The tree officially arrived on Wednesday at Campus Martius Park, and crews are working to decorate and light it before the official tree lighting!
A 66-foot Michigan-grown Norway spruce takes center stage on Friday, Nov. 22, officially kicking off Detroit’s Christmas season.
Lots Of Entertainment For The Evening
Musical performances from upcoming Pop Stars and hometown talent, including Detroit’s own Queen of the Blues, Thornetta Davis.
The Rink at Campus Martius will also be up and running. Canadian skating sensation Elladj Baldé will be on the ice, joined by local award-winning pairs Linzy Fitzpatrick and Keyton Bearinger and other skating youth as special guests.
We were so honored to be asked by The Salvation Army Great Lakes Division to help kickoff the Red Kettle season during the 19th Annual Tree Lighting at Campus Martius in Downtown Detroit last month. Although it was FREEZING COLD we had so much fun playing in front of thousands with our special guest lead singer Detroit radio legend Screamin Scott Randall!
Called “the Rink at Campus Martius Park, ” it opens Saturday, Nov. 23, kicking off the 2024-2025 skating season with themed events, giveaways, and family-friendly activities. It is set perfectly right by the Christmas tree in all its beauty.
(Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)
Look For Other Family Fun All Around Downtown
Food trucks, Marshmellow roasting station campfire cans, and many food and drink options.
Getty Images
MMMM… toasted marshmallows.
The Salvation Army Big Red Kettle Will Be Lit Up
The Salvation Army of Metro Detroit’s 2024 Red Kettle Campaign kickoff and help us reach our goal! We will light the world’s tallest red kettle’s 26,000 LED lights while The Salvation Army’s Divisional Brass band brings holiday musical entertainment.
The lights will remain on for the entirety of the holiday season, accompanied by a special LED board highlighting The Salvation Army’s progress toward its Red Kettle fundraising goal.
Tim Boyle/Getty Images
The Salvation Army has been helping the needy, and close to 33 million people in the U.S. receive help from it every year.
See The World’s Largest Red Kettle
The kettle’s 26,000 LED lights will be lit at the Detroit tree-lighting ceremony while The Salvation Army’s Divisional Brass band plays festive tunes. Mounted on the tallest red kettle is an LED sign describing the impact of donations and thanking The Salvation Army of Metro Detroit’s generous partners.
If you are inspired to help us in our mission, you can donate to The Salvation Army of Metro Detroit’s virtual red kettle or volunteer as a bell ringer at registertoring.com.
List Of Must Watch Holiday Christmas Classics Movies
When it comes to Holiday Christmas Classics on TV and Movies there is no shortage of great entertainment. The holidays are going to whip by us so fast it will make your head spin. Take some time around the family tube and don’t forget some of these Christmas classics from the past.
Here are some are my personal favorites. I won’t be surprised if in some parts of the movie make your eyes water a bit. It must be the onion dip with the potato chips. I hope you get a chance to see some of my all-time favorite Christmas movies.
WCSX Staff Picks For Favorite Holiday Christmas Classics
Megan Murphy – goes right off the charts to start a controversy with the pick of the movie, “Die Hard.” Megan, a huge Bruce Willis fan says, “I’m totally 100% on the bandwagon that,Die Hard is no doubt a Christmas movie.”
Big Jim’s House Jim O’Brian – “Yippee ki yay,” a second vote for, Die Hard. As for TV classics, the episode of M*A*S* H* where Hawkeye goes out as Santa to a fox hole.
Local Celebrity Ryan Logan – The Christmas Classic, Bad Santa. The Christmas season just got much less joyous in this dark comedy, Billy Bob Thornton, Tony Cox, Bernie Mac.
“I consider Rise ofThe Guardians a Christmas movie but really it deals with all holidays. It centers around Jack Frost. The cast is star-studded. Chris Pine is Jack Frost, Hugh Jackman plays the Easter Bunny, and Alec Baldwin voices a tatted-up Russian Santa.
“Our favorite family Christmas movie is National Lampoons Christmas Vacation. The movie is a timeless classic and has so many unforgettable moments.”
Ben Perez WCSX Regional Promotions ManagerPromotions – Favorite is, A Christmas Story. Be careful, Ben, you’ll shoot your eye out, kid.
Screamin’ Scott Randall – Here are some of my personal favorites. I won’t be surprised if some parts of the movie make your eyes water a bit. It must be the onion dip with the potato chips. I hope you get a chance to see some of my all-time favorite Christmas movies. Some great Christmas Holiday Movie Classics watching is in store for the next few weeks. And if you really want to know what I think. Yes, I think, Die Hard is a Christmas movie too.
The Night of the Meek - The Twilight Zone episode (season 2, episode 11)
This movie originally aired on December 23, 1960, on CBS. Years before Bad Santa, Art Carney starred as a drunk mall Santa with one wish to make someone’s Christmas wishes come true. There are a lot of Hollywood extras in this episode to make this a wonderful Christmas classic come to life. It’s my All-TIME favorite must-see episode.
The Ref - with Denis Leary , Kevin Spacey, Judy Davis
Denis Leary plays an unfortunate cat burglar trapped in a fate worse than jail when he takes a bickering couple played by Kevin Spacey, and Judy Davis, and their annoying relatives hostage. Before long, they’re driving him nuts, and the line between who is whose hostage begins to blur. His only hope is to act as their referee and resolve their differences.
Fred Clause - starring Vince Vaughn
Vince Vaughn had a smash hit with the movie, “Swingers,” in 1996. I was so impressed that I had to watch everything that he was in. Here is Vince in a Christmas movie, Fred Clause. Imagine if Santa had a brother.
Bill Murray in "SCROOGED"
This is a hilarious take-off of Charles Dickens’s “A Christmas Carol.” Bill Murry and a cast of characters rip through the Christmas Tale with a lot of twists and turns. Even the ending seems like the movie company ran out of money for a script to finish. It does end on a happy note.
Three Stooges Christmas
What kind of Three Stooges fan are you? Do you like Shemp or Curly? This short film entitled “Malice in the Palace” features Shemp along with Moe and Larry as each don disguises as Santa Claus and rides in a horse-drawn sleigh across the sand.
Born in Mt Clemens, Screamin’ Scott has been a part of the Detroit airwaves for 30-plus years. With 40 years of experience in radio. When he’s not out on the streets for WCSX, you can find him devoting time to local charities with his, “Screamin Angels”; and for 16 years with Rock 4 Tots charity. And last 10 years with his local band, "Chit!." Screamin Scott likes to write about nostalgic Detroit area memories, classic rock, and local metro Detroit topics.
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