HOLIDAY CLASSIC MOVIE SHOWCASE AT MJR THEATRES

Get into the holiday spirit with MJR Theatres' Big Screen Rewind, a special holiday edition bringing beloved seasonal movies back to the big screen at all 10 MJR Theatre locations in Michigan. The weekly series invites moviegoers to revisit the films that have become part of the holiday tradition, from laugh-out-loud comedies and family favorites to timeless Christmas classics.

Whether it's a long-standing family tradition, a favorite movie night with friends, or an opportunity to introduce a new generation to holiday films, Big Screen Rewind offers the perfect way to celebrate the season with a little nostalgia and big-screen magic. Each week features a different holiday favorite, giving audiences a new reason to head to the theatre and make memories throughout the most wonderful time of the year. 

Making the experience even sweeter, these all-ages films are only $5 per person and offer family and friends the ability to see their favorite seasonal films the way they were meant to be seen, on the big screen!

November 6 – November 12

GREMLINS:  A wholesome, All-American town is turned upside-down, when "gremlins"--some impish little creatures--are accidentally unleashed and wreck havoc. Rated PG

November 6 – November 12

A CHRISTMAS STORY: In the 1940's, in the town of Hammond, 9-year-old Ralphie wants one thing for Christmas -- an official Red Ryder BB rifle. When he asks his mother for the BB gun for Christmas, she says, "No, you'll shoot your eye out". When he writes an essay about it at school his teacher gives him a C+ with a note saying "You'll shoot your eye out." Next he asks Santa for the gun, Santa's response is familiar, he says, "You'll shoot your eye out, kid." Ralph fears that he'll never get the BB gun for Christmas. But there may be a surprise in store for him. Rated PG

November 13 – November 19

THE GRINCH (2018): The Grinch tells the story of a cynical grump who goes on a mission to steal Christmas, only to have his heart changed by a young girl's generous holiday spirit. Funny, heartwarming and visually stunning, it's a universal story about the spirit of Christmas and the indomitable power of optimism. Rated PG

November 20 – November 26 

CHRISTMAS VACATION: Clark Griswold, the well-intentioned, walking disaster who has dragged his family through the horrors of traveling in two previous National Lampoon Vacation films, has decided to stay home for the holidays--and the neighborhood will never be the same.​ Rated PG-13

November 27 – December 3

ELF:  As a baby, Buddy crawls into Santa's toy bag and is whisked off to the North Pole, where he is raised as an elf. A misfit who grows to be three times the size of his elf family, Buddy ultimately heads to his birthplace of New York City to seek out his roots. Unfortunately, they turn out to be a "Scrooge"-like father and a cynical ten-year-old stepbrother who doesn't believe in Santa. Worst of all, everyone seems to have forgotten the true meaning of Christmas. But using his simple elf ways, Buddy sets out to single-handedly win over his family and save Christmas in New York, hoping to at last find his true place in the world. Rated PG

December 4 – December 10

HOW THE GRINCH STOLE CHRISTMAS (2000): The curmudgeonly recluse Grinch, who hates Christmas, becomes annoyed with the out-of-control Christmas festivities in Whoville, the town lying below his cave dwelling on Mt. Crumpit. But after the Grinch conspires to deprive the Who's of their favorite holiday by sneaking into town on Christmas eve to steal everything associated with the holiday, he learns that the spirit of Christmas goes much deeper than tinsel and toys. Rated PG

December 11 – December 17

THE POLAR EXPRESS: A young boy lies awake in his room one snowy Christmas Eve, excited and alert. Breathing silently. Hardly moving. Waiting. He's listening for a sound he's afraid that he might never hear--the ringing bells of Santa's sleigh. The time is five minutes to midnight. Suddenly, a thunderous roar startles the boy. Clearing the mist from his window he sees the most amazing sight--a gleaming black train rumbles to a stop right in front of his house, the steam from its powerful engine hissing through the night sky and the softly falling snowflakes. The boy rushes outside, clad only in his pajamas and slippers, and is met by the train's conductor who seems to be waiting just for him. "Well, are you coming?" the conductor inquires. "Where?" the boy asks. "Why, to the North Pole--of course. This is the Polar Express!" What unfolds is an adventure that follows a doubting young boy, who takes an extraordinary train ride to the North Pole; during this ride, he embarks on a journey of self-discovery that shows him that the wonder of life never fades for those who believe. Rated G

December 18 – December 25

WHITE CHRISTMAS: Ring in the holiday season like never before when Irving Berlin's beloved White Christmas returns to the big screen for a two-day celebration. Fans of all ages will gather together to experience the full splendor of a successful song-and-dance duo (Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye) pairing up with a charming sister act (Rosemary Clooney and Vera-Ellen) to save a struggling Vermont inn. In addition to reliving this holiday classic, audiences will be treated to special backstage stories and an Irving Berlin White Christmas retrospective. Rated N/A

$5 tickets for these movies can be purchased online at mjrtheatres.com on MJR's App, and at theatre Box Offices.

FAMILY MOVIE NIGHT GIVEAWAY

I'm thankful for all our ageekdaddy.com visitors and @Geekdad248 social media followers on Twitter and Instagram. So this Thanksgiving Weekend I'm hosting a special giveaway courtesy of Universal Pictures Home Entertainment! This dad blogger loves family movie nights and some of my favorite films while I've been online with you have been the animated flicks from ILLUMINATION. So I'm excited to announce one lucky winner in this very special blog giveaway will receive an incredible family movie night prize pack that consisting of all ten of Illumination's blockbuster comedies including all three Despicable Me films, The Secret Life of Pets 1 & 2, Hop, Minions, Sing, Dr. Seuss' The Grinch and Dr. Seuss' The Lorax.

In addition to the feature presentations, this ILLUMINATION PRESENTS 10-MOVIE COLLECTION also has all of the mini-movies, sing-alongs, games and other special features included in the home entertainment video releases of these movies. This is a must have addition to any home entertainment video library if you have young children in your household. I have to admit though I enjoy watching all these movies with or without my kids. These really are some great films that prove animated shows can be great entertainment for all ages!

 

Illumination presents all ten of their blockbuster comedies in one collection for the whole family. The ILLUMINATION PRESENTS 10-MOVIE COLLECTION features all - star voice casts including Steve Carell , Kristen Wiig, Kevin Hart, Jenny Slate, Sandra Bullock , and Michael Keaton providing hours of entertainment with theatrically released feature films and tons of bonus content! In this time of pandemic quarantines this collection provides everything you need for numerous fun family movie nights at home.

One randomly selected giveaway participant will be chosen from validly submitted Rafflecopter entries below. Must be a United States resident over 18 years old. Entries must be submitted by 11:59 pm on Monday, November 30, 2020. Delivery of the prize is the responsibility of Universal Pictures Home Entertainment. Illumination and Universal Pictures Home Entertainment are subsidiaries of NBCUniversal, a Comcast company. Good luck and Happy Thanksgiving!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

ILLUMINATION PRESENTS 10-MOVIE COLLECTION would make an excellent holiday gift! Don't be a Grinch and give the gift of a family movie night. This movie collection is available on Blu-ray from Best Buy. If you buy the ILLUMINATION PRESENTS 10-MOVIE COLLECTION using a Geek Daddy affiliate link this dad blogger will receive a small commission at no additional expense to your purchase. Your support is appreciated and provides a budget that allows us to provide non-sponsored content to share with you.

PARTY LIKE A GRINCH

Have yourself a WHO-bilation and throw a GRINCH PARTY to spread some holiday cheer this year. No one has the ability to turn frowns upside down like the Grinch with his endearing story that evolves from attempting to steal all the Christmas celebrations from the people of Whoville to becoming a symbol of holiday cheer himself.  From the iconic 1966 television special to this year's new feature film by Illumination Studios, enjoying stories about the Grinch have become synonymous with celebrating Christmas for many families.  My friends over at WHOLESALE HALLOWEEN COSTUMES shared with ageekdaddy.com some great suggestions for hosting a holiday gathering that will allow your guests to party like a Grinch themselves.

Costumes don't have to be just for Halloween! Pick yourself up an outfit so the Grinch himself can make an appearance at a themed party. WHOLESALE HALLOWEEN COSTUMES also has numerous Thanksgiving and Christmas costumes ranging from turkeys to Santa Claus to get you into holiday character for parties and holiday get-togethers.

Craft creative do it yourself decorations like a Whoville Christmas Tree for a Grinch themed party. Not crafty? You can find all sorts of props and decorations all year long from WHOLESALE PARTY SUPPLIES.  Create a selfie photo booth with a Grinch stand up display. Set out Grinch table settings completed with a character balloon tied to the back of each guest's chair. There are a lot of fun things you can do to make your guests feel as if they've been transported to Whoville.

Let's not forget about food too. Make some deserts that look like the Grinch's face using plastic cups filled with Jello. Turn store bought chocolate donuts into the Grinch's dog Max, using candy complete with his reindeer ears made from pretzel bits. Make some charming party favors by filling Christmas Tree ornaments with green jelly beans.

CLICK HERE for more tips and suggestions from the folks behind WHOLESALE HALLOWEEN COSTUMES and WHOLESALE PARTY DECORATIONS on hosting your own Grinch themed party.

The Grinch Trailer

The folks over at Illumination Entertainment animation studio sent me a sweet announcement about a trailer release ... this cookie with a message in frosting noting that Dr. Seuss' THE GRINCH will be arriving at movie theaters across the USA on November 9, 2018 along with a postcard announcing the film's trailer was available now to see.  Illumination did a wonderful job transforming the story of THE LORAX into a movie which my family owns as part of our home entertainment library and regularly watches over and over again.  So we are all excited to see the studio bringing another Dr. Seuss story to the silver screen.

THE GRINCH will be a modernized retelling of Dr Seuss' classic How the Grinch Stole Christmas! originally published in 1957.  Illumination is the studio behind a number of recent hit animated movies including the Despicable Me franchise, Sing and The Secret Life of Pets and from looking at the trailer it appears THE GRINCH will have a similar artistic style to those other films.  THE GRINCH has been scripted by Michael LeSieur, directed by Yarrow Cheney and Scott Mosier, with music by Danny Elfman and starring Benedict Cumberbatch (Doctor Strange / Sherlock) as the voice of the Grinch.  Check it out the trailer for yourself:



Obviously, with its Christmas themed story this movie is being released to be enjoyed during the holiday season.  Based upon our enjoyment of previous Illumination animated features, THE GRINCH is a movie that my family is absolutely going to be looking forward to seeing when it arrives at theaters.  For more information, visit the movie's official website grinchmovie.com.

Happy 109th Birthday Dr. Seuss

Theodor Seuss Geisel ( aka Dr. Seuss ) was born on March 2, 1904  and he would have turned 109 years old TODAY! Theodor Geisel passed away in 1991 but still lives in the hearts of everyone who has ever read, or had read to them, childhood classics like the Cat in the Hat, the Lorax, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street, and If I Ran the Zoo.  During his career as a writer, poet, and cartoonist his use of imaginative characters, rhyme, and frequent use of trisyllabic meter was highlighted in 46 books that were published under the well-known pseudonym Dr. Seuss.  These books have both educated and entertained generations of children.  I know they are prominently included in my children’s library. Happy Birthday Dr. Seuss and thank you for being you!

This month KOHL’S is selling in its stores and online through its Kohl’s Cares foundation Dr. Seuss  books and toys for $5 each.  Kohl’s  department stores sell designated Kohl’s Cares kid-friendly merchandise with 100% of net profit from these sales donated to children’s health and education initiatives within the United States.  Since 2000, more than $208 million has been donated to charitable causes through the Kohl’s Cares program.  The Dr. Seuss items on sale are books (The Cat in the Hat, ABCs, Horton Hears a Who, Dr. Seuss’s Sleep Book, Happy Birthday to You, and the Dr. Seuss All Occasions Note Card Set) and stuffed animals (The Cat in the Hat, Horton, the Alligator and Red Rhino from ABCs, and Snoozapalo from the Sleep Book) are $5 each. Click here for more information.

 

I read to my 4 year old twins Dr. Seuss's "ABCs" book every day to help them with learning their letters and numbers.  As they have gotten older though, we've begun letting them use our PC and iPad to play with and learn from educational apps. Oceanhouse Media has done a nice job of publishing Dr. Seuss' works as interactive storybook apps for mobile IOS, Android, and Nook devices. We have several of these that we enjoy loaded on both my iPad and iPhone. In recognition of Dr. Seuss birthday they are giving away this weekend FREE two of their Dr. Seuss apps, Dr. Seuss Camera & Cat in the Hat Camera. CLICK HERE for more information.

 

The Dr. Seuss Camera apps let you use the camera on your iPhone or iPad to create images  personalized with your own photographs and incorporating Dr. Seuss’s artwork and characters. The apps feature:
 

• 16 cards based on original artwork by Dr. Seuss
• Take a picture with your face in the cutout or alongside the characters
• Load images from your Photo Library
• Add crazy borders and stamps to your cards
• Move, rotate, scale and delete stamps to further customize your cards
• Save cards to your Photo Library or e-mail them to family & friends

 

 

Dr. Seuss book publisher Random House also has an official website dedicated to the author www.seussville.com which is full of interactive features plus fun and educational activities, crafts, and learning tools for your kids.