tv + media

You know Rudolph and Frosty and Santa and Snoopy. But do you recall Frodo the Burping Christmas Dog? Or Paramus' potty-mouth tree salesman? Or HanuRamaKwanzMas? They're all part of the many off-kilter seasonal video clips available online. Sure, you can watch "The Little Drummer Boy,"How the Grinch Stole Christmas" or some other holiday special for the umpteenth time on TV starting this week. Or you can check out these 12 clips of YouTube (www.youtube.com), some of them even from Minnesota.

"Frodo the Burping Christmas Dog"

www.startribune.com/a3675

Duration: 0:47

The stockings were hung by the chimney with care for this family's Christmas video message. The family dog, Frodo, had just taken his place as a faux Rudolph for the recording session when -- braaap! -- the Cockapoo's impromptu belch added much merriment to the proceedings. Someone obviously spiked the punch in Frodo's dog bowl.

"Dog Opens Christmas Gifts"

www.startribune.com/a3676

Duration: 3:28

Sadie the Lab is much more helpful than Frodo. The canine resident of Moorhead, Minn., has a knack for tearing off the wrapping paper from Christmas gifts, a talent her family discovered last year. It helps if the presents are for the dog. "I think when she learned that there were dog toys inside, she continued to tear off the paper to see what was coming next," owner Tom Frost said.

"The Christmas Tree"

www.startribune.com/a3677

Duration: 1:40

One YouTube user said you have to live in the NewYork-New Jersey area to get this clip, in which a guy in drag impersonates a "mom and her Christmas tree." I disagree. It gets funnier every time I watch it, as the mom's every spoken line concerns the annual tree -- getting it, lighting it, admiring it, flaunting it, maintaining it, photographing it and, ultimately, getting rid of it. "I loved that tree," she laments as the garbage truck leaves. "It was a good tree." Indeed. (Note: mild profanity.)

"Let Me Out!"

www.startribune.com/a3678