The Christmas Encyclopedia 3d Ed

This considerably expanded third edition of The Christmas Encyclopedia (2001) adds 281 new entries, bringing the total number of Christmas topics to more than 760. Continuing in the format of the previous editions, a wide variety of subjects are included: individual carols and songs; historical events at Christmastime; popular Christmas symbols; Christmas plants, place names, and stamps; and celebrations in countries around the world, including the origins of some of the most cherished traditions in the United States. Unique to this work is its emphasis on Christmas as depicted in the popular media, with entries covering literary works such as Call Me Mrs. Miracle and Silver Bells, classic television series such as Bonanza and Little House on the Prairie, motion pictures such as Arthur Christmas and Santa Clause 3, and television specials expressing holiday themes.

This considerably expanded third edition of The Christmas Encyclopedia covers key topics surrounding the cherished holiday and its traditions.

From the manger of Jesus Christ to the 21st century, this encyclopedia explores more than 2,000 years of Christmas past and present through 966 entries packed with a wide variety of historical and pop-culture subjects. Entries detail customs and traditions from around the world as well as classic Christmas movies, TV series/specials and animated cartoons. Arranged alphabetically by entry name, the book includes the historical background of popular sacred and secular songs as well as accounts of beloved literary works with Christmas themes from such noted authors as Charles Dickens, Louisa May Alcott, Hans Christian Andersen, Pearl Buck, Henry Van Dyke and others. All things Christmas are available here in one comprehensive volume.

At Eastertime, the most important holiday in the Christian world, religious processions in many Latin American countries pass over ornate street "carpets" fashioned from colored sawdust, flowers and fruit. Children in Finland and Sweden dress as "Easter witches." In the Caribbean, those who swim on Good Friday risk bad luck. In the Philippines, some penitents volunteer to be crucified. In some European countries, Easter Monday is the day for dousing women with water. With 240 entries, this book explores these and scores of other unusual and sometimes bizarre international Holy Week customs, both sacred and secular, from pilgrimages to Jerusalem to classic seasonal films and television specials.

Since the early 20th century, animated Christmas cartoons have brightened the holiday season around the world--first in theaters, then on television. From devotional portrayals of the Nativity to Santa battling villains and monsters, this encyclopedia catalogs more than 1,800 international Christmas-themed cartoons and others with year-end themes of Hanukkah, Kwanzaa and the New Year. Explore beloved television specials such as A Charlie Brown Christmas, theatrical shorts such as Santa's Workshop, holiday episodes from animated television series like American Dad! and The Simpsons, feature films like The Nutcracker Prince and obscure productions such as The Insects' Christmas, along with numerous adaptations and parodies of such classics as A Christmas Carol and Twas the Night before Christmas.

With careers spanning eight decades, William Hanna and Joseph Barbera were two of the most prolific animation producers in American history. In 1940, the two met at MGM and created Tom and Jerry, who would earn 14 Academy Award nominations and seven wins. The growth of television led to the founding of Hanna-Barbera's legendary studio that produced countless hours of cartoons, with beloved characters from Fred Flintstone, George Jetson and Scooby-Doo to the Super Friends and the Smurfs. Prime-time animated sitcoms, Saturday morning cartoons, and Cartoon Network's cable animation are some of the many areas of television revolutionized by the team. Their productions are critical to our cultural history, reflecting ideologies and trends in both media and society. This book offers a complete company history and examines its productions' influences, changing technologies, and enduring cultural legacy, with careful attention to Hanna-Barbera's problematic record of racial and gender representation.

In some respects, the contrasts of Christmas are what make it the most delightful time of the year. It is a time of generosity, kindness and peace on earth, with broad permission to indulge in food, drink and gifts. On the other hand, Christmas has become a battleground for raging culture wars, marred by debates about how it should be celebrated and acknowledged as a uniquely Christian holiday. This text argues that much of the animosity is based on a fundamental misunderstanding of the holiday's core character. By tracing Christmas's origins as a pagan celebration of the winter solstice and its development in Europe's Christianization, this history explains that the true "reason for the season" has as much to do with the earth's movement around the sun as with the birth of Christ. Chapters chronicle how Christmas's magic and misrule link to the nativity, and why the carnival side of the holiday appears so separated from traditional Christian beliefs.