There Was A Forgotten Prequel About The Grinch That Changes Everything

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The Grinch Had A Prequel That We All Forgot About, But It's Making A Comeback

ABC

This year we saw the Grinch pop back into the mainstream thanks to a new animated movie starring Benedict Cumberbatch, but for a lot of us, it's the original cartoon that brings us the most festive cheer.

We remember watching it over and over as the holiday approached, and honestly, we can probably all recite the entire script without prompting.

But there is one thing that people may not have realized about the original television special that means so much to us, turns out, it's not the only Grinch story.

Dr. Seuss actually wrote another story about the iconic character who lives up on Mount Crumpit with his dog Max, and it was also turned into a television special!

It isn't based around Christmas though, it's actually a Halloween movie!

It's called Halloween is Grinch Night and it was written 20 years after How the Grinch Stole Christmas. Even though it was written so long after the first story, it's actually supposed to take place before the Christmas thievery.

But there is no Cindy Lou, instead the Who that the Grinch spends the most time with is a young boy named Euchariah.

The story all starts with the Whos barricading themselves into their homes because of the "Sour Sweet Wind" that has started blowing. When we check in with the Grinch for the first time, we see a bit of a different Grinch.

He's doing his own little tap dancing number, and he's getting ready for his trip down the mountain.

He forces Max to drag him down the mountain. Max even gets a song, and it's the saddest thing you'll ever hear. "How many times have I said in my head, what am I doing here? Why am I the slave of this Grinchy old crock," Max sings.

But as the special goes on and the Grinch continues wreaking havoc, young Euchariah decides to go out on his own. He then comes across Max, not realizing the Grinch is right there. But when the Grinch spots him he almost doesn't recognize him because he has astigmatism.

Then inexplicably the Ginch's eyebrows fly off his face to scare the small boy, but it only works for a moment, because he chases after him, claiming he enjoys the scares.

But eventually Euchariah succeeds in his plan to stall the Grinch and jumps into his wagon where he encounters all of the scariest things he could imagine.

He stays brave and manages to fend off all of the scares, but by the time he's done, the "Sour Sweet Wind" stops blowing, forcing the Grinch back to his home.

However, Max refuses to go back with the Grinch and follows Euchariah home. The Grinch carries his wagon back up the mountain, and as he does he says that he'll be back someday.

I don't know how Max ends up back with the Grinch on Mount Crumpit when it comes time for Christmas, but I guess it all ends up okay because the Grinch changes his ways.

After watching it, I'm not going to lie, this is not as good as the original special, not even close, but it did apparently win an Emmy Award for Outstanding Children's Program.

Check it out for yourself and see what you think.

Dr. Seuss obviously knew that the Grinch was a successful character, but even though he tried to make more stories about him, none had the same lasting power as the Christmas classic. Even when he paired the Grinch up with the Cat in the hat for The Grinch Grinches the Cat in the Hat, it still couldn't compare to the original story.

I guess we like our Grinch better when his heart grows three sizes?

Souce - Business Insider / Wikipedia

Had you ever heard of these other Grinch stories?