Directed by Jules Bass and Arthur Rankin, Jr., Jack Frost is the classic stop-motion Christmas animated special that airs every year on ABC Family.

Narrated by Pardon-Me-Pete the Groundhog (voiced by Buddy Hackett), Jack Frost tells the story of the immortal winter spirit who falls in love with the girl Elisa. Smitten by her, Jack Frost asks Father Winter if he can become human so he can be with Elisa. Winter agrees, but only on the condition that Jack prove himself worthy to be human by earning a house, a horse, a bag of gold and a wife by the first of Spring. If not, Jack will be forced to become a spirit again.

Elisa is taken with Jack, who in his human form is named Jack Snip, but alas, she is in love with another.

Sir Raveneau, a knight in golden armor. When she is kidnapped, Jack turns back in to a spirit in order to save her and locks the evil Cossack King, Kubla Kraus, in his castle. With just one hour left until Spring, Jack takes human form again and tells Elisa he loves her. She is still in love with Sir Raveneau, though, and marries him. With that, Jack turns back to a spirit and blows on Elisa’s wedding bouquet, turning it white.

Doesn’t sound like your average Christmas tale, now does it? Yet still, year-after-year, children and parents alike sit down to watch the adventures of Jack Frost in this animated classic.

With Christmas just around the corner, I’ve already seen it twice, after picking up the newly re-mastered DVD version that was released from Warner Home Video. Jack looks just as good as ever, and I take comfort in knowing that as long as my DVD player holds up, I can enjoy Jack Frost year after year with my family. Fear not, though, if for some reason you don’t have a DVD player (and I can’t imagine you wouldn’t), you can still catch Jack Frost this year on one of the ABC Family holiday classics marathon.