May your days be merry and bright...

It’s here. Or should I say, it's here!

Television commercials are flaunting holiday shopping deals and the stores are draped in red and green. This can only mean one thing—the rest of the world has finally caught up with me.

As someone who pulls out my Frank Sinatra Christmas classics on Labor Day and decorates the ol' Tannenbaum the day after Halloween, I've been awaiting ABC Family's month-long gift of airing holiday classics. For this Christmas-fanatic, nothing rings in holiday cheer more than the 1954 classic, White Christmas.

I scoff a “Bah! Humbug!” to those who have labeled the film a cheesey, staged, Bing Crosby publicity deal. Christmas just can’t be Christmas without this movie full of Irving Berlin favorites articulated by a more-than-capable cast.

Bob Wallace (Bing Crosby) and Phil Davis (Danny Kaye) team-up to form a successful song-and-dance act after serving together in WWII. When the duo meets two singing sisters, Judy (Vera-Ellen) and Betty Hanes (Rosemary Clooney), they decide to join the women and spend their show's holiday break at Columbia Inn in Vermont, where the sisters are slated to perform.

After a train car singing performance of “Snow” (in four-part harmony, nonetheless), the travelers arrive in Vermont to find dry ground, and Wallace and Davis discover that their former general now owns the lodge they are staying at.

With full-fledged Christmas spirit, the foursome decides to bring Wallace and Davis' show, “Playing Around,” to the inn to boost the lodge’s business and the spirits of the men’s former general. Amidst the musical numbers, the characters find time to do a little matchmaking on the side.

Regarded as one of the best singers of his time, Crosby's smooth baritone carries the film’s defining favorites, such as “White Christmas,” “Count Your Blessings,” and “What Can You Do With a General?” The crooner’s virtuosity is a perfect counterpart to Kaye’s comedic clumsiness—which is quickly exposed as an act every time the audience witnesses Kaye's impressive dance moves.

Clooney's vocal jazz is rich and smooth—almost like the maple syrup that is so characteristic of Vermont. Her harmonies with Crosby create strong, steady performances of White Christmas’ unforgettable songs. Vera-Ellen's singing talent is only featured in group numbers. Perhaps because she is too busy displaying her undeniable agility in the movie's dance-focused numbers.

Though the plot of the film is predictable, the movie's story is enhanced with the singing and dancing. With two renowned singers in Crosby and Clooney and two acclaimed dancers in Kaye and Vera-Ellen, the talent in the movie is impossible to go unnoticed. However, so is Vera-Ellen's severe battle with anorexia...

Director Michael Curtiz' balance of music and acting carried the movie to its success. In addition to earning Irving Berlin an Oscar nod for Best Original Song (“Count Your Blessings”), White Christmas was among the highest grossing films of 1954.

Even though White Christmas is more than 50 years old and doesn't feature the special effects that we have grown to take for granted, its story is timeless. With a theme of giving and coming together, the movie spells out the true meaning of Christmas.

With that warm-fuzzy, I'm making myself a mug of hot chocolate and starting the season the right way—dreaming of a white Christmas.

Today's verdict: 55 years later, and Bing is still at the heart of Christmas