Ziggy's Gift pt 1

Ziggy's Gift is an Emmy-award winning animated TV special made in 1982, based on the comic strip Ziggy.

It was written by Ziggy's creator Tom Wilson and directed by 3-time Academy Award winning animator Richard Williams (Who Framed Roger Rabbit, The Thief and the Cobbler, A Christmas Carol). Animators included Eric Goldberg and Tom Sito with music by Harry Nilsson.

Ziggy (who does not speak any audible dialogue in the special) and his faithful dog Fuzz take a job as a street Santa to raise money for the poor. Surrounded by crooked Santas, sneaky thieves and a suspicious cop, Ziggy remains honest and kind.

Was the Richard Williams Studio overqualified to animate a TV special starring such a simple character, seemingly made for limited animation? Of course, but since Ziggy is a silent character in this special, the wonderfully expressive animation adds a lot. It's a decent special, for what it is, and very sweet-natured. Heartwarming and suitable for all ages, and certainly Eric Goldberg and the animators more than prove their skill here.

There is a Thief here who could certainly be a descendant of the eponymous Thief in Richard Williams unfinished masterpiece, The Thief and the Cobbler (viewable here on Youtube in a Recobbled Cut).

• Category

  Film & Animation

[kchishol1970]

I remember I when I first saw this special when I was 12, I couldn't help but burst into tears seeing Ziggy do such good in the midst of such grimy cynicism. Did anyone else have that reaction?

[patricia0punki]

i had that movie when i was little!!

[thaLA lakeshow]

"Fuck you man Ziggy's a comic, its right next to family circus".

[TheRetrogamer1981]

You are a hero for uploading this. I love this cartoon!

[Oecobius33]

At 7:56 I like to think that second "bye" is actually Ziggy's voice.

[kitchenfromhell]

I saw this one when I was very little, I used the drawers the same way to get on the cabinet :D

[kamanchi23]

Yes it made me feel exactly same.

[heartofmusic27]

I don't think he does in this special, but I know he does in the comics. That was one thing I wondered about Ziggy in this special.

[trycon40]

as much as i like this special it took me for ever to remember it's name. All I could remember was the story and the song (but not the name of the song)

[Montork]

this is some fiiiinnneeee animation!~

[aquelescaraaaaaaaaaa]

04:27 is that... annotations?

[celetops]

Would you believe my grandparents still have this on VHS and its still running great?..Awsome and still love this movie ^^