Re: Thomas Nast vs. Haddon Sundblom

Hi Dante,

"But for quite a while the American visuals were set by the poem A Visit From St. Nicholas aka The Night Before Christmas, and the illustrations by Thomas Nast.

Yes, I am familiar with both Boss Tweed and the famous political cartoonist, Thomas Nast. Thank you for reminding me of Nast's contribution to the caricature and evolution of Santa.

The poem, A Visit From St. Nicholas, did indeed set the mental image for Santa's "Home Invasion", including his penchant for climbing down the chimney to deliver his gifts. It is interesting that the poem may have actually been written by an unknown and credited to Moore, as you point out.

As a Child Lover though, my favorite discussion of Santa is the editorial response to a question from a little girl asking if Santa is real. It was authored by Francis P. Church in the The New York Sun in 1897. Here is a link.

http://beebo.org/smackerels/yes-virginia.html

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