Waiting for Santa
Matt, Al, Ann, and I were sitting around yesterday talking about our favorite Christmas memories growing up. I think I stunned them a little when I said it wasn’t Christmas time for me until Santa came down the hill on a Norelco shaver. For those of you old enough to remember, that shaver commercial played every holiday season (and may still play, for all I know, though I haven’t seen it recently).
Back when I was a kid there weren’t as many holiday "cues" as there are today. And they didn’t begin showing up before Thanksgiving. I knew once I saw Santa come down the hill in that commercial, that the Rudolph special wouldn’t be far behind—along with "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" and "A Charlie Brown Christmas". These animated TV specials were an "event" because they only came once a year. There were no videos or DVD boxed sets. If you missed ‘em, you were out of luck until next December.
I think when you can conjure up the holiday any day you want, it loses some of its magic. That being said, the minute I had kids I went out and bought all those boxed sets. And I keep my radio tuned to 106.7 FM because since Thanksgiving it’s been playing nothing but Christmas music.
So am I just a sucker for the season, even when I know it’s overdone?
Maybe I am sliding down a slippery slope. Or perhaps I’m just looking to "shave" off the years and recapture my childhood.
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I can't believe you wrote that about the Norelco commercial. I feel the same way! I even wrote the Norelco company a few years ago to tell them I miss seeing that commercial and it isn't the Christmas season until I see Santa sledding down the hill on the shaver. Glad to see great minds think alike!
I can't believe you wrote that about the Norelco commercial. I feel the same way! I even wrote the Norelco company a few years ago to tell them I miss seeing that commercial and it isn't the Christmas season until I see Santa sledding down the hill on the shaver. Glad to see great minds think alike!
Hi Meredith,
Yes, I do remember those Norelco commercials, but they DON'T show good commercials like that anymore. It's rare, in fact, that you'll ever see the pretty commercials from Budweiser (Clydesdales traveling along that snowy path to a small town) and Miller (horse-drawn carriage in snowy path to town). Can you believe that Miller commercial dates back to 1977! God, Meredith, WE'RE old!! (I'm 42).
I will admit that they have overdone Xmas for some years now, but I will admit that I am a sucker for the holiday season as well. My iPod has all the old/classic xmas standards like Bing, Frank, Tony, Johnny, Gene Autry, Burl Ives, Eartha Kitt, Spike Jones, Andy Williams, Paul McCartney, John Lennon....the classics, not the new re-make garbage!!
I actually watched "Frosty" (the classic) last Friday on one of those other networks...oops, sorry Meredith. Call me traitor!
I do have a few other xmas traditions....EX:I watch "Home Alone" (1990) every year.
Joe :) Ho Ho Ho!!
Meredith, I love you on the Today show. We have something similar in common. Your husband has MS and my husband passed away from ALS. I have been trying to get the word out but I am a nobody. This is something that I feel strong about. Any ideas what I can do to get the word out? We only made it to our first year anniversary. It has been so surreal. This was a second marriage for both of us. I have written about this experience.
Oh, me too, I loved the Santa on the Norelco Shaver! I still look for the commercial every year hoping that they will bring it back :) I still wait with aniticpation each year for the Grinch (animated) to come on. Its the magic of the season - letting us enjoy the wonder like we did when we were children. Happy holidays!
I loved that commercial and wish it was still on the air. I haven't seen it for years. It was always my favorite too.
All of the above! :)
Overdone is right!
Now we have:
Movies with drunken Santas.
Rampant materialism on television.
Kids clamoring for more and more.
5 year olds asking for designer clothes that won't make them look fat.
What are we doing to Christmas?
I remember that Norelco Santa quite well. The commercial always played, it seemed, right before Rudolph came on. I also thought we had to put up our tree on the night Rudolph or Charlie Brown came on-it became a tradition to me and my parents managed to follow it. I work in a dental office and we have TV's in the rooms. Right now I get to hear Rudolph, Frosty, and all the oldies each day I'm at work. What wonderful memories they bring back.
Hi, Meredith--
I enjoyed your musings re holiday memories and rituals and, yes, I am old enough to remember fondly the Norelco image--i.e., I wish the actual shaver worked as well. Question: What is your favorite holiday film (or one that you pull out during the holidays)?--e.g. I watch Spielberg's E.T. once a year during the holiday season. Although not explicitly a "Christmas movie," it features an enlightened creature visiting humankind and offering a message of love and loyalty; the little squishy guy's final statements--"Be good," "I'll be right here"--seem more than familiar and linked to the message of the season, I've always felt. Do you have a film or films you roll out between now and January?
Happy holidays to you and yours, Meredith. The intelligence, humanity, and spirit you bring to the Today Show and Millionaire continue to make you a year-long gift for all of your viewers. "Dzienkuje bardzo" (Polish "thanks much") for your special presence on the air.
I loved the Norelco Santa but always found Charlie Brown and Rudolph to be a little depressing, for some reason.
I really enjoy some of today's Christmas commercials. My children's favorite holiday commercial has always been the Coca Cola commercial with the lighted trucks, coming down the mountains and lighting up the towns and the Coca Cola polar bears.
Meredith,
I went on you tube and found the commercial you were talking about. I've attached it to this note so you can see it and bring back memories. Merry Christmas!
www.youtube.com/watch?v=oUQycfgCjr0
I know Christmas is near because of the ads for the Chia pet and the Clapper!!
Meredith,
I remember that commercial, and waiting each year for the Christmas specials, and waiting once a year for the Wizard of Oz. I love Christmas, and spend two months a year just enjoying it to the fullest. This year, I took a job as a bell ringer, always curious about what they experienced, and in doing so, this season will never be forgotten.
Blessings,
Linda
that was the START off christmas for me and i still wine about not seeing that
commercial every year, it made it for me!!!!!!!cheers to you