22 — Wednesday, November 30, 1988 - North Shore News

Santa ‘Claus has had many

He has been depicted as a

Right? Wrong. white-bearded, priestly looking

WHEN YOU’VE seen one Santa Santa has many faces.

Claus, you’ve seen them all.

aap ts

_—

Decks from 29° to 58°°

All Wheels in stock §°5 | Trucks 34” to 45°F SK8 T-Shirts 16°55

Clothing up to 60% off suggested retail

prices. All airwalks shoes (prototyn, vics) drastically reduced.

man in religious robes, and a black-bearded buccaneer in a furry black suit.

One version shows Santa in a military uniform. In others, he sports versions of the popular red and white suit.

Santa was a tall, thin man until 1853 when Baldwin, Adams & Co. published an engraving showing a paunchy St. Nick with a scragely beard driving a team of equally ragged reindeer.

The roly-poly version of Santa gained wide acceptance in the 1860’s when Thomas Nast, a famous cartoonist of the period, began drawing the broad-faced old gentleman for magazine covers and bookplates.

Nast’s Santa was 2 squat, pixie- like figure, round and jolly — a throwback to the Santa who slid down the chimney in Clement Clarke Moore’s 1822 classic, “‘The Night Before Christmas.’’

Nast popularized not only the figure of Santa Claus but also many of the other practices with which he is associated at

Christmas: manufacturing the toys in his North Pole workshop, keep- ing records of good and bad children, receiving and answering their fetters and driving his reindeer.

Nast also is credited with creating Santa’s red coat, the result of a cartoon during the Civil War which patrioticaliy showed Santa in a red, white and blue suit.

In the early 1900s, variations of Nast’s Santa appeared.

A postcard, dated 1909, shows Santa in a red robe trimmed with brown fur.

A 1917 grecting actually depicts Santa as somewhat sinister. San- ta’s bulbous nose and cheeks are red, but thin eyebrows, slanted eyes and a devilish grin combine to give him a wicked look.

Today’s cards portray Santa in any number of modern situations including watching T.V. with his reindeer, relaxing on the beach, engaging in sports activities, work- ing at a computer and lying on the psychiatrist’s couch.

Xmas cards have a long history

WHEN YOU send your Christmas cards this year, you will be fulfill- ing a tradition that is in its 144th

ear.

The first Christmas card was mailed in London, England in 1843, A businessman named Henry Coie was the first to use the new Penny Post mail system to ac- complish his greetings of the season.

Cole commissioned an_ artist friend named John Calcott Horsley to design a card he could send to all his acquaintances.

The classifieds point you in the right direction

How to Solve the Market place Maze Threading your way through store after store trying to find what you need

can be an exercise in futility. Let

us simplify your buying. Do your shopping in the Classifieds and eliminate unnecessary shopping trips.

Sell it in the Classsifieds

The fastest return on the advertising doliar anywhere. See how easy selling can be, when you advertise in the North Shore News Classifieds.

classified ads save you money

986-6222

1139 Lonsdale Ave., North Vancouver V7M 2H4

ys vones OF moNTe anaD Orgs wAREOUVER

norths

The result was a three-panelled card, with the main illustration showing the elders at a family par- ty raising wine glasses in a toast.

The panels on either side showed two of the oldest traditions of Christmas — feeding the hungry and clothing the needy,

The message on Henry Cole’s Christmas card was, “A Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you.”

One hundred and forty-four years later, this original message remains the most popular one-of all on Christmas cards.

Cariboots are handcrafted from the finest sheep wool for optimum comfort & w warmth. \ Soncthinggs & sspecia a Lonsdale Quay Market 984-7243 The Landing 687-7243

SEALS FIGHT LUNG DISEASE

It’s a Matter of Life and Breath