1 00:00:00,240 --> 00:00:05,560 Speaker 1: Now here's a highlight from Coast to coast am on iHeartRadio. 2 00:00:05,040 --> 00:00:10,399 Speaker 2: With us now as Lionel Phanthrope, the greatest storyteller ever born. Lionel, 3 00:00:10,440 --> 00:00:13,600 Speaker 2: you were talking about Santa Chris Kringle and Saint Nick 4 00:00:13,680 --> 00:00:15,000 Speaker 2: and the names they give him. 5 00:00:15,240 --> 00:00:18,000 Speaker 3: Yeah. Well, one of the things that when I was 6 00:00:19,000 --> 00:00:23,360 Speaker 3: looking up some research for Christmas talks, and I came 7 00:00:23,400 --> 00:00:29,400 Speaker 3: across Saint Nicholas being associated with sailors in the sea 8 00:00:30,320 --> 00:00:36,680 Speaker 3: as well as with Christmas. And apparently, so the story goes, 9 00:00:37,200 --> 00:00:42,200 Speaker 3: a ship was caught in a sudden storm. The sailors 10 00:00:42,280 --> 00:00:45,800 Speaker 3: were terrified, and they did all they could, but they 11 00:00:45,800 --> 00:00:48,559 Speaker 3: could see that it wasn't going to be enough, and 12 00:00:48,720 --> 00:00:52,040 Speaker 3: some of them began to pray as they struggled, and 13 00:00:52,120 --> 00:00:55,800 Speaker 3: one of them remembered the very kind and good and 14 00:00:56,560 --> 00:01:04,319 Speaker 3: powerful bishop of Myra, who was Bishop Nicholas, and he shouted. 15 00:01:04,400 --> 00:01:09,200 Speaker 3: The sailor who suddenly thought of Bishop Nicholas, shouted into 16 00:01:09,240 --> 00:01:13,640 Speaker 3: the wind, your grace, please come and help us, and 17 00:01:14,000 --> 00:01:17,440 Speaker 3: the other sailors hearing him shouting for Nicholas to come 18 00:01:17,480 --> 00:01:23,479 Speaker 3: and help, joined in, Bishop Nicholas, we urgently need your help. 19 00:01:24,959 --> 00:01:29,000 Speaker 3: The wind carried their voices far away into the air, 20 00:01:30,160 --> 00:01:38,200 Speaker 3: and coming back across the wind, they heard a voice saying, behold, 21 00:01:39,440 --> 00:01:44,360 Speaker 3: you have called me, and I am here. And there 22 00:01:44,560 --> 00:01:49,160 Speaker 3: on the deck beside them stood a gray bearded man. 23 00:01:51,720 --> 00:01:53,760 Speaker 3: And as they looked at him, and he looked back 24 00:01:53,800 --> 00:01:57,720 Speaker 3: at them, no one dared to ask him who he 25 00:01:58,040 --> 00:02:02,920 Speaker 3: was or how he got to the ship. And Bishop 26 00:02:03,000 --> 00:02:07,200 Speaker 3: Nicholas endured the storm with the sailors. He worked with 27 00:02:07,320 --> 00:02:12,160 Speaker 3: the rigging, He encouraged the weary, and they gained new strength, 28 00:02:12,919 --> 00:02:18,080 Speaker 3: and he fortified the fearful. The ship made it through 29 00:02:18,120 --> 00:02:23,840 Speaker 3: the storm, and they arrived safely in Myra, which of 30 00:02:23,880 --> 00:02:31,280 Speaker 3: course was where Saint Nicholas came from. And he also 31 00:02:31,320 --> 00:02:36,880 Speaker 3: asked about Chris Kringle. Now, Chris Kringle comes from very 32 00:02:37,040 --> 00:02:41,600 Speaker 3: ancient roots to its modern name, and it originally came 33 00:02:41,840 --> 00:02:48,120 Speaker 3: from the German phrase Christ Kingdall, which is Christ followed 34 00:02:48,160 --> 00:02:54,160 Speaker 3: by k I n d l Chris Kingle, and it 35 00:02:54,360 --> 00:02:59,640 Speaker 3: means the Christ child. In the beginning, it was as 36 00:03:00,080 --> 00:03:06,160 Speaker 3: sated with a religious figurine representing Jesus in the early 37 00:03:06,240 --> 00:03:12,239 Speaker 3: Germanic Christmas traditions, and this Christ Kindle was seen as 38 00:03:12,240 --> 00:03:18,400 Speaker 3: a divine benefactor. A traditional part of the Christmas holiday, 39 00:03:19,440 --> 00:03:23,400 Speaker 3: and as German immigrants began to settle in various different 40 00:03:23,440 --> 00:03:30,200 Speaker 3: parts of the world, so particularly in America, they brought 41 00:03:30,320 --> 00:03:34,280 Speaker 3: with them their customs and their language, and language, as 42 00:03:34,320 --> 00:03:42,240 Speaker 3: we know, like people and plants, evolves, and so the 43 00:03:42,320 --> 00:03:47,800 Speaker 3: christ Kindle underwent a slight transformation, and when it was 44 00:03:47,840 --> 00:03:52,000 Speaker 3: pronounced by English speakers, it involved into a form that 45 00:03:52,120 --> 00:03:57,600 Speaker 3: was more phonetically comfortable with English language, and it changed 46 00:03:57,640 --> 00:04:10,160 Speaker 3: from Chris originally to the into the modern form Chris Kringle, 47 00:04:10,680 --> 00:04:13,280 Speaker 3: And it was a great part of the tradition. 48 00:04:14,200 --> 00:04:18,080 Speaker 2: Have you done any work or research Linel into the Crampis? 49 00:04:21,120 --> 00:04:25,480 Speaker 3: The Crampis? 50 00:04:25,720 --> 00:04:29,840 Speaker 2: Have you heard of Crampis? He's supposed to be an 51 00:04:29,880 --> 00:04:34,640 Speaker 2: associate of Santa Claus who punishes the naughty kids. 52 00:04:35,400 --> 00:04:39,080 Speaker 3: Oh no, I must confess I haven't come across him. 53 00:04:39,080 --> 00:04:40,320 Speaker 3: He sounds fascinating. 54 00:04:41,560 --> 00:04:46,479 Speaker 2: How's it spelled k r a mp Us? 55 00:04:47,440 --> 00:04:51,760 Speaker 3: Cramps and his job is to accompany Santa Claus. And 56 00:04:52,200 --> 00:04:55,000 Speaker 3: where Santa Claus is leaving gifts and being nice to 57 00:04:55,120 --> 00:04:58,440 Speaker 3: the good kids, Crampus punishes the naughty ones. 58 00:04:58,680 --> 00:05:00,880 Speaker 2: That's right in it's built. 59 00:05:03,200 --> 00:05:09,760 Speaker 3: It sounds like a system of benign justice. 60 00:05:10,960 --> 00:05:14,800 Speaker 2: It's supposed to be a hideous looking creature too. You 61 00:05:14,960 --> 00:05:16,679 Speaker 2: check into that when you have some time. 62 00:05:17,240 --> 00:05:17,720 Speaker 1: I will. 63 00:05:17,839 --> 00:05:21,800 Speaker 3: Yes, indeed, that's we learned something every day, and especially 64 00:05:21,839 --> 00:05:22,960 Speaker 3: from coast to coast. 65 00:05:23,960 --> 00:05:27,000 Speaker 2: Where did the Christmas tree originate? How did that happen? 66 00:05:28,400 --> 00:05:32,560 Speaker 3: Well, I've got to just the land stand at my 67 00:05:32,680 --> 00:05:35,159 Speaker 3: notes because i'd been known when you said you wanted me. 68 00:05:35,839 --> 00:05:38,599 Speaker 3: I've done some research obviously, because I've got so much 69 00:05:38,640 --> 00:05:42,680 Speaker 3: respect and affection for coast to coast. Well. The custom 70 00:05:42,720 --> 00:05:46,839 Speaker 3: of having a Christmas tree was developed in Central Europe 71 00:05:48,080 --> 00:05:55,000 Speaker 3: and particularly Germany and Lavonio's Estonia and Latvia, where the 72 00:05:55,080 --> 00:06:01,560 Speaker 3: Protestant Christians brought decorated trees into their home. Now the 73 00:06:01,680 --> 00:06:11,400 Speaker 3: tree was traditionally decorated with roses made of colored paper, tinsel, apples, 74 00:06:12,040 --> 00:06:21,360 Speaker 3: wafers and confectionery, and the Moravian Christians began to illuminate 75 00:06:21,480 --> 00:06:26,600 Speaker 3: Christmas trees with candles, which were then, of course, replaced 76 00:06:27,400 --> 00:06:33,920 Speaker 3: by Christmas lights when electricity came in. And today there's 77 00:06:33,960 --> 00:06:39,440 Speaker 3: a very wide variety of traditional and ornaments as garlands, 78 00:06:39,520 --> 00:06:44,400 Speaker 3: bulb or tinsel, candy canes, and you find an angel 79 00:06:44,520 --> 00:06:47,440 Speaker 3: or a star placed right at the top of the 80 00:06:47,520 --> 00:06:54,440 Speaker 3: tree to represent the Angel Gabriel or the Star of Bethlehem, 81 00:06:55,279 --> 00:07:00,400 Speaker 3: and then of course edible products were also made and 82 00:07:00,440 --> 00:07:04,680 Speaker 3: tied to the tree's branches with colored ribbons. And the 83 00:07:04,760 --> 00:07:10,440 Speaker 3: Christmas tree has been historically regarded as a custom of 84 00:07:10,520 --> 00:07:15,800 Speaker 3: the Lutheran churches, and only as recently as nineteen eighty 85 00:07:15,920 --> 00:07:21,480 Speaker 3: two did the Catholic Church erect the Vatican Christmas Tree. 86 00:07:24,440 --> 00:07:32,920 Speaker 3: That's that's that's a broad outline of the history of 87 00:07:32,920 --> 00:07:34,600 Speaker 3: the Christmas Tree. 88 00:07:33,960 --> 00:07:39,080 Speaker 2: Do most countries are on the planet celebrate Christmas? 89 00:07:40,360 --> 00:07:51,400 Speaker 3: Ah? That's very interestingly, the idea of universal Christmas, it 90 00:07:51,600 --> 00:07:56,480 Speaker 3: tends to very I think we could truthfully say that 91 00:07:56,560 --> 00:08:02,800 Speaker 3: Christmas is celebrated in different forms depending on the cultural 92 00:08:02,880 --> 00:08:06,600 Speaker 3: beliefs of that community. So in other words, you could 93 00:08:06,640 --> 00:08:11,760 Speaker 3: have a mid winter feast which was taken over thousands 94 00:08:11,760 --> 00:08:15,760 Speaker 3: of years old, but it was taken over by the 95 00:08:15,840 --> 00:08:20,520 Speaker 3: Christian churches and made into the celebration of the birth 96 00:08:20,560 --> 00:08:28,360 Speaker 3: of Jesus in Bethlehem, so that the the Christmas celebrations 97 00:08:28,400 --> 00:08:36,680 Speaker 3: are an offshoot of the mid winter celebrations, and they 98 00:08:36,760 --> 00:08:40,400 Speaker 3: go back almost as long as the human race goes 99 00:08:40,440 --> 00:08:46,880 Speaker 3: back that there was the you know, you've got the 100 00:08:46,880 --> 00:08:51,080 Speaker 3: summer solstice in midsummer, and you've got the winter solstice 101 00:08:51,160 --> 00:08:57,040 Speaker 3: in the middle of winter, and so you have the 102 00:08:57,040 --> 00:09:02,200 Speaker 3: the celebration of the mid Interfeast when you light fires 103 00:09:02,240 --> 00:09:08,720 Speaker 3: and light lights wherever you can, so that you are 104 00:09:09,280 --> 00:09:12,400 Speaker 3: trying to One of the theory is that it was 105 00:09:12,800 --> 00:09:17,120 Speaker 3: an attempt to lure the summer back again, to say, 106 00:09:17,679 --> 00:09:19,680 Speaker 3: maybe we've had enough of this winter. Can we have 107 00:09:19,720 --> 00:09:20,320 Speaker 3: the sun again? 108 00:09:20,400 --> 00:09:20,760 Speaker 1: Please? 109 00:09:21,440 --> 00:09:26,559 Speaker 3: An invitation to the sun to start lengthening the days. 110 00:09:28,960 --> 00:09:34,680 Speaker 3: And so, yes, we can say that when the birth 111 00:09:34,720 --> 00:09:40,319 Speaker 3: of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, basly became the 112 00:09:40,360 --> 00:09:46,160 Speaker 3: sense the foundation of Christianity, God coming to earth as Jesus, 113 00:09:47,000 --> 00:09:53,240 Speaker 3: and the idea then that the midwinter Feast was to 114 00:09:53,320 --> 00:09:58,600 Speaker 3: celebrate him rather than to celebrate the winter solstice. 115 00:09:59,240 --> 00:10:02,480 Speaker 2: Any idea where the idea of presence and Christmas cards 116 00:10:02,520 --> 00:10:02,960 Speaker 2: came from? 117 00:10:03,000 --> 00:10:09,360 Speaker 3: And all that, Oh, yes, no, the certainly the idea 118 00:10:09,400 --> 00:10:14,200 Speaker 3: of Christmas cards. I've got a piece here that I 119 00:10:14,280 --> 00:10:16,200 Speaker 3: looked up when I knew I was going to have 120 00:10:16,280 --> 00:10:19,480 Speaker 3: the honor and privilege of talking to coast to coast. 121 00:10:20,000 --> 00:10:25,600 Speaker 3: And the first postal service that ordinary people could use 122 00:10:25,760 --> 00:10:31,240 Speaker 3: was started in eighteen forty when the first penny public 123 00:10:31,360 --> 00:10:36,480 Speaker 3: post deliveries began. It was Sir Henry Toll who helped 124 00:10:36,480 --> 00:10:41,600 Speaker 3: to introduce the penny post. Now before that only very 125 00:10:41,720 --> 00:10:45,640 Speaker 3: rich people could afford to send anything in the post, 126 00:10:45,920 --> 00:10:48,760 Speaker 3: and the new post office was able to offer a 127 00:10:48,800 --> 00:10:54,600 Speaker 3: penny stamp because new railways were being built and these 128 00:10:54,679 --> 00:10:57,880 Speaker 3: could carry much more post than that or some card 129 00:10:58,040 --> 00:11:04,760 Speaker 3: could have carried, so trains could go so much faster, 130 00:11:05,440 --> 00:11:09,280 Speaker 3: and cards became more and more popular in the UK 131 00:11:10,160 --> 00:11:15,880 Speaker 3: when they could be posted in an unsealed envelope for 132 00:11:16,080 --> 00:11:21,880 Speaker 3: one half penny, half the price of an ordinary letter. 133 00:11:22,880 --> 00:11:30,640 Speaker 3: Now as printing methods improved, so Christmas cards became a 134 00:11:30,679 --> 00:11:35,640 Speaker 3: lot more popular and they were produced in large numbers 135 00:11:36,480 --> 00:11:42,439 Speaker 3: save from about eighteen sixty onwards, and in eighteen seventy 136 00:11:43,400 --> 00:11:46,600 Speaker 3: the cost of sending a postcard and a Christmas card 137 00:11:47,360 --> 00:11:51,320 Speaker 3: dropped to just half a penny, and this meant even 138 00:11:51,520 --> 00:11:57,840 Speaker 3: more people were able to send cards. An engraved card 139 00:11:58,040 --> 00:12:02,800 Speaker 3: by the artist William Edgeley, who illustrated some of Charles 140 00:12:02,800 --> 00:12:08,320 Speaker 3: Dickens's books, is on display in the British Museum. In 141 00:12:08,360 --> 00:12:13,199 Speaker 3: the early nineteen hundreds, the custom had spread over Europe 142 00:12:13,760 --> 00:12:19,880 Speaker 3: and had become especially popular in Germany. The first cards 143 00:12:20,040 --> 00:12:23,880 Speaker 3: usually had pictures of the Nativity scene, but in late 144 00:12:24,000 --> 00:12:31,559 Speaker 3: Victorian times Robin's the British Bird and snow scenes became popular, 145 00:12:32,880 --> 00:12:38,680 Speaker 3: and in those days so popular were they that the 146 00:12:38,800 --> 00:12:45,199 Speaker 3: postmen were nicknamed Robin Postmen because of the red uniforms 147 00:12:45,240 --> 00:12:50,760 Speaker 3: they wore. Snow scenes were very popular because they reminded 148 00:12:50,800 --> 00:12:54,280 Speaker 3: people of the very bad winter that hit the UK 149 00:12:54,480 --> 00:13:02,439 Speaker 3: in eighteen thirty six. Christmas cards appeared in the USA 150 00:13:03,000 --> 00:13:06,400 Speaker 3: in the late eighteen forties, but they were very expensive 151 00:13:07,120 --> 00:13:11,280 Speaker 3: and a great many people loved them but couldn't afford them. 152 00:13:12,040 --> 00:13:17,040 Speaker 3: Then in eighteen seventy five, Louis Prang, who was a 153 00:13:17,080 --> 00:13:22,720 Speaker 3: printer and was originally from Germany. He had also worked 154 00:13:22,760 --> 00:13:27,720 Speaker 3: on early cards in the UK, and he started mass 155 00:13:27,760 --> 00:13:32,959 Speaker 3: producing cards so that more people could afford to buy them, 156 00:13:33,160 --> 00:13:41,240 Speaker 3: and his first cards featured flowers, plants and children time passes, 157 00:13:41,960 --> 00:13:46,960 Speaker 3: and by nineteen fifteen John Hall and two of his 158 00:13:47,120 --> 00:13:53,640 Speaker 3: brothers created Hallmark cards and they are still one of 159 00:13:53,679 --> 00:13:59,360 Speaker 3: the biggest card makers in the world today. The first 160 00:13:59,440 --> 00:14:07,440 Speaker 3: known personalized Christmas card was sent in eighteen ninety one 161 00:14:07,840 --> 00:14:17,200 Speaker 3: by You'll Never Guess Who Annie Oakley, the sharpshooter, real star. Yeah, 162 00:14:17,280 --> 00:14:19,880 Speaker 3: it was Annie Oakley who sent the first Christmas card 163 00:14:20,840 --> 00:14:26,440 Speaker 3: personalized and the famous sharpshooter and star of Buffalo Bill's 164 00:14:26,480 --> 00:14:31,840 Speaker 3: Wild West Show. She was in Glasgow in Scotland at 165 00:14:31,920 --> 00:14:36,720 Speaker 3: Christmas eighteen ninety one and sent cards back to her 166 00:14:36,840 --> 00:14:41,720 Speaker 3: friends and family in the USA, featuring a photo of 167 00:14:41,760 --> 00:14:48,760 Speaker 3: her on the card and as she was in Scotland, 168 00:14:49,480 --> 00:14:56,440 Speaker 3: she's wearing tartan in the photo. And Annie reportedly designed 169 00:14:56,480 --> 00:15:00,240 Speaker 3: these cards herself and they were made for her by 170 00:15:00,240 --> 00:15:04,600 Speaker 3: a local Scottish printer. And I find that absolutely amazing 171 00:15:05,640 --> 00:15:10,920 Speaker 3: that the personalized guard with I'm a great admirer of 172 00:15:11,080 --> 00:15:13,520 Speaker 3: her and what she did and how she survived and 173 00:15:13,560 --> 00:15:18,120 Speaker 3: went on to work with Buffalo Bill Company. Marvelous woman. 174 00:15:20,400 --> 00:15:24,880 Speaker 2: Have everything about everything about Christmas, line on. What is 175 00:15:24,920 --> 00:15:29,080 Speaker 2: that one thing that just excites you that. 176 00:15:29,160 --> 00:15:36,000 Speaker 3: Excites me most? It's really and I can't put it 177 00:15:36,080 --> 00:15:41,760 Speaker 3: any other way. They just to share joy of being 178 00:15:41,960 --> 00:15:46,040 Speaker 3: with my family. And Patricia and I married in nineteen 179 00:15:46,200 --> 00:15:50,120 Speaker 3: fifty seven. Wow, she was eighty. She was eighteen and 180 00:15:50,200 --> 00:15:55,960 Speaker 3: I was twenty two. And we've just celebrated our sixty 181 00:15:56,160 --> 00:15:58,080 Speaker 3: eighth wedding anniversary. 182 00:15:58,160 --> 00:15:59,960 Speaker 2: That's fantastic. 183 00:16:00,880 --> 00:16:05,760 Speaker 3: And bleak you without sounding too sentimental. We are as 184 00:16:05,840 --> 00:16:09,880 Speaker 3: much in love today as we were in nineteen fifty seven. 185 00:16:10,040 --> 00:16:14,840 Speaker 3: She is magnificent and I would not have lived to 186 00:16:14,880 --> 00:16:19,560 Speaker 3: be ninety without her tremendous care and attention. She looks 187 00:16:19,600 --> 00:16:23,640 Speaker 3: after you know everything away By the time you get 188 00:16:23,680 --> 00:16:26,760 Speaker 3: to ninety you need a lot of help, but she's 189 00:16:26,760 --> 00:16:29,160 Speaker 3: still more like a girl in her twenties. She does 190 00:16:29,280 --> 00:16:30,160 Speaker 3: everything for me. 191 00:16:30,560 --> 00:16:33,800 Speaker 1: Listen to more Coast to Coast AM every weeknight at 192 00:16:33,840 --> 00:16:37,440 Speaker 1: one am Eastern, and go to Coast tocoastam dot com 193 00:16:37,480 --> 00:16:37,880 Speaker 1: for more