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Today is “Santa’s List Day” (which I learned from Holidayinsights.com). I hope we’re all on the “good” list!
Santa Claus is very closely tied with
We have a rich history with Santa. The famous
You may have heard a rumor that our Santa Claus wears red because it’s “
I’ll talk more about St. Nick and
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My name is Phil Mooney, and I've served as the historian/archivist for
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Here's a Coke & Santa question: are there any Coke & Santa ads where Santa is not wearing red?
Posted by: Mike J. | December 04, 2008 at 07:53 PM
Mike J. - Great question! Since the Coca-Cola Santa had his debut in 1931, he's always been pictured wearing red! There are a few ads that show Santa without his jacket on -- so he's wearing a white shirt -- but he still has his red pants on. Thanks -- Phil
Posted by: Phil Mooney | December 05, 2008 at 09:53 AM
Phil:
Can you please explain to me why Coca-cola states that it created the modern day image of Santa Claus when it is well documented that Thomas Nast of the Harper's Weekly drew the image of Santa that is widely regarded as the modern day image of Santa. His drawings of Santa in 1869 and 1881 clearly show a jolly white bearded Santa with toys around his belt dressed in a red outfit. Also, it is well documented that the New York Times reported on 27 November 1927 that a standardized Santa appears to New York Children. See http://www.snopes.com/cokelore.santa.asp and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santa_Claus.
Most appreciative, Doug
Posted by: Doug | December 15, 2008 at 01:28 PM
Doug - Sorry for any confusion. We at Coca-Cola have talked about Thomas Nast's role in the development of Santa. (In fact, I've even mentioned that on my blog, and we mention his role on another Coke site. We note that Nast turned Santa's Coke red (though people believe Coke did that). What we at Coca-Cola say is that our advertising did help create the modern-day image of Santa, because our ads featuring artwork by Haddon Sundblom showed Santa as human, kind and jolly. Other depictions of Santa were either of a stern, sometimes elf-like Santa, or of someone dressed up as Santa (not Santa himself). Sundblom worked over a period of three decades to refine the image of Santa that Nast had created. Because the Sundblom imagery was used in all the popular magazines of the day, his vision gained widespread acceptance. Thanks -- Phil
Posted by: Phil Mooney | December 17, 2008 at 11:15 AM