Roll out the red carpet... I am ecstatic to share with you all this new Hallmark Press Release - which details the upcoming Hallmark Channel "Christmas Keepsake" event and the Hallmark Movies & Mysteries "Gold Crown Christmas" lineup coming in July!
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| Lacey Chabert in Hallmark's 'A Royal Christmas' |
Here are some of the Highlights, from the press release:
*The Hallmark Channel and Hallmark Movies & Mysteries will have Christmas programming 24/7, from July 3 - 12, 2015!
*During the 'Christmas in July' event, Hallmark will take viewers behind the scenes of many of the NEW Christmas movies - upcoming this Christmas Season!
*Also, the Hallmark Channel has announced a summer preview of an ALL New Christmas Movie, starring Hallmark's Princess and Darling, actress Lacey Chabert. The working title for this film is: A Family Christmas. (We will definitely want to watch for that!)
*Besides, 'A Family Christmas', the press release also mentions upcoming Christmas Movie Titles: 'Northpole, Open for Christmas', 'The Secret Life of Mrs. Claus', and Karen Kingsbury's 'The Bridge'.
*"Countdown to Christmas" on the Hallmark Channel and "The Most Wonderful Movies of Christmas" on Hallmark Movies & Mysteries will both begin October 31st, 2015!
Let's Enjoy Counting the Days 'til Christmas Together!
And Now... Here's the Official Statement from Hallmark-
HALLMARK CHANNEL PRESS RELEASE:
CROWN MEDIA FAMILY NETWORKS’ OWNERSHIP OF CHRISTMAS CONTINUES TO
DOMINATE TV AND CAPTIVATE VIEWERS
WHY WAIT UNTIL DECEMBER?
HALLMARK CHANNEL AND HALLMARK MOVIES & MYSTERIES
CHRISTMAS EVENT IS BIGGER, BETTER, MORE!
BEGINS JULY 3-12
Hallmark Channel’s Treasured “Christmas Keepsake” Event to Host
Array of Network’s Favorite Original Holiday Movies
Hallmark Movies & Mysteries Gets in the Spirit with 24/7
Hallmark Hall of Fame Movies And Christmas Classics as part of “Gold Crown Christmas”
Crown Media Family Networks, continuing as the unstoppable #1 family holiday entertainment destination on television, announces its networks’ traditional Christmas-themed programming events are bigger, better, and more of what Christmas enthusiasts look forward to all year long. Hallmark Channel and Hallmark Movies & Mysteries are proud to host 24/7 holiday-themed lineups, showcasing the top-rated Christmas favorites, timeless classics, and a rare sneak peek at an upcoming Hallmark Channel Original holiday movie.
Hallmark Channel, the reigning #1 network for high-quality holiday viewing, presents the blockbuster 2015 edition of “Christmas Keepsake,” a holiday extravaganza beginning Friday, July 3, 2015 at 2p.m. ET/PT until Sunday, July 12 at midnight. The 24/7 programming slate will feature the network’s most beloved original holiday movies alongside fan favorites, including last year’s top cable movie of the year, “Christmas Under Wraps,” “Debbie Macomber’s Mrs. Miracle,” “A Royal Christmas,” “The Nine Lives of Christmas,” and many more. The “Christmas Keepsake” event will also feature a summer preview of the ALL-NEW Original World Premiere holiday 2015 movie, “Family Christmas” (wt), starring Lacey Chabert!
Hallmark Movies & Mysteries also gears up for its own special and most impressive lineup of holiday favorites yet, with “Gold Crown Christmas.” The exclusive, 24/7 Christmas programming event will showcase timeless classics from the award-winning Hallmark Hall of Fame library and a collection of cherished holiday family films. “Gold Crown Christmas” begins Friday, July 3 at 6a.m. ET/PT and last through Sunday, July 12 at midnight.
“Christmas is the most wonderful time of year on Crown Media Family Networks, and Hallmark Channel and Hallmark Movies & Mysteries are consistently the place for viewers who can’t get enough of our exclusive holiday programming,” said Michelle Vicary, Executive Vice President, Programming, Crown Media Family Networks. “That is why we can’t wait to bring our most celebrated and top-rated original Christmas movies and programs to viewers in July, to remind them of the magic of Christmas, and gift them with the holiday joy we all anticipate year after year.”
During “Christmas Keepsake,” holiday movie lovers will go behind the scenes of many of the NEW Christmas movies coming to Hallmark Channel beginning October 31. Hallmark Channel Original Movies for holiday will feature “Northpole: Open For Christmas,” “The Secret Life of Mrs. Claus” and more.
Hallmark Movies & Mysteries “The Most Wonderful Movies of Christmas” also begins October 31. TV viewers anticipate the World Premiere of the much-anticipated film adaptation of #1 New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Karen Kingsbury’s mega-novel, “The Bridge,” expected to be one of the most viewed programs on cable in 2015.
I was soooooo excited when I read this press release yesterday (Net, I'm the one who emailed you with the link last night), as it touched on the Christmas in July events on both Hallmark channels, and also touched on the Countdown to Christmas later this year! It was a press release with a bonanza o' good holiday info and was full of good tidings and holiday cheer!
ReplyDeletePlus, the TV commercials advertising the July events have already begun airing on both Hallmark channels. Once we get to July, we will see more commercials for the Countdown to Christmas too (with the new start date of 10/31, instead of the previously advertised 11/1 date).
Sadly, with this wonderful news comes the beginning of the endless, annoying, tedious grumbling and complaining by the anti-Christmas movie marathon people on the Hallmark Channel Facebook page. This is only the start of it, but when Hallmark begins to actually promote the July marathons on its Facebook pages -- which it has not yet done -- the complaints, demands and threats to boycott and stop watching the channel forever will be coming fast and furious. So irritating...
All I can say is, thank goodness the actual ratings do the talking -- and that's what Hallmark listens to. If the ratings were not great, Hallmark wouldn't be doing these marathons, plain and simple. But thank goodness they don't listen to the complainers who consistently forget that Hallmark is a brand -- at its core -- that celebrates holidays and special occasions in a big way. That's what Hallmark has always been about, going back to its roots, and the movie marathons are just an extension of that concept.
Thank you. Are you the one who commented yesterday saying a press release was out - and I knew where to look? That was cute!
DeleteI, too, dislike when people complain about the Christmas programming. If those few people don't like it, while millions of others do, they can certainly turn the channel!
For all of us who love Christmas, it looks like we'll have lots of Christmas movies to look forward to being previewed in July!
Thanks so much on all the great movie feedback! Net
Yes -- I was the one who said that you know where to look (to find the press release)! It's probably hard to figure out who is who on this site, because a lot of us are "Anonymous"! Lol. I will always give my name if I send an email, but for some weird reason I use "Anonymous" here.
DeleteThe odd thing was that I think I must have caught that press release right after it went up yesterday, and I copied the link to it right away -- and then it was gone. It was hidden under a certain category. That's where I first found it. No more than one hour later, I checked again and the press release had disappeared from that specific section, and the category it was under had vanished from view as well. Someone must have gone into the site and moved it. Since I still had the link I could access it, but I could no longer find it listed on the actual site.
In any case, I couldn't believe how much great info was in the release, and I wonder when Hallmark will begin promoting the July event on the Facebook pages, now that the TV ads are already running.
The thing that is so frustrating about so many of the complaints from the anti-Christmas movie folks is that they seem to want Hallmark to just be a 'regular' TV network that airs the same series all year long -- not just the new, original series, which are fine, but the old sitcoms that can be found on other channels AND on DVD. They don't want Hallmark to be different, or to focus on holidays or to showcase bigger holiday events than the other channels do.
As we all know, many of Hallmark's Christmas movies are not on DVD and will probably never be released on DVD. And the DVR can only hold so many movies, let's face it. So the only chances we have to see a lot of the movies are when they actually air on Hallmark. But "The Golden Girls," "I Love Lucy," "Frasier," etc., are all available for viewing (and for purchase) on other channels. And those series run ALL YEAR LONG on the Hallmark Channel, during all of the months when there is not a 24/7 marathon happening.
If Hallmark wants to devote 2 full weeks of 24/7 movies to Valentine's Day, 10 days of 24/7 holiday movies in July, and 2 full months of holiday fun at the end of the year, they will STILL be running the other TV series/sitcoms, uninterrupted, for the other NINE months of the year. To me, that seems like a pretty sweet deal and compromise for all of the grumblers and complainers -- they are actually coming out ahead! But it is never enough for them. They want to take away the holiday fun that we have because they don't like it.
When we moved to a small parsonage last year to pastor a church, we made a decision to bring only a DVD player (no cable or network TV). The library has a wealth of movies to check out (for free) so that's all we watch. Which means ALOT of Christmas. In December. And January. And February...you get the picture! I love it BC I love year round Christmas. Though I do worry about losing the specialness (go with me on that vocab choice) of it all. Sadly though, it means it'll be next year before I get to see these new Hallmark Christmas movies!
DeleteThere's no place like "It's A Wonderful Movie" for all your official Hallmark Christmas news!! How exciting; looks bigger and better than last year. (side note) Net, check out the pine trees when you're out and about. The very tips of the branches are forming into perfect crosses. Every morning when I look out my window, I'm reminded that God has everything under control!!....Peace.....
ReplyDeleteNet --
ReplyDeleteYou know, I just randomly pulled up some movie titles on the Hallmark Channel website to see if the View All Showtimes listings had changed for any of them.
Things are quietly changing behind the scenes on the schedule -- I am guessing that it still being mapped out -- because some of what was there a couple of days ago is not there now. "The Christmas Parade" has changed airtimes. "The Christmas Spirit" has vanished completely. "The Christmas Ornament" has vanished completely as well -- but I am 100% positive that it will be back on the schedule, as it is a very popular movie.
It now appears that "Hitched for the Holidays" might be starting off the marathon on 7/3?
I don't know. I hesitate to even mention the titles and what has changed or gone missing because I suspect that the schedule could look completely different one week from now, not to mention one month from now. Certain titles may appear and disappear from the schedule at random, and some people in certain areas/markets might get a more extended July schedule than others get (which is what happened in 2014 when we were originally supposed to get 24/7 programming).
One thing I hope is that they cut down the number showings of "Home Alone" from five to 2 or 3, and then add something else in that was not previously on the schedule.
Thank you so much for sharing that. I just went to look, as well... and as you said, the schedule is being rearranged, quite a bit. I think I will have to, unfortunately, remove the Christmas in July schedule for now.... but, it will be back!!!
DeleteI can hardly believe The Christmas Ornament has disappeared! And, two of my faves, A Boyfriend for Christmas and A Holiday Engagement, have been reduced to one showing! The Most Wonderful Time of the Year is also still at one showing, as well.
Ughhh!!! Guess we will have to wait and see!
Net --
ReplyDeleteYou're very welcome! I was actually startled to see that "The Christmas Ornament" -- which had at one point been on the schedule two times -- disappeared from the July line-up, but I am trying to reassure myself that it is a very popular movie and it is bound to end up somewhere on the schedule for July.
You know what I am actually thinking might happen...... I am wondering if, perhaps, some of the movies that have either suddenly 'gone missing' from the original Hallmark Channel July schedule, or the ones that have not yet appeared on the schedule at all ("Angels & Ornaments," for example), might end up on the Hallmark Movies & Mysteries Channel.
On the Movies & Mysteries Facebook page, they have a video clip advertising their own July event. "The Christmas Shepherd" is shown in that clip, although it is not yet appearing on the July schedule on the Hallmark website. So it looks like "Shepherd" will air on HMM in July, and not on the regular Hallmark channel.
As Hallmark begins to bring more new holiday movies into the fold every year -- and we know that there will be at least 15 all-new ones later this year -- they have to do something with the older movies ("older" meaning anything from 2013 and prior. Lol). They either have to drastically reduce the number of times some of those movies air during the marathons, or they have to eliminate them entirely.
The only other option is to move some (not all) of the older movies over to Movies & Mysteries, like they did with "The Christmas Card" and "A Christmas Wish" last year. It will bring more people to the HMM channel over time, it will amp up the HMM Christmas schedule, and it will free up some space in the increasingly crowded schedule on the regular Hallmark Channel.
HMM seems to focus more on the movies that are serious, as opposed to lighthearted romps that are prominent on the Hallmark Channel. Along those lines, I can see something like "The Christmas Ornament" or "Angels & Ornaments" ending up on HMM, whereas I can't envision "Nine Lives of Christmas" or "Snow Bride" ending up over there.
So it will be interesting to see how this all plays out, and what exactly ends up on which channel in July!
Yes, it will be interesting to see which movies make both schedules and how often each are played. I can't imagine the Hallmark Channel not playing The Christmas Ornament, but then again, you are so right - HMM typically plays the emotionally heavier films. I've noticed that, as well. And, I too, watched the HMM Christmas in July promo clip on Facebook - looking to see which films would be included! I recall noticing one of my faves, A Season for Miracles!
DeleteIt's fun to get these little promo tidbits and attempt to piece it all together! Thanks for all your help! :)
Net -- Just out of curiosity, I checked the Hallmark Channel website again today, and even though their actual Schedule only goes up to mid-June, I noticed that more movies are beginning to get added into the Christmas in July line-up on either the Hallmark Channel or the Movies & Mysteries Channel.
DeleteI just randomly searched for "The Christmas Shepherd," "The Christmas Card," "A Christmas Wish," "The Christmas Secret," "Mrs. Miracle," "Call Me Mrs. Miracle," "Mr. Miracle," "Farewell, Mr. Kringle," "Angels and Ornaments," "Angels Sing," "The Christmas Ornament" and "The Christmas Spirit." The first 4 are now on the schedule, on one of the two Hallmark channels. The last 8 are NOT on the schedule.
That's right -- the 2 Mrs. Miracle movies and "The Christmas Ornament" -- all of which are among Hallmark's most popular Christmas movies -- are not showing up for July (yet). I looked for the View All Showtimes tab for all of the movies -- and there was no View All Showtimes tab for "Mrs. Miracle" or for any of the other ones I mentioned that are not on the schedule.
I suppose there is still time to add some of those movies in, but I am beginning to get the feeling that Hallmark is going to leave some of the expected movies out this time around. The fact that they are devoting 10 hours to "Home Alone" is very telling -- they may be trying to test out the ratings when they air a "classic" instead of airing some of their original movies.
Some movies are on the schedule 5 times or 4 times -- and "The Most Wonderful Time of the Year" is still only going to air one time, at a time when a lot of people won't even be home from work yet (and it, too, is one of the most popular movies, so it makes no sense to give it a bad time slot).
Frankly, it's a weird schedule this year. I don't mind that they are leaving "Mr. Miracle" w/ Rob Morrow off of the list, as I didn't like that movie anyway, but I was sure that they would air it a couple of times because it is still considered "new."
Hmmm, that all sounds very interesting! ;) I almost wonder if they are just teasing us, until they officially release the schedule themselves!
DeleteI also think it's hard to believe they would leave out the "Mrs Miracle" movies... Especially since they are by Debbie Macomber, and they will surely be promoting Cedar Cove during Christmas Keepsake week.
Also, I'm still quite surprised they are still scheduling The Most Wonderful Time of the Year only once... I know it's a favorite for myself and many others!
I agree with you, while I still love Home Alone, perhaps 5 times is too much. I wish instead, if they had to play non-Hallmark movies, too... They had chosen Eloise at Christmastime, One Magic Christmas, The Night they Saved Christmas, or how about something like All I Want for Christmas (1991), Borrowed Hearts, or On the 2nd Day of Christmas!?!?! I think there are a lot of great Christmas family movie choices out there... and, hopefully... it will be fun to see what they eventually come up with!
Has anyone heard if the pilot movie for Signed, Sealed and Delivered is coming out on dvd? Also, how about the SSD movies that are only on HMM that so many of us can't see that supported the series originally on HMC? Some of us are on fixed incomes and cannot afford the leap to the necessary upgrade on Directv.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure about all the upcoming Signed Sealed Delivered movies, but one of the Hallmark officials did say we should expect to see the pilot movie come out on DVD. Unfortunately, a release date time was not given... But it is nice to know it is coming, someday!!!
DeleteLooks like HMM will start off with "Silver Bells" great movie.
ReplyDeleteThank you always for your wonderful information of selected films. You have never disappointed me and loved them all. I wonder if anyone has talked about this season of When Call The Heart? Beautiful; story but so many added mysterious plots to follow. Sure hope they do come back with season three. Peace and Love
ReplyDeleteFor the last 4-5 years, Hallmark Channel's Christmas in July was marked on our family's calendar & we always looked forward to this time of 'relief' from all the other crappy programming. These movies were all about kindness, charity, love, family, caring, & generosity. Favorites were many of the Hallmark's older classics & favorites, too many to list, & some of the newer ones. This year, 2015, is the worst line-up ever. Home Alone does not belong on the Hallmark Channel. Worse, only a few Christmas movies are shown per day. Hallmark has lost our family as dedicated viewers as we never watch Golden Girls, Frazier, Waltons, Little House on the Prairie, but we do watch Cedar Cove, When Calls the Heart, Cheers, & some of I Love Lucy (too slap-stick). Hallmark's Christmas in July was hugely successful & needs to be restored to its original programming as done in past years to win us back.
ReplyDeleteChristmas is not in July why cant we celebrate the 4th of July it is more appropriate than Christmas movies we get enough of them starting in September, October, November, and December..
ReplyDeleteWhat happened to the mystery programs in the afthernoon. I have no interest in chritmas in July
ReplyDeleteI haven't seen One Magic Christmas, The Christmas List, or On the Second Day of Christmas in a couple years.....do you know if they will be on this Christmas season, they are some of my favorites!!!
ReplyDeleteAre you people serious, Christmas is already ruined with all the commercialism, why do we have to watch these shows in the middle of summer, October thru December was quite enough!!!
ReplyDeleteLighten up. There are worse things to be worried about in life.
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