In this charming TV adaptation of the 1947 film classic, a kindly old gentleman (Ed Wynn) working as a Macy's department store Santa causes a commotion when he claims to be the real St. Nick. Forced to prove his sanity, he is taken to court where he must convince the judge and his friends that he actually is Santa Claus. The faith of one skeptical little girl (Susan Gordon) and a Christmas miracle are the keys to his true identity.
Mickey Rooney plays Mike Halligan, a retired cop from Manhattan living in California with his family who decides to show his grandson, who has never seen snow before, what a real white Christmas in New York is like. But he dies from a sudden heart attack in which Halligan makes a deal with the Archangel of Heaven to return to Earth for a week until Christmas and show his grandson the seasonal glories of New York City.