Santa Claus Conquers the Martians

Jalor Productions
Company type	Production company
Industry	Film production
Founded	1964
Founder	Paul L. Jacobson

Santa Claus Conquers the Martians is a 1964 American Christmas science fiction comedy film directed by Nicholas Webster, with Paul L. Jacobson serving as both producer and screenwriter, adapting a narrative originally crafted by Glenville Mareth. The cast features John Call portraying Santa Claus, ten-year-old Pia Zadora as Girmar, the Martian girl, and Doris Rich in the pioneering cinematic depiction of Mrs. Claus.

This movie is infamous for being regarded as one of the most poorly received films ever produced and is listed among IMDb's "bottom 100" titles. Over time, it achieved cult classic status through broadcasts on Canned Film Festival (1986), Mystery Science Theater 3000 (1991), and Elvira's Movie Macabre.

Plot

Martian rulers Momar and Kimar become concerned that their offspring, Girmar and Bomar, are overly captivated by Earth television, notably a KID-TV segment featuring an interview with Santa Claus at the North Pole.

Chochem, an ancient Martian sage aged 800 years, explains that Mars’ strict educational system stifles creativity and individuality, predicting that children require more freedom and enjoyment. He proposes bringing the concept of Santa Claus to Mars as a means to encourage their youth. Consequently, the leaders decide to kidnap Santa from Earth.

Since they cannot distinguish the genuine Santa from various impostors, they abduct two Earth children to assist in identifying him. Voldar, a Martian dissenter, opposes this plan, believing Santa undermines Martian principles and makes several attempts on his life.

Once on Mars, Santa and the Earth children establish a toy factory for Martian youngsters. Voldar attempts to disrupt production while Dropo, Kimar’s aide who admires Santa and Christmas traditions, dons a spare Santa suit to impersonate him. Mistaking Dropo for the real Santa, Voldar kidnaps him.

Upon returning to the factory, Santa discovers sabotage has occurred. Voldar tries to bargain with Kimar but fails when confronted with the authentic Santa Claus. Dropo manages to escape captivity by outwitting his guard Shim. Kimar subsequently arrests Voldar, Stobo, and Shim. Recognizing Dropo’s embodiment of Santa’s spirit, Kimar appoints him as Mars’ Santa Claus and sends the original Santa back to Earth.

Production

Producer Paul Jacobson transitioned from video production into feature filmmaking with this project, recruiting writer Glenville Mareth and director Nicholas Webster under his Jalor Productions banner. Jacobson described the film as a "yuletide science fiction fantasy," intending to address a niche for children's movies outside the offerings of major studios like Disney.

He successfully negotiated distribution rights with Joseph E. Levine. The shoot took place over two weeks between July and August 1964 at Michael Myerberg Studios on Long Island. Jacobson focused on maximizing production quality despite budget constraints, utilizing color cinematography to enhance scenes set in the toy factory as well as Martian and North Pole environments. Several cast members were concurrently involved in Broadway performances during filming.

In a 1966 interview, Levine remarked on producing 15 family films within an 18-month span, emphasizing television sales as a financial safeguard despite modest theatrical attendance from family audiences.

Release

The film premiered during Christmas 1964 and was subsequently re-released regularly during holiday seasons for matinee screenings.

Home media

Since it is in the U.S. public domain, Santa Claus Conquers the Martians has been issued through various low-budget editions; the ancillary rights belong to StudioCanal.

Its Mystery Science Theater 3000 episode first aired on The Comedy Channel in December 1991 and was later released on DVD by Rhino Home Video in 2004.
The film appeared in Mill Creek Entertainment’s Holiday Family Collection DVD set released in 2006.
A riffed DVD version was produced by Cinematic Titanic in 2008.
Apprehensive Films distributed the Cinema Insomnia edition as part of their Slime Line series.
It was included as bonus material on the DVD release of Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale.
In December 2011, E1 Entertainment issued the movie on DVD within the Elvira's Movie Macabre collection.
Kino Lorber initially planned a Blu-ray/DVD release for October 2012 but delayed it until December due to issues with an incomplete master copy.
Former MST3K creators’ project RiffTrax hosted a live riff event in December 2013, which was subsequently made available digitally and on DVD; this release was paired with holiday-themed shorts in a 2016 double feature.
The film is also part of the Weird Christmas compilation on Fandor.

Box office

According to a February 1965 report by the New York Times, the movie "achieved significant box office success through multiple theatre engagements."

Critical

Critically, Santa Claus Conquers the Martians garnered predominantly unfavorable reviews, with its charm largely stemming from being "so bad it's good." On Rotten Tomatoes, it holds a score based on reviews, averaging . The critical consensus notes, "The delightfully cheesy Santa Claus Conquers the Martians may be so bad it’s entertaining for audiences seeking a subpar sci-fi holiday romp." Over time, it has gained cult film status.

Legacy

In November 1964, the film’s theme song was released as a record by "Milton Delugg and the Little Eskimos" on Four Corners Records (catalog FC 4-114), although it failed to chart. That same year, trumpeter Al Hirt also issued a single rendition.

A comic book adaptation accompanied by a read-along was published by Dell Comics in March 1966.

The movie was featured in season 3, episode 21 of Mystery Science Theater 3000 in 1991.

In 1993, a stage version titled Santa Claus Conquers the Martians: The Musical, adapted and directed by Sean Abley, debuted at Chicago’s Factory Theatre.

Rumors of a remake began circulating in February 1998, involving producer David Zucker and actor Jim Carrey, with an anticipated release around 2002; however, this project did not come to fruition. As of December 2020, IMDb lists a remake directed by Cynthia Webster—daughter of the original director—with a tentative release date of 2021.

The film inspired a satirical novelization authored by Lou Harry, published in 2005 by Penguin Books/Chamberlain Bros., which retells the story from an adult Girmar’s viewpoint using valley girl vernacular.

A second theatrical adaptation premiered in 2006 at Fullerton’s Maverick Theater, adapted by Brian Newell and Nick McGee. This version became an annual holiday tradition locally through at least 2015.

A third stage adaptation opened in 2016 at The Red Curtain Foundation for the Arts in Marysville, Washington, written and directed by Nick Poling. Like the original film, this script resides in the public domain.

The punk band Sloppy Seconds recorded a cover of the theme song in 1992.

External links