K.A.C. 2012 - T - 14 ...

     After yesterday's dose of ice water to the soul, you are to be commended for returning! To reward you (and to try and get this blog back on an even keel), we turn today to matters of science ... particularly The Science Behind Gifting! Heck, I could tell them VOLUMES about that! Read their fascinating findings here!

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324020804578151873737238966.html 

    
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     More tomorrow!

K.A.C. 2012 - T - 15 ...

     While I'm sure you can appreciate the concept of the Christmas Snow Cat, the execution of this Frosty Feline leaves a bit to be desired. Looking like a cross between a Calvin and Hobbes snowman spectacle and an animal version of Dr. Who's Weeping Angels (hey, if you have to ask ...), he doesn't exactly inspire confidence. Well, let's keep a wary eye on him as we look at some other Christmas Kitties!
 
     First up, Tom and Jerry go at it in holiday style in 1941's  'The Night Before Christmas' - click here for old-fashioned MGM goodness!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x75T2DrE87o

     Nice, huh? Gave you a warm, fuzzy feeling all over, right? I'm not sure the same can be said about our next contestant ... er, entry.  From the album 'Jingle Cats ... Meowy Christmas' (hey, I just report 'em, folks, I don't write 'em!) comes their rendition of 'Silent Night'. If you've got cats (or pets of any kind), bring them close to the computer and crank up the volume!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d9LqRl7tqf4

     Before you ask, yes, it's a real CD of cats "singing" Christmas carols ... there are actually TWO CDs available! The perfect gift for the cat lover on your gift list ... and an even BETTER gift for any cat HATER who you don't care for! :)

     And what do cats love to drink? If you answered milk and want your favorite feline (or milk-guzzling human) to cut back, I've got the answer for that, as well! Only the truly brave should watch the following commercial for "Milky, the Marvelous Milking Cow!"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=stblRudM-4I  

     We end today with ... umm, yeah ... the following. With a lot of these articles, I scan the Internet and follow links which lead from one item to another - Tom and Jerry leads to a search on Christmas Cats which leads to Milky the Cow which lead to Christmas Furries. Now I KNOW I shouldn't have clicked on it, but I figured, "Hey, how bad could it be?" This is how bad... may I present the winner of 2012 Kitschmas Advent Calendar Image of the Year!

    In case you've never been exposed to furries or furry fandom, here's the Wiki link to read all about them - you know what? Why don't you click on this and educate yourself and THEN come back and look at the pic on the right again - trust me, it will still be here! 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Furries   

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  It's days like this that make me teeter on the edge of hysteria .... PRAY you don't find this waiting by your tree this Christmas! 

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     Two weeks to go! 
    

K.A.C. 2012 - T - 16 ...

     Hey-ho! Our theme today is Christmas Oddities (to be fair, that's our theme EVERY DAY here, but I digress ...), with a focus on Christmas Oddi-TREES! Let's dig in, shall we?

     First, if you're budget is tight and you need to save money this holiday season, I may have the answer for you. How would you like to cut down on those Christmas tree electric bills this year? Some enterprising lads in Finland may have hit on the solution ... use ELECTRIC EELS! The upside? It works like a charm, it's CHEAP (all you need is eel food ...) and you'll be the talk of the neighborhood! The downside? You better be REAL careful plugging this bad boy in ... one wrong move and you'll be singing carols with the angels! Read more about it here!  

http://www.odditycentral.com/pics/christmas-tree-lights-powered-by-a-bunch-of-electric-eels.html 

     If eels give you the heebie-jeebies, save even more money and forego the lights all together! "Won't that be too depressing?", you ask? Not when you have a 10 meter (32 foot) tall tree ... made entirely of CHOCOLATE! Just how much chocolate are we talking about here? Try ONE TON, the equivalent of 800,000 regular-sized bars! Oh, it happened - read the whole story by clicking the link below!

http://www.odditycentral.com/news/chocolatier-creates-lifesize-chocolate-christmas-tree.html 

     If you're on a diet and the chocolate tree is too tempting, then how about a cuddly Christmas tree instead ... made entirely of TEDDY BEARS?  On second thought, that doesn't look cuddly in the least ... vaguely CREEPY, yes, but NOT cuddly! To see this and even MORE bizarre trees - made from everything from bicycles to plastic spoons, here you go!

http://www.odditycentral.com/pics/7-weirdest-christmas-trees-of-2010.html

   

  With all these oddities, it only seems fair to give you an odd Christmas film to watch as well, right? I'm thinking something spacy ... no, not the Pia Zadora mind-numbing Santa Claus Conquers the Martians ... not even the K. Gordon-Murray Mexican import Santa Claus ... something REALLY strange! Like what, you ask? How about the pet project of The Flaming Lips called CHRISTMAS ON MARS?! Believe me, once you see the trailer for this, you'll know why it fits like a glove in today's category!  
Take a look!

http://www.rowthree.com/2008/12/16/on-the-third-day-of-christmas-christmas-on-mars/ 


     Coming tomorrow ... our 2012 Image of the Year! What will it be? Wait and see ...

K.A.C. 2012 - T - 17 ...

     Welcome back! So did you get all of our stars in Kringle's Khristmas Kuties contest? Let's see:

# 1 - Marta Kristen (with Robot B-9) from Lost in Space (also seen with cast at left).

# 2 - Annette Funicello (an original member of The Mickey Mouse Club and Disney icon).

# 3 - Yvonne Craig (aka Batgirl)!

# 4 - Elizabeth Montgomery from Bewitched.

# 5 - Barbara Eden from I Dream of Jeannie

# 6 - Anne Francis from Honey West.

     The eagle-eyed among you would recognize the last photo from an earlier version of the contest we put up. That's the ONLY Christmas photo of her I could find!

     Continuing with our TV theme for a moment, every year our family watches a version of A Christmas Carol. My personal favorite is the 1984 TV version starring George C. Scott and Edward Woodward (see my blog entry of November 17th, 2009). So when Laura asked me what version we were watching THIS year, I said, "How about the Six Million Dollar Man episode of it?" Needless to say, THAT got shot down MIGHTY quick ... the most SHAMELESS shot in the whole episode? Steve Austin (Lee Majors) in a toy store doing last-minute Christmas shopping for kids ... directly in front of a Six Million Dollar Man action figure (not to mention the PROMINENTLY DISPLAYED JAWS toy on the counter ... stay classy, Universal)! Click on the picture for a bigger view of Colonel Steve Austin and Mini-Steve.

     Cult TV and fanboys (and fangirls) have had a loooong love-hate relationship (and I'm speaking from personal experience). From my earliest childhood My Favorite Martian toys (including this spiffy beanie hat which I used to wear proudly as a kid ... what a shame there are no pictures of THAT!) to a STAR TREK Paint-By-Numbers set and a Land of the Giants Colorforms Set (and don't even get me started on the TV tie-in Aurora plastic models ... that's a whole separate entry all by itself!), the networks always knew their fan base and had the "must-have" goods for the tykes. The irony now, of course, is that many of these pop culture items go for Big Bucks on sites like eBay. But don't think that all went away years ago - no, indeed! Cult TV merchandising is HUGE these days ... what used to be suffered through by parents of "their weird kid" (see the aforementioned beanie above) is commonplace now. 

     Case in point? Admittedly I am a Whovian (Dr. Who fan) of the highest order, but the thought came to me of just how much has changed over time. From worried looks and being "the odd kid" to one of the largest yearly conventions (Comic Con) and all the merchandising and tie-ins to favorite shows and movies, the geeks truly have taken over the Earth. With that in mind, here are some amazing links for you to peruse covering a LOT of ground!

http://io9.com/5961850/gift-ideas-for-the-7-major-species-of-science-fiction-fan 

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     Sixteen days to go - come back tomorrow for more!

K.A.C. 2012 - T - 18 ...

# 1

     Time to don those thinking Santa caps as the K.A.C. unveils this year's edition of Kringle's Khristmas Kuties! If you're a long-time reader, you know the rules ... if you're new here, it's simple. Here are six holiday photos - all you have to do is identify the actress in each! 

#2

     This year we've added a twist: ALL of the photos here are from actresses who are best-known for a particular role on TV.

#3

No cheating!  Answers tomorrow ... ready, set, GO!

# 4

# 5

#6

K.A.C. 2012 - T - 19 ...

     WHO IS HADDON SUNDBLOM AND WHY IS HE SMILING AT ME?

     Haddon Hubbard Sundblom (June 22, 1899 - March 10, 1976) is an important figure to K.A.C. devotees, even if you don't recognize the name. He is arguably the person most responsible for the modern child's idea of what Santa Claus looks like today. 

     To explain ... before Sundblom, Santa Claus/Saint Nicholas had been interpreted in many different ways by many different artists - as time went on, his character evolved (mainly due to the various interpretations of Clement Clarke Moore's poem "'Twas the Night Before Christmas"). Moore's poem evoked Santa as a magical elf (with eight tiny reindeer), the more so to make his tiny frame able to ft up and down chimneys - NOT a full-sized man.  If you remember the poem, it says, "When, what to my wondering eyes should appear,
But a miniature sleigh, and eight tiny reindeer,
With a little old driver, so lively and quick,
I knew in a moment it must be St. Nick." 

"HEY!!!"

     The most famous of the original illustrations of Saint Nicholas/Santa Claus came from Thomas Nast, who worked with Moore for what was to be the first iconic image of the 'Friend of Children Everywhere' ... oh, wait, that's Gamera!  

      Let's try that again ... Nast's version (as seen at right) of 'Merry Old Santa' expanded on the Jolly Old Elf theme and added the large belly. What I find fascinating about this particular version of Santa are the variations in his costume - the holly sprig hat and the (very itchy-looking) winter coat. He is a more practical Saint Nick, who looks like that dark outfit has seen more than its share of chimney soot over the years.

     The character continued to evolve on covers of magazines through the years, but no one had yet hit upon the iconic figure of Santa that we know today. Enter Haddon Sundblom.

     Sundblom was a graphic artist and illustrator who took on the job of drawing Santa Claus for the Coca-Cola company, beginning in 1931 with this ad for the Saturday Evening Post (below).

    
    

     According to the Love Hate Advertising blog, "Coke credits its advertising agency for the vision: “Archie Lee, the D’Arcy Advertising Agency executive working with The Coca-Cola Company, wanted the next campaign to show a wholesome Santa as both realistic and symbolic.” So in 1931, Sundblom got the gig to develop advertising art using Santa Claus, with a twist: the images would depict the actual Santa, not a man dressed as Santa ... Remember, Santa shook “like a bowl full of jelly” before he started on the soda. Sundblom’s visual inspiration came from Clement Clarke Moore’s 1822 poem, “A Visit From St. Nicholas” (better known as “‘Twas the Night Before Christmas”). Once he discovered his calling, Sundblom kept painting Santa for the next 33 years. Sundblom’s body of work continues to live on in perennial Coca-Cola Christmas (yes,“Christmas,” not holiday) advertising. His original art is still being used today, decades after his death in 1976. In fact, a 1964 Sundblom Santa served as the basis for an animated TV commercial in 2001." 

    

"I know it's their dinner, but I'm hungry NOW!"

     As Sundblom got more comfortable drawing the character, he expanded on the other aspects of the 'Christmas Eve rituals', such as leaving out milk and cookies for Santa ... 1937 must have been a more strenuous year on the jolly old elf, as he's bypassing the traditional fare and has zeroed in on a more filling repast. "Quid pro quo, Clarice ..."

     The question inevitably comes up, "Who WAS the model for Santa?" The answer, according to Coke's own website Coke Lore: The History of the Modern Day Santa Claus, tells us: "In the beginning, Sundblom painted the image of Santa using a live model — his friend Lou Prentiss, a retired salesman. When Prentiss passed away, Sundblom used himself as a model, painting while looking into a mirror (as seen at the top of this article). Finally, he began relying on photographs to create the image of St. Nick.

    

"NO, Santa! Not the last Coke! I'm telling Mommy and Daddy!"

     The children who appear with Santa in Sundblom’s paintings were based on Sundblom's neighbors — two little girls. So he changed one to a boy in his paintings. Sorry, but the little girl from this 1938 ad looks LESS than thrilled that Santa is scarfing down that Coke. Let him have it, Susie! Don't argue with the Fat Man or ...

"Oh, I don't think so, Susie."

          

      

     Ummm, never mind ... well, as usual, the K.A.C. just went to the dark place! :) Let's try to get this Holiday Hoedown back on track. Below is the 1964 ad that was referenced earlier. It was also Sundblom's last year of making the 'Coke Santa' ads. But after 33 years of these images pervading all types of print advertising, this version of Santa was firmly embedded in children's imaginations as "THE Santa Claus", leading to an urban legend that Coca-Cola INVENTED the modern Santa Claus. Snopes.com looked into it and debunked it as false - you can see their full report here:

 http://www.snopes.com/holidays/christmas/santa/cocacola.asp

     You can also see a full gallery of the Coke Santa ads through the years by going to this link: 

http://translate.google.com/translate?sl=auto&tl=en&js=n&prev=_t&hl=en&ie=UTF-8&layout=2&eotf=1&u=http%3A%2F%2Fjipemania.com%2Fcoke%2Fnatal%2Fsococa%2Findex.htm&act=url  

    

     Sundblom did revisit the whole Santa Claus mystique one more time, in 1972 on the cover of Playboy. As a Huffington Post article relates, "Despite this wholesome association, Sundblom had his racier side. He regularly took breaks from Santa Claus to paint pin-ups and glamour pieces for calendars, including his final assignment, a painting for the cover of Playboy’s 1972 Christmas issue. But to label him a one-character painter or simply a purveyor of saucy caricatures would, according to Berry, be doing him a disservice. 

     "Roger T. Reed wrote that 'More than any artist including Norman Rockwell, Sundblom defined the American Dream in pictures, proved by his work for virtually the entire Fortune 500'. I think it’s important to remember that ‘Sunny’ was about a lot more than Santa.
"His ensuring legacy includes not only his body of work but also the many artists who went through his studio and came out influenced by his very clear style – including Howard Terpning, Gil Elvgren, Earl Blossom and Morgan Kane."

     Nevertheless for most of us, Sundblom will always be remembered for the modern day St Nick."

     Before I forget, here is the animated TV commercial based on Sundblom's paintings ...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AlPXPAuE3_4 

     And that, boys and girls, is why Santa looks the way he does today.

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     Join me tomorrow for more Christmas fun and adventure!

K.A.C. 2012 - T - 20 ...

     He's STILL staring, isn't he? *shudder* ...

     If we ignore him, maybe he'll go away. It's Christmas Potpourri Day here at the K.A.C., where Randomness Rules! First we have this beauty (at right) checking out the name tag on her brand-new Hoover vacuum cleaner - gotta love the tag line here, "Christmas morning she'll be happier with a Hoover!" She sure will ... it will make cleaning up the blood and hiding the body of the poor sap who gave it to her a snap before the holiday guests arrive!

     

     

     

    

Next we have a picture that I find rather charming (and one I had not seen before) - it's Conjure Cinema's mascot, William Shatner, as the guest of honor at a Christmas Parade in Columbia, South Carolina, in 1968. The odd thing is that he's decked out in FULL Captain Kirk regalia during what was Star Trek's final season. I wonder if he'd already been given the pink slip while waving to the crowd?

     Think I can't top that? Wrong again! Check out THIS amazing find (coutesy of io9.com) of the 1965 Macy's Thanksgiving Parade, featuring a Lovecraftian balloon creature, Santa Claus ... and The Munsters! 

http://io9.com/5962812/the-1965-macys-thanksgiving-day-parade-was-fucking-terrifying 

     Finally, as I was going back and checking expired pictures and dead links in earlier blog entries, it struck me that at the very beginning of the K.A.C. I had mentioned what started it all ... but also realized that the ORIGINAL pics were nowhere to be found! The K.A.C. actually started in 2008 as an inter-office contest between myself and my work-study students to see who could come up with the oddest holiday wallpapers for the computer.


    

Our grand prize winner of both BEST and WORST Holiday Wallpaper was this shot of a "Reverse Christmas", with the presents children getting to open their human wrapping paper - this one STILL gets me! Click on the picture to see it in it's FULL gory glory!



     
   


    

The other winner was a Photoshopped 'Gary Coleman and Mr. T Christmas Album' which I can't find a copy of ... so we'll leave you instead with the 2012 edition of the Dalek Christmas Tree! Check out the link for even more close-up pix (in case you'd like to make one of your own)! Here's the link to it in its full EXTERMINATING glory!

http://www.geekologie.com/2012/12/no-tardis-tree-topper-dalek-themed-chris.php  





    

      More tomorrow!