Because I love The Cinnamon Bear so much, I post this same article every year. This year is no different, except that I’m posting it here instead of at Get Rich Slowly. If you have young children — and even if you don’t — I encourage you to listen to these old radio broadcasts with your family.
When I was a boy, Christmas meant The Cinnamon Bear. During the weeks before Christmas, a Portland radio station (KEX) would broadcast a fifteen minute episode of this story every night.
The Cinnamon Bear chronicles the adventures of Judy and Jimmy, and their fantastic trip through Maybeland as they search for the missing Silver Star that belongs atop their Christmas tree.
I loved the cast of characters and the exotic locales: the Root Beer Ocean and the Inkaboos, the Wintergreen Witch, the Looking Glass Valley, the Crazy Quilt Dragon. And, of course, I loved Santa Claus and the North Pole.
Because of the vagaries of copyright law, most old-time radio broadcasts are now in the Public Domain. The Cinnamon Bear is freely distributable. Some radio stations still broadcast the show every year. But don’t worry about hunting for it: I’ve gathered all of the episodes here for you to download.
Collected below is every episode, in order. The program is meant to be heard once per day between November 29th (that’s Thursday) and Christmas Eve. It was one of my favorites when I was a kid, and modern parents tell me their children love it, too. Enjoy!
The program is meant to be heard once per day between November 29th (that’s Thursday) and Christmas Eve.
When I was a boy, my brothers and I huddled around the wood stove and listened to the show on AM radio. Now, through the magic of technology, you can download these mp3s, curl up under your electric blanket, and listen on your iPod. Better yet, tuck your children into bed and listen to the story with them. This is a wonderful no-cost holiday tradition.
JD, This article is how I met you (well, the online you, to start). I was googling for Cinnamon Bear (I think in 2004) and enjoyed your writing style. I’ve been reading your words ever since. -Lane
The 29th is actually Thursday 🙂 Thanks for posting again this year — maybe I’ll be radio old-timey and listen to one per day as originally intended!
Not sure where you guys are but in Portland, the Portland Spirit does a Cinnamon Bear cruise every December. You can bring your family on board for pretty cheap, for a 2 hour cruise. You get your picture taken with Cinnamon Bear, Queen Melissa does story time, Presto does a magic show, Crazy Quilt and Captain Taffy are on board. It’s a ton of fun! They also have the radio show and a children’s book you can purchase in their gift shop.