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The Santa Claus mugs
By Betsy Richter | 9:50 pm
There were two things that symbolized Christmas in our house when I was growing up: not being allowed to get out of bed until a certain song was played on the old turntable (more about this later), and watching those old Rankin & Bass Christmas specials on television while drinking hot chocolate out of our family’s special Santa Claus mugs.
(Later in life, I adopted a newer tradition – stop at the liquor store and buy the yearly bottle of Grand Marnier, to drink heated in brandy snifters on Christmas Eve. But I digress…)
The mugs themselves were probably made in China, and cost my mother all of 39 cents a piece at the local dime store with the squeaky wooden floors. The three of us kids adored them. And we were appalled to discover that my mom was selling them at her ‘moving out of the family abode’ garage sale years later, along with my favorite childhood books.
Since I’d come back to help with said sale, I snagged two mugs for myself, while my brother grabbed one and my sister was left sputtering in the dust when she kicked up her own fuss days later (if she’d come back to help like the rest of us did, she might have grabbed the one that accidentally got sold, no?) And ever since, I’ve been searching for Santa Claus mugs to build up my own collection – even before I ever thought I’d have kids, even though I am definitely not the collectible type.
I bought two sort-of-similar-ones at a Christmas shop a few years later and sent one to my sister as a peace offering for not giving her one of the two I’d snagged (was I going to be nice and give her one of the originals, even years later? Uh, no…I’m not that nice, nor was I feeling that guilty…) And my Santa Claus mugs traveled with me on every subsequent move I made – they even made the cut and were part of the 10 boxes of stuff I had shipped from Michigan to New York.
After 20 years of looking, I finally gave up and bought a totally different type of set here in Portland a few years ago, with a matching teapot and cookie plate. I told my own kids the story of the Christmas mugs, and we’d watch cheesy specials together. And then we started shifting away from Christmas.
Then, at a local garage sale three years ago, I found the twins to my two mugs, and bought all three for fifty cents a piece. At first, I thought about shipping those to my sister as well – after all, we weren’t really doing the Christmas thing any more, and she was still bitching about being cut out of the loop way back when. But the kids were enthralled by the find – and I started rethinking things.
The mugs came out for a display of sorts last year, and we broke out the hot chocolate yet again. I now have five – and I cannot even tell which were the original two and which three are the new kids on the block (they’re all mostly paint-free by this point…) And two days ago, Drama Mama asked if we could have hot chocolate in the Santa Claus mugs again this year, please. The Mogul, surprisingly enough, has already put in his bid for one or two for years down the road, even though he swears he will never have kids or get married himself, heh.
So. I made a halfhearted search for this particular song a few years ago, but now I should throw it out to you all. It was an instrumental song that was the second cut on an album by the John ???? Orchestra. The song’s title is “All Around the Christmas Tree”, which is also the name of the album. It was on RCA Records, I believe. And I remember that someone in the extended family swore that there were lyrics (although not in this rendition), which included this phrase “little boys, little girls, don’t be late….” My mom’s album is long since gone, and no one else in the family seems to have it, to my knowledge.
Does it ring any bells….?
Topics: Boss Lady | 6 Comments »
December 23rd, 2004 at 8:49 am
You’re looking for “Let’s Ring the Bells” All Around the Christmas Tree by the John Klein Carillon players and Orchestra.
I’ve been on the hunt for the version that has the lyrics was on a 45 record and the male vocalist sounded alot like Bing Crosby. It is a family tradition to start our Christmas with this song…but the album degraded and was thrown out (Ugh!) and we’re left with a rapidly degrading tape casette version. It’s still lovely and brings back nostalgia though.
If you need a copy of the John Klein song, I can help you out.
Good luck!
Terri Smith
December 23rd, 2004 at 8:51 am
You’re looking for “Let’s Ring the Bells” All Around the Christmas Tree by the John Klein Carillon players and Orchestra.
I’ve been on the hunt for the version that has the lyrics was on a 45 record and the male vocalist sounded alot like Bing Crosby. It is a family tradition to start our Christmas with this song…but the album degraded and was thrown out (Ugh!) and we’re left with a rapidly degrading tape casette version. It’s still lovely and brings back nostalgia though.
If you need a copy of the John Klein song, I can help you out.
Good luck!
Terri Smith
January 20th, 2005 at 9:56 am
I would love to have a copy of the song. I to grew up with it and have been searching for years. Please tell me how I can get a copy. thanks.
February 13th, 2005 at 5:23 pm
You may be interested in another Klein album named “A Christmas Sound Spectacular.” It was made in 1959, originally an RCA Living Stereo recording. It features the same type of instrument (Schulmerich Carillon Americana) with orchestra and chorus. It is available in a mono CD version from Schulmerich Bells – http://www.schulmerichbells.com and is WELL WORTH A LISTEN!
February 19th, 2006 at 4:50 pm
[...] But I’m going to stick to my resolution to stay inside until every single last bit of precipitation out there has melted. Besides, my kids are sprawled on the floor of the living room, and they’re sleeping in a pile of blankets, abandoned cups of hot chocolate in the Santa Claus mugs hinting at the rip-roaring time we had here last night. (Rule One: Do NOT wake sleeping kids unless there’s a compelling reason to do so. And no, I did not drug the kids – and my cup was the only one containing peppermint schnapps. Honest.) [...]
February 19th, 2006 at 4:52 pm
[...] I’m betting it’ll add a whole new level of sophistication to our usual traditions: Santa Claus mugs; Christmas Adam; and, most tellingly, hot nights spent with this guy. [...]