CHRISTMAS TRIVIA

 

• The banister in George's house is always broken in It's a Wonderful Life
• The best selling Christmas trees are Scotch pine, Douglas fir, Noble fir, Fraser fir, Virginia pine, Balsam fir and white pine.
• The Bible never mentions a specific date for the Nativity.
• The Canadian province of Nova Scotia leads the world in exporting lobster, wild blueberries, and Christmas trees.
• The candy cane modelled after a shepherds crook
• The carol "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" contains the line "O tidings of comfort and joy"
• The Christ Child was no closer than second cousin to John the Baptist - Luke tells us John's mother Elizabeth was Mary's cousin.
• The Christmas season begins at sundown on 24th December and lasts through sundown on 5th January. For that reason, this season is also known as the Twelve Days of Christmas.
• The Christmas turkey first appeared on English tables in the 16th century, but didn't immediately replace the traditional fare of goose, beef or boar's head in the rich households.
• The custom of singing Christmas carols is very old - the earliest English collection was published in 1521.
• The day after Christmas, December 26, is known as Boxing Day. It is also the holy day called The Feast of St. Stephen. Some believe the feast was named for St. Stephen, a 9th century Swedish missionary, the patron saint of horses. Neither Boxing Day or St. Stephen have anything to do with Sweden or with horses. The Stephen for whom the day is named is the one in the Bible (Acts 6-8) who was the first Christian to be martyred for his faith.
• The drummer boy's lamb came back to life when he played his song for the Baby Jesus
• The Emmy Award winning cartoon “Yes, Virginia There is a Santa Claus “was based on a newspaper editorial.
• The film “The Homecoming” told the plight of a poor mountain family during the days of the Depression
• The first British monarch to broadcast a Christmas message to his people was King George V.
• The first charity Christmas card was produced by UNICEF in 1949. The picture chosen for the card was painted not by a professional artist but by a seven-year-old girl. The girl was Jitka Samkova of Rudolfo, a small town in the former nation of Czechoslovakia. The town received UNICEF assistance after World War II, inspiring Jitka to paint some children dancing around a maypole. She said her picture represented "joy going round and round."
• The first Christmas card was created in England on December 9, 1842.