Frosty Returns is an animatedChristmas television special starring Jonathan Winters as the narrator and John Goodman as the voice of Frosty the Snowman. The special was directed by Bill Melendez and Evert Brown and features music by Mark Mothersbaugh. It was first released direct to VHS in 1992 and first aired on television on December 1, 1992 on CBS and continues to be broadcast. It is the fourth special in a series beginning with the 1969 Frosty the Snowman.
Plot
The special begins with a musical number showing that Beansboro Elementary School is canceled for the day due to a seven-inch snowfall. While the adults incessantly complain in-song about the problems they have to deal with due to the snow and ice, the children enjoy the opportunity to play outside with the snow. The scene then shifts to Holly DeCarlo, a depressed and lonely young girl and aspiring magician with only one friend, a tone-deaf, somewhat geeky character named Charles who has a knack for climatology. While practicing a magic act with Charles, the wind blows Holly's hat off her head, out the window, and onto a snowman who comes to life as Frosty, thus revealing that Holly's hat was "that old silk hat" featured in the original song and previous adaptations. Meanwhile, a new product appears in Beansboro that successfully causes snow to instantly disappear, an aerosol spray called "Summer Wheeze." Summer Wheeze's inventor, Mr. Twitchell, hopes to use the product to win over the people of Beansboro so that he will be crowned King of the Beansboro Winter Carnival, apparently believing that the title will give him actual dominion over the townspeople. At a presentation before the town council, one of the trustees voices concern about the environmental impact of the untested product, to which Mr. Twitchell responds by ordering his pet cat Bones to open a trapdoor beneath her seat. To Twitchell's delight, and Frosty's dismay, the town of Beansboro falls head over heels for "Summer Wheeze," causing Frosty to fear for his long-term safety. When many of their classmates rally for the elimination of snow when in class the next day, only a day after singing about its virtues, Holly and Charles take on the duties of protecting Frosty, including hiding him in a freezer and securing refuge for him in an ice castle built for the Carnival. Later, Holly gets Frosty to appear at the Winter Carnival in an attempt to persuade the townspeople that Twitchell’s product is dangerous to the environment and the citizens then reevaluate their prejudice of snow. Singing about the joy of winter, the townspeople are convinced and Frosty is unanimously declared king of the carnival. Out of revenge for ruining his business, Mr. Twitchell tries to run over Frosty with his delivery truck but misses and falls in a frozen lake. In the end, Frosty and Holly make amends with a humbled Mr. Twitchell, letting him wear the crown and cape as they all ride in the sled of the carnival king. Later Frosty must leave Beansboro, but he assures Holly that he will be back again someday, possibly with a new style.
The special is not a direct sequel to the original 1969 special, as the two were produced by different companies, and feature different characters, setting and voice actors. Because of Michaels' involvement, most of the cast consisted of sketch comedians from Michaels's other shows; Andrea Martin had starred in The Hart and Lorne Terrific Hour, while Jan Hooks and Brian Doyle-Murray were cast members on Saturday Night Live. Since Broadway Video produced this special and owned the 1969 original prior to Golden Books' acquisition of the Videocraft International catalog in 1996, Frosty Returns follows the CBS showings of the original and is coupled with the original on all DVD releases. Although Rankin/Bass had produced a sequel to Frosty with most of the original cast and in the original style, the rights to the original and the sequel were broken up when the company dissolved in 1987. The original, having been produced prior to the 1974 dividing line, has its television rights held by CBS, but Frosty's Winter Wonderland was produced after 1974 and thus is part of the package now owned by Warner Bros. and licensed to AMC for its "Best Christmas Ever" block. In May 2019, Freeform acquired the cable television rights to its companion special Frosty the Snowman; this does not include Frosty Returns, which CBS owns outright. Regardless, both specials will continue to air on CBS under a separate deal. Without explanation, the animation accompanying Winters's opening narration was erased from the 2019 airing and replaced with a still image of a night sky.
Music
Frosty Returns is a musical special, with two songs featured prominently on the soundtrack. "Frosty the Snowman" is featured at the beginning as an instrumental and sung by the entire cast at the end. "Let There Be Snow" is an original piece composed for the special, with three verses sung at various points in the special.
