8 of the best Hanukkah-themed TV episodes to watch
Max Kalnitz
- It feels like almost every TV show has a Christmas-themed episode, but Hanukkah specials are few and far between.
- "Rugrats" is one of the only cartoons that educated kids about the Jewish tradition, while shows like "Friends" and "The O.C." tackled the issue of celebrating both Christmas and Hanukkah.
- With Hanukkah starting this week, we rounded up the eight best TV specials to watch this winter.
As the weather gets colder and the days get shorter, there's no better way to pass the time than bingeing some holiday episodes of your favorite TV shows.
For folks who celebrate Christmas, there's an endless supply of episodes: Pick just about any TV show and odds are it has a Christmas special. For Jewish people, however, the pickings are slim when it comes to Hanukkah TV specials.
Ahead of the holiday starting this week, we rounded up the eight - one for each night! - best TV episodes that celebrate the festival of lights.
The "Friends" episode "The One with the Holiday Armadillo" shows Ross' struggles trying to teach his son about Hanukkah.
Episode: Season 7, episode 10
When Ross (David Schwimmer) learns that Ben (Cole Sprouse) is staying with him for the holidays, he's determined to educate his son about their Jewish heritage. But Ben is used to his mother dressing up as Santa Claus during the holidays and Ross doesn't want to deprive him of that tradition. When all the Santa suits are sold out, Ross settles for an armadillo costume, resulting in a kooky new holiday mascot.
Ross the Holiday Armadillo proceeds to tell Ben about the story of Hanukkah but is quickly interrupted by Chandler (Matthew Perry), who is dressed as Santa. It's a whole debacle but by the end, Ben learns to appreciate Christmas and Hanukkah.
You can stream "Friends" on HBO Max.
Adam Sandler's "The Chanukah Song" has become synonymous with the holiday ever since its 1994 "SNL" debut.
Debut episode: Season 20, episode 7
OK, technically this is a skit, not an entire TV special, but we'll take what we can get. Since Adam Sandler debuted the goofy "Chanukah Song" on "SNL" in 1994, it's become a bonafide Hanukkah jam — Jews don't have too many of those either.
It's a sweet reminder that even though you may feel like the only kid in town without a Christmas tree, there are tons of Jews around the world (including a ton of famous actors and musicians).
You can watch a video of the skit here.
"SNL's" "Hanukkah Harry" skit finally gave Jews an equivalent to Santa Claus.
Epsiode: Season 15, episode 9
When Santa Claus is sick with the flu and unable to deliver presents to children on Christmas Eve, who does he call to save the day? None other than Hanukkah Harry.
Harry (Jon Lovitz) leaves his office on Mt. Sinai and rides a cart pulled by his three donkeys, Moische, Herschel, and Schlomo, around the world to deliver socks, slacks, and golden coins to all the good boys and girls. What a mensch, am I right?
When a pair of siblings (Mike Myers and Victoria Jackson) catch him coming down the chimney, they're at first disappointed by their gifts and the fact that it's not Santa. But after talking with Harry, the kids realize Jews and Christians aren't too different, which miraculously restores Santa to good health.
Again, this is a skit, not an entire TV episode, but at eight-and-a-half minutes, it comes close. Plus it gave Jews their own character equivalent to Santa Claus, a long-overdue accomplishment.
You can watch a video of the skit here.
"A Rugrats Chanukah" is a staple for many young Jewish children.
Episode: Season 4, episode 1
They may be babies but they do a darn good job of telling the story of Hanukkah.
As they are read a book about the holiday's history, Tommy, Chuckie, and the gang travel back in time and become the "Maccababies" who defend the Jewish Kingdom from the invading Greek forces trying to erase their culture.
This "Rugrats" episode is groundbreaking as far as representation is concerned: It's one of the few, if not the first, cartoons that educated kids about the story of Hanukkah.
You can stream "Rugrats" on Hulu.
"The O.C." tackles the issue of celebrating Christmas and Hanukah in "The Best Chrismukkah Ever."
Episode: Season 1, episode 13
This episode does a fantastic job tackling a topic thousands of Jews are familiar with: "Chrismukkah." Many people celebrate Christmas and Hanukkah and it can be tough for some to form a connection to both heritages.
In the episode, Seth (Adam Brody) throws his parents a Chrismukkah party and educates Ryan (Ben McKenzie) along the way about the possibility of celebrating two holidays.
"So what's it gonna be, huh? Your menorah or your candy cane? Christmas or Hanukkah?" Seth asks Ryan. "Ah! Don't worry about it buddy, because in this house, you don't have to choose. Let me introduce you to a little something that I like to call, Chrismukkah."
Just because it's a holiday episode doesn't mean it doesn't have that classic "O.C." drama. From girl issues to legal problems, this spicy episode is a must-watch.
You can stream "The O.C." on HBO Max.
"Heck of a Hanukkah" is a perfect Jewish spinoff of "It's A Wonderful Life."
Episode: Season 1, episode 15
When the overly eager Louis (Shia LaBeouf) sneaks his Hanukkah presents up to his room for an early peek, his parents unexpectedly come in to talk to him. To prevent his parents from finding out, Louis tries hanging the presents out the window but ends up dropping all of them, resulting in him getting grounded.
Out of anger, Louis thinks it'd be better off if he was never born, thus starting his "It's A Wonderful Life"-inspired journey where he learns that it's not the presents that make the holidays, it's quality family time.
You can stream "Even Stevens" on Disney+.
"A Christmas Story" is an episode of "The Goldbergs" every Jewish family can relate to.
Episode: Season 3, episode 10
To try and excite her family about the holidays, Beverly Goldberg (Wendi McLendon-Covey) creates "Super Hanukkah." The new-and-improved version includes a Hanukkah bush, Hanukkah socks, Hanu-Klaus, and other wily creations that are eerily similar to Christmas traditions. But in trading in their heritage, Beverly and the Goldberg family realize how lucky they are to have their own unique traditions.
The show's creator Adam Goldberg told Entertainment Weekly in 2015 that the episode was autobiographical.
"My mom was always trying to figure out ways to make Hanukkah exciting and compete with our neighbors the Kremps, who always had these amazing blow-out Christmas parties," he said. "We weren't particularly religious, but you grow up feeling envious and wishing you could just have that experience, so that's really what this episode is about."
And, you guessed it, the title of the episode (plus the tongue-to-pole-sticking) is a nod to the classic movie of the same name.
You can stream "The Goldbergs" on Hulu.
"Crazy Ex-Girlfriend" nailed the typical "Jewish mother" character in "My Mom, Greg's Mom And Josh's Sweet Dance Moves."
Episode: Season 1, episode 8
Rebecca's (Rachel Bloom) overbearing mother Naomi (Tovah Feldshuh) is visiting her for the holidays but the two clash when Naomi learns her daughter has been lying to her about how successful her new life in California is. After multiple musical numbers — including the ridiculous "Where's the Bathroom?" — Noami admits that the reason she's been nagging Rebecca so much about giving up her lucrative job is because that's how she expresses her love, and she only wants the best for her daughter.
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