I worked on this made-for-TV-movie as a set dresser back in 1973. It was my first job as a returning Vietnam war era veteran. The art director was a woman named Jan Scott who offered me more work as Set dresser but I chose to attend college on the GI bill as an art major, with the eventual goal of teaching art, though I did continue to work on a few more film projects on occasion.
What is very noteworthy about this production was that the majority of the crew had just finished Martin Scorcese's "Mean Streets" and many of the locations used to film Mean Streets, most notably the Green Hotel in Pasedena, were used to film Miracle. In retrospect it's funny to think about how so many who had worked with Scorsese all thought that while he was a fairly good director, he was such a neurotic quirky sort that he probably wouldn't last long in the business and also no one seemed to think much of Mean Streets as a finished product. Most did, however, have a high opinion of De Niro's acting ability.
Fielder Cook the director, was an early Hollywood television pioneer having directed episodes of Playhouse 90 and many other early TV productions. He was also quite the colorful character and well-liked by the crew. The two other people who impressed me were actors Roddy McDowell and Sebastion Cabot. Cabot, for his acting ability and McDowell Because after the project was wrapped he personally and quite sincerely thanked every crew member for a job well done.
I was so impressed by Cabot's portrayal of Kris Kringle that as a college student, during Christmas vacation I got a job as a Department store Santa at a somewhat upscale large retail establishment in L.A. and played the "role" of Santa Claus much the way Cabot did and put on makeup for every "performance".
On one occasion where there was a crowd of people waiting to bring their children up to sit on my lap and be photographed by my attractive young female "elves" I noticed a distinguished looking and portly white-haired older gentleman standing in the back of the crowd watching who I swear to God, MUST have been the Real Santa.
