Searching for a 35mm or 16mm copy of a Lost Film

[Josh Logan]

Howdy all,

I'm brand new to the boards here and this is my first post, so any feedback is greatly appreciated. I handled 16mm through college then worked as a 35mm projection operator for about a decade in a movie chain. That's where I really learned a love of film and the art of projection.

For the last few years I've been researching a "lost", independent film from the early 1960's called "Miracle of the White Reindeer" (then re-released as "The Miracle of Santa's White Reindeer"). I don't think this film is truly gone - more likely it is either in a private archive or a personal collection. That said, I've yet to find it and frankly don't have a lot of good leads.

I'm wondering if anyone has ever heard of this title, or perhaps known of a 16mm copy? Since it was never released to TV, I doubt a 16mm copy was struck, but never hurts to ask around.

I'm open to any thoughts, suggestions or avenues to look around for this. Certainly, if there's anyone (perhaps a projectionist or theatre worker) that has direct knowledge of the film (which played theatres up through the 1970's), I'd love to speak with you!

Thanks for taking the time to read this folks- really appreciate it!

[Brian Fretwell]

IMDB shows its first US release as November 1960 and that it is a B&W film, running time 60 minutes. Cast details but no plot shown.

[Josh Logan]

Thank you Brian- appreciate the response!

I've been able to get a pretty good handle on cast and tech specs. I've actually interviewed a few people connected to the film in some capacity and also have a bit of plot overview.

I'd love to locate a copy of the actual film (the holy grail here), previews/coming attractions, the screenplay (which outside of a cutting continuity, can confirm IS lost unless someone has a copy from the actors) or a Showman's Manual (basically a pressbook) for the movie.

Thank you again for taking the time to help out!

[Melvin England]

Hi Josh - I have just sent you a Private Mail (PM).

[Joe Caruso]

Thought it was the 1953 British release

[Josh Logan]

Hi Joe! So the film was shot late 1950's. Around 1958ish. Then gets subsequently released and released into the 1960's. I actually can't confirm if it was released outside the United States (I can track it's American release dates through the 70's via newspaper clippings).

[Josh Logan]

Hello all,

Been a moment since I posted this and though it couldn't hurt to try bumping it up the ladder again and see if any new eyes see it and can offer any insights.

Thank you again for any direction and thoughts!

[Joerg Polzfusz]

Hi!
Did you contact the writers' guild of America or the library of congress? Usually you’ll deposit a copy of the movie/script there to register your copyright. (Of course when it’s really a British production, then they might have done the copyright-registration in the UK… Did you contact the BFI? https://www.bfi.org.uk/bfi-national-archive )

[Josh Logan]

Hello and thank you for reaching out!

Yes, unfortunately the nothing remains at the Writer's Guild as the original copyright on it was not renewed after 5 years and unfortunately, a copy was not submitted to LOC.

This was an American made independent film (shot in LA).

My only hope is private collectors or archives (there is a print at the Academy of Motion Pictures) that might be willing to help.

[Lee Mannering]

Hi Josh. All I can offer is encouragement in your search.
I spent the best part of 30 years researching British comedian Frank Randle's films, Richard Hearne aka Mr Pastry who lived near us. After years finding material I even found Richards own home movies which were broadcast on TV.
Keep going Josh and never give up.

[Ed Gordon]

I had never heard of this one, so when I did an internet search most results pointed back to lostmediawiki.com. There I found this:
The Miracle of Santa's White Reindeer (lost Christmas fantasy film; 1960)

The Secret of the White Reindeer, subsequently retitled as The Miracle of the White Reindeer before being retitled again as The Miracle of Santa's White Reindeer, was an independently produced low-budget feature-length Christmas film running approximately 60 minutes long. According to the AFI Catalog, the film was a mix of live-action and animation. The film was originally produced in 1957. However, it was withheld from release for some time, as one of the stars, veteran actor Charles Winninger, sued the producers, Fred Gerrior and Martin Nosseck, for $6000 dollars in unpaid wages. In 1959, after Winninger won his suit, production appears to have passed into the hands of Nick Giovan.^[1]
According to some sources, such as IMDb, the story and screenplay were written by Lawrence Raimond. However, this is unconfirmed. Very little is known about the plot. A short 1957 news article briefly mentions that two little children visit the zoo to try to find a reindeer for Santa Claus. On a Tapatalk forum discussion, one member recounts seeing the film in 1963. This person claims that the children went to visit an elderly man who tells them a story from WWII about lost soldiers ending up at the North Pole and finding the titular white reindeer. Some of the remaining stills could support this, as they do show the children meeting an older gentleman. While the plot details are unclear, the film was intended for the younger viewers, specifically catering to the "Kiddie Matinee" children's audience. The few remaining production materials support this, as they show a chimpanzee as one of the characters.

The full article is here: https://lostmediawiki.com/The_Miracl...asy_film;_1960)