The three months at the end of the calendar year represent most retailers’ best hope for a successful year. Many do as much business then as in the preceding nine months. And that business revolves around the celebration of the birth of a Child more than two thousand years ago. So, in the spirit of the season, let’s take a brief look at interesting tidbits, back stories and other oddities that have developed during those years.
Let’s start out with an easy trivia question:
Q. Why is folk singer Burl Ives (1909-1995) so popular every Christmas?That was good. Now here’s another:
A. He’s the voice of Sam the Snowman in the popular television program Rudolph
the Red-nosed Reindeer – and he sings “Have a Holly Jolly Christmas.”
Q. Where does the comma go in the Carol “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen”?
A. After “Merry”. And the “Gentlemen” should not be rendered gender neutral
as many try to do, since the original Gentlemen to whom God should grant rest
were those weary Shepherds, watching their flocks by night some two thousand
years ago.
At Christmastime who do you picturedrinking Coca Cola: Santa Claus or a Polar Bear?
The answer is pretty generational. From the time of W. Clement Moore’s poem that starts “’Twas the night before Christmas…” the portrayal of Santa Claus has varied from “a right jolly old elf” to the mental picture of Santa those of us of a certain age have of him that was inspired by a Michigan native of Swedish descent named Haddon Sundblom. Sundblom had been approached by the Coca Cola Company in 1931 to create the definitive Santa, and show him drinking Coke. During the next thirty-five Christmas seasons Santa, who bore an interesting likeness to his illustrator, would find Coke relaxing or energizing or something to share – depending on the Coke message at the time. After a variety of alternative approaches, Coke tasked the Creative Artists Agency, normally a firm that represented Hollywood stars, with the assignment of coming up with something different for the 1993 Coke Christmas campaign. The result was Polar Bears, animated to be sure, but definitely Polar Bears. Since then the bears have made periodic appearances in Coke messages, improving in their abilities as computer animation has evolved.
On the other hand…
If you ever read The Saturday Evening Post – or at least looked at the covers – whose version of Santa would pop up in your head? Norman Rockwell, of course, the man who painted 327 covers for the Post from 1916 to 1963.
“I saw Mommy kissing Santa Claus, underneath the mistletoe last night…”
Why there, in particular? The legend of mistletoe goes way back to the days of the ancient Scandinavians. The spirit of Mistletoe was supposed to have killed the god of the sun, Baldur the Beautiful, resulting in all of those long nights. On the other hand, Mistletoe was also called Allheal because of its mysterious powers to cure many ailments – even that of the human spirit. This latter virtue made its way across the North Sea to England where maidens would stand coyly under a double wreath of the dark green leaves and little white berries awaiting kisses from all comers. While the custom remains to this day, it has been watered down by a number of forces and an unknowing bystander who happened to be positioned under the Mistletoe might slap a harassment suit on the lad who gave her a kiss on the cheek in the spirit of the season.
More musical trivia
“Up on the Housetop, Reindeer pause…"
And well they should, after dragging Santa’s sleigh around to millions of little children throughout the world, all within 24 hours. But, after all, these are magical Christmas Reindeer, capable of speeds in excess of dreams and moonbeams. But, what about real, down-to-earth, year-‘round reindeer? What about them? According to reliable sources, grown reindeer can pull a loaded sleigh for hours on end at speeds averaging 12-15 miles per hour (or 19kmh to 24kph in the northern European countries where you find the most reindeer pulling sleighs.)
Who was Olive and can you name the rest of Santa’s reindeer?
Olive is the answer to a favorite joke told around Christmastime, usually by first or second grade boys (or their uncles who may have had a few too many):
Q. Which of Santa’s reindeer is Olive?
A. Olive is the “other reindeer” in the song Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer,
as in “Olive, the other reindeer, used to laugh and call him names… .”
[It’s really “all of the other reindeer,” get it?]
The traditional reindeer employed by Santa, after W. Clement Moore named them, were Dasher and Dancer, Prancer and Vixen, Comet and Cupid, Donder and Blitzen.
Ah, but do you recall, the Most Famous Reindeer Of All?
Rudolph was actually born/created in a promotional storybook by the Montgomery Ward department store back in 1939. As war clouds loomed over the horizon in Europe, Robert May, a Ward’s PR staffer, wrote the book which sold more than 6,000,000 copies for Ward’s. Ten years later, in 1949, Hecky Krasnow produced the recorded version that was sung by Gene Autry (the Singing Cowboy.) That spawned a legend, and an industry.
Since so much of the celebration of Christmas is associated with music – both religious and secular –it’s no wonder that we are fascinated with the “rest of the story”…
What’s the story behind Silent Night?
On Christmas Day in 1818, according to popular legend, Father Joseph Mohr was without music for his Christmas service at Nicola-Kirche (the Church of Saint Nicholas) in Oberndorf, Austria. The pipe organ had broken down (poor church mice had gnawed holes in the bellows) and there was no way to get it repaired in time for the service. Father Mohr had written a poem for a Christmas Mass he had held in 1816, and asked his choir director, Franz Gruber, if he could do something with it. Gruber remembered the music of his upbringing in the Austrian mountains and composed a song that could be sung by almost anyone. Together, accompanied by a guitar, Father Mohr and Choirmeister Gruber, sang what has become probably the most popular Christmas carol in the world.
OK, one more musical trivia question, then it’s time for a snack:
“Now bring us some Figgie pudding… .” What’s that all about?
Figs were one of the first fruits cultivated in the cradle of civilization, then brought to England by the Romans, and put by the English into song as the traditional Christmas Carol “We Wish You A Merrie Christmas”. Or is it “Merry” and “Figgy”? We’re still working on that.
Figgie Pudding (modern recipe)(from www.clevelandseniors.com)
And, while we’re on the subject… Plum Pudding
Another English seasonal tradition is Plum Pudding (that has the traditions baked right in the pudding). The traditions are a ring, a pence (a new penny today?), a thimble and a button. After everyone in the home had taken a turn at stirring the batter (for good luck and to spread the liability around if someone choked on a “tradition”) the cook would drop the traditional items into the pudding pan along with the batter with the idea of keeping the objects as apart from each other as possible. After a sumptuous feast of roast beef or goose the flaming plum pudding was ceremoniously carried in to the dining room. Each person at the table would receive a chunk of pudding (not a slice). The person who had received the ring in their chunk of pudding would be married within the year. The recipient of the coin would become wealthy, while the holders of the thimble and the button (ideally a young woman and a young man, respectively) would end up unmarried for the next year.
Now that we’ve had our snacks, let’s get back to the serious business of wrapping the presents
“What a beautiful package! You shouldn’t have… .”
Yes, you should have. Because wrapping Christmas presents in an attractive manner is as much a part of the gift-giving process as the gift-giving idea itself. Starting in the later portion of the 1800’s, and pretty much coinciding with the reign of Queen Victoria, people began to learn in the popular press how to create packages, and wrapping papers and ribbons and bows that would contain each present so that it remained a surprise until the moment it was unwrapped. This was also the period when ankles were hidden from the lustful thoughts of men by ladies’ long dresses – and tables with “limbs” were required to be decorously concealed behind layers of skirting. So it’s only natural that dolls and other toys and presents should be concealed as well. Packaging went from primarily a do-it-yourself project to a multi-million-dollar business as the industrial revolution made affordable wrapping paper and boxes more widespread. In the latter part of the Twentieth Century there was a movement back to do-it-yourself hand-crafted decorative wrappings, but that pretty much gave way to the custom-made containers for records, then CD’s and the advent of the “gift-bag”. Now, even guys with no decorating sense could pop an otherwise impossible-to-wrap, odd-shaped present into a decorative bag, attach a pre-tied stick-on bow – and be on a par with the most accomplished gift wrapper.
Now that we have our presents wrapped (the tree is already up and decorated – see Tree History) and it’s time to…
Put a little light on the subject
When Christmas trees first moved into houses to help families celebrate the season, they were often illuminated by candlelight. While they offered a magic glow, candles were prone to burn down and ignite the tree – causing no end of additional problems.
An early use, therefore, of electric lights was to replace candles on Christmas trees. Then the fun started. At first the lights were shaped like candle flames and were large and clunky. As technology improved, the lights began to shrink, and assume even more shapes. Remember Bubble Lights? As the lights became smaller one previously-solved problem became more troublesome: how to find, and replace, the tiny bulb that had burned out somewhere in the middle of the 150-light string and was creating a vast dark patch on the lower right quadrant of the tree. That problem was solved by adding an additional wire that carried current to all of the bulbs, all of the time, not depending on each bulb to absorb juice, take what it needed and then pass it along – the scheme that failed when a bulb somewhere burned out and broke the circuit.
Now a new type of light is reaching the popular market: the Light-Emitting Diode (LED). These are the same devices that are in automobile tail lights and municipal traffic lights among other uses. They are frugal to the point of stinginess with electrical energy and they can last for an average of a year or more if left on continuously.
The problem is achieving a true white light, the kind everyone thinks of belonging on Christmas trees (unless they like to have a variety of colors – or even a single color as a theme – a trend that should have died out in the 70’s). White light is created by the addition of red, blue and green light, and LEDs are very good at producing red and green – but not too good at blue. Scientists now think they have a solution: an organic material that creates blue light that will last as long as the other components, resulting in true white lights that will last for many Christmases to come.
Time to return to musical trivia – and learn a lesson in economics.
A take or two on “The Twelve Days of Christmas”
Nearly everyone has heard The Twelve Days of Christmas, the English carol that dates back to the fifteenth century. Many can sing most, if not all of its verses. It has become so popular over the years that it has become the source for parody and economic forecasting.
Take, for example, economic forecasting.
MSN Money, among many other media organizations, annually reports on the true cost of the gifts mentioned in the carol, as derived by PNC Advisors:
“To buy the partridge in a pear tree, the 12 drummers drumming and all the gifts in between in the verses of the famous song you'd have to shell out $18,348, according to PNC Advisors' annual survey. And if you were really true to the song, buying all the gifts including the repetitions? Those 364 items would cost a cool $72,608, up 9.5% from last year's $66,344.
| 1984 | 2004 | 2005 | chg 04-05 | |
| One Partridge in a Pear Tree | $32.52 | $93.00 | $104.99 | 12.90% |
| Partridge | 12.57 | 15.00 | 15.00 | 0.00% |
| Pear Tree | 19.95 | 78.00 | 89.99 | 15.40% |
| Two Turtle Doves | 47.71 | 40.00 | 40.00 | 0.00% |
| Three French Hens | 14.78 | 45.00 | 45.00 | 0.00% |
| Four Calling Birds | 280.00 | 396.00 | 399.96 | 1.00% |
| Five Gold Rings | 275.00 | 255.00 | 325.00 | 27.50% |
| Six Geese-a-Laying | 150.00 | 210.00 | 300.00 | 42.90% |
| Seven Swans-a-Swimming | 7,000.00 | 3,500.00 | 4,200.00 | 20.00% |
| Eight Maids-a-Milking | 26.80 | 41.20 | 41.20 | 0.00% |
| Nine Ladies Dancing | 1,511.50 | 4,400.13 | 4,576.14 | 4.00% |
| 10 Lords-a-Leaping | 1,679.45 | 4,039.08 | 4,039.08 | 0.00% |
| 11 Pipers Piping | 770.56 | 2,053.20 | 2,053.20 | 0.00% |
| 12 Drummers Drumming | 834.78 | 2,224.30 | 2,224.30 | 0.00% |
| Total Christmas Price Index | 12,623.10 | 17,296.91 | 18,348.87 | 6.10% |
| True cost of Christmas in song | $62,427.10 | $66,334.46 | $72,608.02 | 9.50% |
| "Core" index, excluding swans | $13,796.91 | $14,148.87 | 2.60% |
Source: PNC Advisors
Last year's headlines had an impact on the index. Avian flu? Those swans and geese are going to cost you more because of a spike in the price of large birds. And the French hens? You couldn’t import them from France last year -- though there are domestic suppliers. Meanwhile, energy prices are driving up some delivery costs.”
We’ll provide you with an updated 12 Days of Christmas Price Index as soon as it becomes available.
Meanwhile…
Here is a short Christmas quiz game on the alternative lyrics to “12 Days”:
The variant that ends up with “3 French toasts, 2 turtlenecks and a beer in a tree” is attributed to a comedy team from:
a. Yale
b. France
c. Canada
In 1959 a popular satirist complained of the over-commercialization of Christmas in his version called “Green Chri$tma$” It ends with “5 tubeless tires, 4 quarts of gin, 3 cigars, 2 cigarettes and some hair tonic on a pear tree.” His name was:
a. Bob Newhart
b. Stan Freberg
c. Alan Sherman
Not long afterwards another satirist wrote his version that ended with “Statue of a naked lady with a clock where her stomach ought to be, Simulated alligator wallet, Calendar book with the name of my insurance man, Green polka dot pajamas, and a Japanese transistor radio (a Nakashuma, the Mark IV model – that’s the one that’s discontinued – in a leatherette case with holes in it so you can listen right through the case and a wire with a thing on one end that you can stick in your ear and a thing on the other end that you can’t stick anywhere because it’s bent.” He was:
| a. Bob Newhart |  |
|---|---|
| b. Stan Freberg |  |
| c. Alan Sherman |  |
(Answers: C, B, C)
(and special thanks to Wikipedia)
Another cultural evergreen…
A Charlie Brown Christmas (and other Christmas TV Specials)
Back in the days when there were only three networks to watch, every major variety show, even dramatic shows, had Christmas specials. Lawrence Welk, Andy Williams, even Jack Webb’s Joe Friday on Dragnet managed to get in a Christmas message. The all-time popular Christmas shows, though, were the ones broadcast in 1970 and 1971 by Bob Hope. They were the 12th and the 26th most-viewed television programs in history, topping the last episode of Cheers and a bunch of Super Bowls (the most-watched ever was the last episode of M*A*S*H*).
Perhaps the longest-running Christmas show, A Charlie Brown Christmas, won an Emmy from the Television Academy of Arts and Sciences for its original broadcast during the 1965-66 season:. Bob Hope’s Christmas Special won an Emmy that year, too
Now for something completely different…
What’s so special about rosemary?
After Joseph and Mary had been warned that King Harod sought to kill the young “King of the Jews,” they fled into Egypt. Stopping to rest by a stream, Mary took advantage of the pause to wash the Baby Jesus’ clothes. With no clothesline available, she laid them on a fragrant nearby bush to dry. The bush was henceforth called “Rosemary” for its service to the Christ child, and its blossoms forever more became the blue of Mary’s robes.
A couple of Christmas crafts
Marshmallow candles
Take a full-sized Kraft marshmallow (perhaps left over from s’mores last summer) and put it flat side down on a solid surface, such as a tabletop. Tie a Lifesaver™ vertically and perpendicular to what is now its “side” using yarn that either contrasts or coordinates with the chosen Lifesaver™ flavor (lime Lifesaver™ and red yarn work especially well together). This serves as a handle. Finally, insert a birthday candle into the top of the marshmallow. Caution: these are much better as decorations than as a light source. We don’t recommend lighting them.
Ecological swags
Take cranberries (or popcorn) and thread them onto a long length of fishing line – perhaps five or six feet or even longer. Place the strings of cranberries (or popcorn) decoratively around your Christmas tree or somewhere else that’s appropriate. After Twelfth Night (or whenever you take your tree down) place the strings on small trees or bushes in your yard to provide feed for the local birds.
Plan ahead for next year
When you go to your local Farmers’ Market (and you should!) next Fall, look for interestingly shaped gourds. Check to see that there are no punctures in the skin of the gourds. Take them home and hang them in a cool location using cotton string. Let them dry thoroughly. Sand off any mold that may have developed (don’t worry, it shouldn’t hurt the gourd or you – but ask your local state Agricultural Extension Service Agent to make sure. Then you can paint the gourds with spray paints in solid colors such as Gold or Bronze, or whatever suits your fancy and put them in a basket, on the tree or wherever you’d like.
Finally, for now at least…
For those who don’t remember…
Back in the days of the Cold War and the Soviet Union, Communism was everything and religion was a tool of the bourgeoisie and the opiate of the people, celebrating Christmas took special courage. On December 24, 1954 the Soviet trade union publication Trud complained about unnecessary “worker absenteeism because of Christmas celebrations,” while Pravda yapped about “pupils of a number of schools” who were “going around from house to house singing Christmas carols.” Of course there is now a big deal about placing a crèche on public property and hardly anyone is having “Christmas” parties, sales, cards or being wished “Merry Christmas!” Christmas, in the spirit of seasonal political correctness, is being replaced by “Holiday”. Does anyone else see a linkage between paragraph one and paragraph two?