which featured new songs by original “Rudolph” songwriter Johnny Marks. Laws’ warm orchestral settings for such songs as “Holly Jolly Christmas,” “There’s Always Tomorrow” and the title tune helped to make the hour-long show a holiday season perennial.
The success of “Rudolph” led to a series of animated specials by the Rankin-Bass company. Laws worked with Fred Astaire on “Santa Claus Is Comin’ to Town” (1970), Danny Kaye on “Here Comes Peter Cottontail” (1971), Angela Lansbury on “The First Christmas” (1975) and Judy Collins on “The Wind in the Willows” (1987), often writing the songs with lyricist and...
Laws’ greatest achievement in TV was arranging and conducting all of the music for the 1964 stop-motion animation version of “Rudolph,” which featured new songs by original “Rudolph” songwriter Johnny Marks. Laws’ warm orchestral settings for such songs as “Holly Jolly Christmas,” “There’s Always Tomorrow” and the title tune helped to make the hour-long show a holiday season perennial.
The success of “Rudolph” led to a series of animated specials by the Rankin-Bass company. Laws worked with Fred Astaire on “Santa Claus Is Comin’ to Town” (1970), Danny Kaye on “Here Comes Peter Cottontail” (1971), Angela Lansbury on “The First Christmas” (1975) and Judy Collins on “The Wind in the Willows” (1987), often writing the songs with lyricist and...
- 4/1/2019
- by Jon Burlingame
- Variety Film + TV
Ask anyone to name his favorite Easter movie, and chances are you'll get a blank stare. A few people might say Here Comes Peter Cottontail (which was actually a 1971 stop motion animated TV special) or its 2005 animated sequel of the same name (a direct-to-video release that made its television debut on Cartoon Network the following year). Then of course, there's Hop, the 2011 live-action/animated movie that holds the honor of being the only Easter-themed feature film since the Judy Garland-Fred Astaire musical Easter Parade in 1948 (which didn't really involve the bunny). There's been a Disney Channel Original Movie about practically every fantastical creature—leprechauns, mermaids,...
- 4/15/2017
- E! Online
Friday, April 3, 2015 ratings -- New episodes: The Amazing Race, Hawaii Five-0, Blue Bloods, Grimm, Dateline NBC, Last Man Standing, and Cristela. Specials: 21 Jump Street (movie) and Here Comes Peter Cottontail. Reruns: Dateline NBC, Shark Tank, 20/20, and Whose Line Is It Anyway?.
How are your shows doing? Check the current rankings:
ABC | CBS | The CW | Fox | NBC
ABC Family | AMC | FX | HBO | Showtime | Syfy | TNT | USA (more…)...
How are your shows doing? Check the current rankings:
ABC | CBS | The CW | Fox | NBC
ABC Family | AMC | FX | HBO | Showtime | Syfy | TNT | USA (more…)...
- 4/4/2015
- by TVSeriesFinale.com
- TVSeriesFinale.com
Fast National ratings for Friday, April 3, 2015. Good Friday and the first night of Passover had a smaller impact on the Friday ratings race than ABC's "Shark Tank" repeat, as "The Amazing Race," "Hawaii Five-0" and "Blue Bloods" were able to sweep the primetime hours and give CBS wins in most measures. Friday offered little else of note, though The CW got decent numbers for "Here Comes Peter Cottontail" and Fox's "21 Jump Street" airing couldn't compete with last week's "Grown Ups." Oh and "Cristela" was up for ABC, if you're paying attention. Apparently there was a crossover with "Last Man Standing." Who knew? On to the numbers... Among adults 18-49, CBS averaged a 1.2 rating for Friday night, tops in the key demographic. NBC's 1.1 key demo rating and the 1.0 key demo rating for ABC followed close behind. Fox's 0.7 key demo rating and the 0.4 key demo rating for The CW trailed. Overall, CBS...
- 4/4/2015
- by Daniel Fienberg
- Hitfix
Need a break from dyeing eggs, deviling eggs, or eating Cadbury Eggs this weekend? (I plan to do all three, so I will certainly need to take a breather.) Tune into The CW this Friday, April 3 at 8pm/7pm Central for the family-friendly classic, Here Comes Peter Cottontail. In this Rankin/Bass Easter special, eccentric peddler Seymore S. Sassafrass (voiced by Danny Kaye) tells the tale of young Peter Cottontail (Casey Kasem!) and his dreams to become the Chief Easter Bunny. Peter must rescue Easter from the hands of malicious recluse January Q. Irontail (Vincent Price), with the help of a time machine. The 1971 TV … Continue reading →
The post Here Comes Peter Cottontail Airs Friday Night on The CW appeared first on Channel Guide Magazine.
The post Here Comes Peter Cottontail Airs Friday Night on The CW appeared first on Channel Guide Magazine.
- 4/2/2015
- by Andrea Verschage
- ChannelGuideMag
CW has released their prime time line up for the week of March 30th and it will be a strange week. With new episodes becoming limited as we approach season finales, CW is filling in the gaps with a few random choices. Such The Flash taking a big chunk of that week with other mixes of new and old episodes network wide. However, they will take a child friendly approach on April 3rd with Here Comes Peter Cottontail. Random? Yes, very much so! Here is the official listing that kindly provided us all with.
Monday, March 30
The Originals
“I Love You, Goodbye” — (8:00-9:00 p.m. Et) (TV-14, V) (HDTV)
The Big Day — With the final preparations for her union to Jackson (guest star Nathan Parsons) underway, Hayley (Phoebe Tonkin) begins to question whether the ritual will actually work. After arriving to the compound, Elijah (Daniel Gillies) has a...
Monday, March 30
The Originals
“I Love You, Goodbye” — (8:00-9:00 p.m. Et) (TV-14, V) (HDTV)
The Big Day — With the final preparations for her union to Jackson (guest star Nathan Parsons) underway, Hayley (Phoebe Tonkin) begins to question whether the ritual will actually work. After arriving to the compound, Elijah (Daniel Gillies) has a...
- 3/12/2015
- by Sarah Peel
- Boomtron
Casey Kasem, the iconic radio host and voice actor, passed away Sunday at the age of 82. For a certain generation, Kasem was the inimitably raspy voice of the American Top 40 countdown. However, Kasem had a long career as an actor, particularly as a voice actor. Here are seven memorable characters you may not have realized that Kasem was behind. Norville "Shaggy" Rogers, Scooby-Doo Kasem voiced Norville "Shaggy" Rogers from 1969-1997 and again from 2002-2009. A strict vegetarian, Kasem suggested that Rogers be one on the show as well. Robin, SuperFriends One of Kasem's first voice-acting roles was Robin in The...
- 6/15/2014
- by Alex Heigl
- PEOPLE.com
Tuesday, March 26, 2013 ratings -- New episodes: The Voice, Go On, The New Normal, Smash, Splash, Dancing With The Stars, Body of Proof, Hell's Kitchen, New Girl, The Mindy Project, NCIS, NCIS: Los Angeles, and Golden Boy. Specials: Here Comes Peter Cottontail. Episode reruns: Beauty and the Beast.
ABC
8pm - Splash: 1.6 in the demo (-38% change) with 6.66 million.
9pm - Dancing with the Stars: 2.3 in the demo (+10% change) with 13.07 million.
10:30pm - Body of Proof: 1.7 in the demo (+13% change) with 9.58 million.
CBS
8pm - NCIS: 3.1 in the demo (-3% change) with 18.06 million.
9pm - NCIS: Los Angeles: 2.6 in the demo (-10% change) with 14.32 million.
10pm - Golden Boy: 1.4 in the demo (-18% change) with 8.08 million.
The CW:...
ABC
8pm - Splash: 1.6 in the demo (-38% change) with 6.66 million.
9pm - Dancing with the Stars: 2.3 in the demo (+10% change) with 13.07 million.
10:30pm - Body of Proof: 1.7 in the demo (+13% change) with 9.58 million.
CBS
8pm - NCIS: 3.1 in the demo (-3% change) with 18.06 million.
9pm - NCIS: Los Angeles: 2.6 in the demo (-10% change) with 14.32 million.
10pm - Golden Boy: 1.4 in the demo (-18% change) with 8.08 million.
The CW:...
- 3/27/2013
- by TVSeriesFinale.com
- TVSeriesFinale.com
Fast National ratings for Tuesday, March 26, 2013
As it did Monday, "The Voice" gave NBC a sizable ratings boost on Tuesday. The show led its hour in adults 18-49 and also helped "Go On" more than double its demographic rating from last week, giving the comedy its best numbers in three months. "The New Normal" improved by half a point.
Also Tuesday, ABC's "Splash" took a hit opposite increased competition, but the first "Dancing With the Stars" elimination of the spring was up over the fall's first results show. "DWTS" helped push "Body of Proof" to its best numbers of the season. CBS was down some in both viewers and adults 18-49, but still strong enough to lead the night both measures. "New Girl" was steady for Fox.
CBS averaged 13.5 million viewers and an 8.5 rating/13 share in households to finish comfortably ahead of ABC (9.8 million, 6.5/10). NBC (6.6 million, 4.2/7) took third, more than...
As it did Monday, "The Voice" gave NBC a sizable ratings boost on Tuesday. The show led its hour in adults 18-49 and also helped "Go On" more than double its demographic rating from last week, giving the comedy its best numbers in three months. "The New Normal" improved by half a point.
Also Tuesday, ABC's "Splash" took a hit opposite increased competition, but the first "Dancing With the Stars" elimination of the spring was up over the fall's first results show. "DWTS" helped push "Body of Proof" to its best numbers of the season. CBS was down some in both viewers and adults 18-49, but still strong enough to lead the night both measures. "New Girl" was steady for Fox.
CBS averaged 13.5 million viewers and an 8.5 rating/13 share in households to finish comfortably ahead of ABC (9.8 million, 6.5/10). NBC (6.6 million, 4.2/7) took third, more than...
- 3/27/2013
- by editorial@zap2it.com
- Zap2It - From Inside the Box
On TV this Tuesday: The McAdmiral’s on deck on NCIS, New Girl slips on blue suede shoes, The Game kicks off another season and The Face and Face Off pick winners. As a supplement to TVLine’s original features (linked within), here are 11 programs to keep on your radar.
8 pm NCIS (CBS) | Jamey Sheridan (Homeland) guest-stars as McGee’s never-before-seen father, a Navy admiral who becomes involved in the team’s investigation of an incident aboard the USS Borealis. Also: Stan Burley is back! (View photos.)
8 pm Here Comes Peter Cottontail (The CW) | This 1971 Rankin-Bass holiday special – about a...
8 pm NCIS (CBS) | Jamey Sheridan (Homeland) guest-stars as McGee’s never-before-seen father, a Navy admiral who becomes involved in the team’s investigation of an incident aboard the USS Borealis. Also: Stan Burley is back! (View photos.)
8 pm Here Comes Peter Cottontail (The CW) | This 1971 Rankin-Bass holiday special – about a...
- 3/26/2013
- by Kimberly Roots
- TVLine.com
Everett James Marsden in “Hop”
Joining the canon of Easter-themed films like “Here Comes Peter Cottontail” and “Easter Parade,” “Hop” tells the story of Fred O’Hare (played by James Marsden), a out-of-work man whose life is forever changed when he nearly runs over E.B. (voiced by Russell Brand), the Easter Bunny’s teenage son who escaped Easter Island and his fate to try and make it as a drummer in Hollywood.
“I wanted to do a movie I...
Joining the canon of Easter-themed films like “Here Comes Peter Cottontail” and “Easter Parade,” “Hop” tells the story of Fred O’Hare (played by James Marsden), a out-of-work man whose life is forever changed when he nearly runs over E.B. (voiced by Russell Brand), the Easter Bunny’s teenage son who escaped Easter Island and his fate to try and make it as a drummer in Hollywood.
“I wanted to do a movie I...
- 4/7/2012
- by Alexandra Cheney
- Speakeasy/Wall Street Journal
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