Santa and Rudolph--The Ledgend Continues
Hello to one and all!
I hope that the holiday shopping season isn't too hectic on all of you! I'm sure most of you are taking it all in stride right about now, since you've done most of your shopping a couple of months earlier, when things weren't as hectic. And for those of you who made all your presents from scratch, I'm sure you're going through your own kind of hectic, right about now! I'm sure many of you already have your trees up by now, and for those who don't, your trees will be going up sometime this week. Yup, it's all over but the shouting now. With the trees up and the presents wrapped, the Big Day will soon be here for most of us. It's already arrived for our Jewish brethren and sisteren, and I hope you all are having a wonderful Hanukkah, right about now.
Last week, as you recall, I told you about the true meaning of Christmas (making a buck), and the two Christmas symbols for this meaning (Santa and Rudolph). Now, this week, I will tell you how this particular concept has become so very popular with every coming Yuletide season for the past sixty or some odd years. That's right! I will now tell you how the American pop culture media played it's sinister role in putting our hard earned dollars into the retailer's till every end of each year. First of all, it started with a song. Well, actually, it started with a poem that was written about a hundred and eighty years ago, "A Visit From St. Nicholas" (We know it better as "Twas The Night Before Christmas"). It was written around the time this concept was first created, as a matter of fact. Well, anyway, in the 1930's, a song was written about the kindly Saint, "Santa Claus is Coming To Town," which turned the rooftop-hopping benefactor to the world into the all-knowing dispenser of year-end justice ("He sees you when you're sleeping, he knows when you're awake, he knows when you've been bad or good, so be good, for goodness sake!"). A decade later, Rudolph got his very own song as well (based on the book put out by Montgomery Ward, of course), which turned him into the ultimate underdog-turned-wonder dog who saves the day (or night, as it turns out.) These two Christmas classics were covered by just about everybody, from Gene Autry, who sang the originals, to the Jackson Five and practically everyone else who found their way in front of a microphone. Santa and Rudolph have been the inseparable partners in the Christmas scheme to take a Hoover Vacuum to the world's bank accounts ever since, showing up in advertisements, first for Coca Cola in the 1920's, then for practically everything from antacids to cookies to chocolate (Don't you just love Santa's reaction to the M&M's?) Then, in 1964, two producers took the entire concept of Santa and Rudolph and sent it into the stratosphere, making sure that everybody remember these two legends for generations to come. Their names? Arthur Rankin, Jr. and Jules Bass. Since we've just run out of time, we'll talk more about Rankin/Bass and their great contribution to holiday pop culture next week.
Until then, be well and stay well, folks!
Sincerely
Marley Sue
I hope that the holiday shopping season isn't too hectic on all of you! I'm sure most of you are taking it all in stride right about now, since you've done most of your shopping a couple of months earlier, when things weren't as hectic. And for those of you who made all your presents from scratch, I'm sure you're going through your own kind of hectic, right about now! I'm sure many of you already have your trees up by now, and for those who don't, your trees will be going up sometime this week. Yup, it's all over but the shouting now. With the trees up and the presents wrapped, the Big Day will soon be here for most of us. It's already arrived for our Jewish brethren and sisteren, and I hope you all are having a wonderful Hanukkah, right about now.
Last week, as you recall, I told you about the true meaning of Christmas (making a buck), and the two Christmas symbols for this meaning (Santa and Rudolph). Now, this week, I will tell you how this particular concept has become so very popular with every coming Yuletide season for the past sixty or some odd years. That's right! I will now tell you how the American pop culture media played it's sinister role in putting our hard earned dollars into the retailer's till every end of each year. First of all, it started with a song. Well, actually, it started with a poem that was written about a hundred and eighty years ago, "A Visit From St. Nicholas" (We know it better as "Twas The Night Before Christmas"). It was written around the time this concept was first created, as a matter of fact. Well, anyway, in the 1930's, a song was written about the kindly Saint, "Santa Claus is Coming To Town," which turned the rooftop-hopping benefactor to the world into the all-knowing dispenser of year-end justice ("He sees you when you're sleeping, he knows when you're awake, he knows when you've been bad or good, so be good, for goodness sake!"). A decade later, Rudolph got his very own song as well (based on the book put out by Montgomery Ward, of course), which turned him into the ultimate underdog-turned-wonder dog who saves the day (or night, as it turns out.) These two Christmas classics were covered by just about everybody, from Gene Autry, who sang the originals, to the Jackson Five and practically everyone else who found their way in front of a microphone. Santa and Rudolph have been the inseparable partners in the Christmas scheme to take a Hoover Vacuum to the world's bank accounts ever since, showing up in advertisements, first for Coca Cola in the 1920's, then for practically everything from antacids to cookies to chocolate (Don't you just love Santa's reaction to the M&M's?) Then, in 1964, two producers took the entire concept of Santa and Rudolph and sent it into the stratosphere, making sure that everybody remember these two legends for generations to come. Their names? Arthur Rankin, Jr. and Jules Bass. Since we've just run out of time, we'll talk more about Rankin/Bass and their great contribution to holiday pop culture next week.
Until then, be well and stay well, folks!
Sincerely
Marley Sue
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