A Green Glass Bowl, A Silver Serving Tray & A Miniature Christmas Tree

This is the day we used to visit my Grandma and Grandad Tufts' house in Toronto to celebrate Christmas. My aunt, uncle and cousins from Ottawa would join us there.  We always looked forward to certain traditions.  In the early years, Grandma would cook the turkey, but when it became too much for her, we went out for dinner.  In the early 1980's we went to the old Leaside Station Restaurant.  Later, we dined at Mother Tucker's and other Toronto eateries.

Grandma's serving tray was similar to this one, but with squared edges rather than rounded ones.  Photo courtesy cloudfront.net.  

After dinner, we would head back to their brick bungalow on Lankin Boulevard in East York where Grandma had prepared treats.  She always set out a green glass bowl filled with potato chips along with a matching dip bowl.  She also prepared 13 different kinds of Christmas cookies stacked on a triple-tiered silver tray:  shortbread, Sweet Marie bars, date pinwheels -- you name it, she made it.

                                 

Glass green bowls courtesy
https://www.rubylane.com/item/147152-GW-205/Vintage-MCM-1960s-Avocado-Olive-Green.

Beside the fireplace in the rec room sat a miniature Christmas tree, lit up with tiny lights, under which sat gifts for the children and grandchildren.  We also brought presents for Grandma, which she tore into, and Grandad, which he carefully opened with a paring knife.  

After we opened our gifts (although Grandad was still working away on his first one), Grandma would turn off the lights and treat us to a slide show.  For anyone under 30 years old, that's a series of photographs set in cardboard frames, placed into a round tray, and projected onto a screen using a projector.  Grandma would poke fun at herself and her family -- she was the only one who could get away with ribbing my dad.  Grandad would let out an infectious belly laugh with each joke.

Slides courtesy dreamstime.com.

After the slideshow, Grandad would treat us to a rendition of Danny Boy or another song on the upright piano.  On top of the piano, sat a wedding photograph of my parents, young and in love, my mom in her white satin gown and matching gloves, my dad looking dapper in his suit and tie. Opposite their photograph, was one of my aunt and uncle, on their wedding day the following year. My aunt wore a beautiful gown and sparkling tiara, my uncle, a dark suit and thin black tie.

It has been 17 years since Grandad passed away, 21 years for Grandma.  I miss the bungalow.  I miss the green glass chip bowl...the tiered silver tray...the miniature Christmas tree.  I miss Grandma's wit and Grandad's infectious laugh.  Merry Christmas, Grandma and Grandad!

Miniature Christmas tree courtesy pinimg.com.

The History of Decorative Boxes

The day after Christmas is known as Boxing Day in Britain as servants and tradesmen used to receive a gift, in the form of a Christmas box, from their employers.  Here are ten examples of decorative boxes:

    

1.  Chinese Ming Dynasty mother of pearl round box courtesy en.wikipedia.org.

2.  18th Century German gold and mother of pearl snuffbox courtesy en.wikipedia.org.

3.  1915 metalwork silver and cloisonne box courtesy en.wikipedia.org.

4.  Jewel box lined with red velvet courtesy en.wikipedia.org.

5.  18th Century London snuffbox courtesy en.wikipedia.org.

6.  French snuffbox courtesy en.wikpedia.org.

7.  Bible box courtesy finewoodworking.com.

8.  Antique Bible box courtesy img.com.

9.  19th Century biscuit tin courtesy britishbiscuittins.co.uk.

10.  Chinese sewing box courtesy chappellmccullar.com.

The Star of Bethlehem

O star of wonder, star of night,

Star with royal beauty bright,

Westward leading, still proceeding,

Guide us to thy perfect light.

(We Three Kings)

Adoration of the Magi courtesy en.wikipedia.org.

The Star of Bethlehem, also called The Star of the East or The Christmas Star, appeared over Bethlehem after Jesus' birth, according to the Gospel of Matthew.  The Magi, sometimes translated as wisemen, sometimes as astrologers, followed the brilliant star to Bethlehem, to visit the baby Jesus.  The presented Jesus with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh, twelve days after his birth, referred to as Epiphany.  The wisemen did not return to their homeland via the same route, after God warned them that King Herod, who was expecting them, planned to kill baby Jesus once he found out his whereabouts.  

The mystery of the Bethlehem Star remains.  Conjecture over past centuries has produced various theories as to why the star was so brilliant.  Was it the conjunction of the planets Jupiter and Saturn? Was it Uranus?  Was it a comet, as depicted by in the 13th Century Italian painting Adoration of the Magi?  Was it a supernova, "a stellar explosion which briefly outshines an entire galaxy, radiating as much energy as the sun" (wikipedia)?

Regardless of the source of the Star, it must have been a magnificent sight for the magi to behold. I'm sure its beauty took their breath away, rendered them speechless.  What a fitting way for God to announce the arrival of His Son, our Saviour!  

A Baby Changes Everything

Teenage girl

Much too young

Unprepared for what's to come

A baby changes everything.

The teenage girl in the verse from Faith Hill's song could live in Boston...or Toronto...or Brantford (see https://plus.google.com/107939813175034837761/about?gl=ca&hl=en).    A young woman, heavy with child, scorned by her family, lonely, scared, confused, nowhere to go.  A baby changes everything.

Turn the clock back over 2000 years.  A teenage girl in Bethlehem found herself pregnant.  Her fiance wondered about the baby's paternity, planning to send her away secretly.  Her future in-laws could have carried out a "mercy killing" for her adultery.  Her community shunned her.  A baby changes everything.

The young girl visited her much older, pre-menopausal age cousin, also pregnant with child.  Upon the occasion, her cousin felt her own baby move in her womb.  "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb," she declared, soothing words for a girl who was much too young.

About to give birth, she undertook a long journey on a donkey, her fiance by her side.  Near Bethlehem, she found herself out on the street, no room at the inn.  In a manger, under a brilliant star, she lay down on the hay, and there, among the oxen and lambs, she gave birth.  A baby changes everything.

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Bells of St. Mary's Minutae

Here are ten facts you may not know about the movie "The Bells of St. Mary's", starring Bing Crosby and Ingrid Bergman.

1.  A priest acted as an off screen adviser during production of the movie, based at a Catholic convent and school.  As a prank, Ingrid Bergman and Bing Crosby share a passionate kiss during the closing scene; the priest roars his disapproval of the kiss, only to find out it wasn't in the script.

2.  "Varvindar Friska", or "Spring Breezes", is a traditional Swedish folk song sung by Ingrid Bergman in the film.

3.  "The Bells of St. Mary's", which earned 3,715,000 at the box office, was RKO's most profitable film ever produced.

4.  Ingrid's Bergman's character, Sister Mary Benedict, purchases Gene Tunney's boxing manual at the sports store to train one of her students who is being harassed by a playground bully.  While Gene Tunney was a true boxer, he never wrote a book called The Art of Boxing.

5.  "The Bells of St. Mary's" served as a sequel to "Going My Way", also starring Bing Crosby as a priest.

6.  Leo McCarey, the movie's director, was inspired to write the script by his aunt, Sister Mary Benedict, who helped build Immaculate Heart Convent in Hollywood.  As Sister Mary in the movie suffered from tuberculosis, real life Sister Mary suffered from typhoid fever, which led to her death.

7.  "The Bells of St. Mary's" is considered a Christmas movie in large part because of the Christian theme and the Christmas play staged by the schoolchildren in which they sing "Happy Birthday" to Jesus, complete with a real baby in a basket.

8.  The Pledge of Allegiance did not contain the words "under God" at the time of filming; hence the children did not recite that version.

9.  Many of the theatrical posters for "Bells of St. Mary's" contained shots of Bergman and Crosby in non-clerical garb.

10.  At the 1945 Academy Awards, Leo McCarey won Best Director for "Going my Way" and Bing Crosby won Best Actor.  When Ingrid Bergman went onstage to receive her best actress award for "Gaslight", she said:  "I'm glad I won because tomorrow morning, I start shooting the sequel to "Going My Way", with Bing Crosby and Leo McCarey, and I was afraid that if I didn't have an Oscar, they wouldn't speak to me."

For more information, visit my post "The Bells of St. Mary's" at
http://alinefromlinda.blogspot.ca/2011/12/bells-of-st-marys.html.

White Christmas Rakes in the Green

Here are ten facts you may not know about the movie "White Christmas".

1.  The song "White Christmas", though made famous by the movie, was first performed by Bing Crosby thirteen years earlier on the radio show "Kraft Music Hall".

2.  Danny Kaye's role was intended for dancer/actor Fred Astaire who declined it.

3.  A 25 year age gap existed between Bing Crosby (51) and his love interest in the movie, Rosemary Clooney (26).

4.  Vera Ellen only danced in the movie.  Her dubbed songs were actually sung by Rosemary Clooney and Trudy Stevens.

5.  The Haynes sisters' brother, Freckle Face Haynes never appears in any scenes.  The audience does see his photograph, however, which is a picture of actor Carl "Alfafa" Switzer.

6.  Vera Ellen danced with the New York City Rockettes at the tender age of 18.

7.  "White Christmas" features beautiful costumes designed by Edith Head.

8.  "White Christmas" was by the far the biggest box office bonanza of 1954, raking in $12 million.

9.  The Vermont inn featured in the movie was the refurbished inn from another Bing Crosby film, Holiday Inn.

10.  Prominent dancer George Charkiris, who dances with the Haynes sisters, later went on to win a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his role in West Side Story.

Source:  http://www.buzzfeed.com/katieheaney/15-things-you-didnt-know-about-white-christmas#.vbAmOpNGk.

For more information, read my post "White Christmas" at http://alinefromlinda.blogspot.ca/2011/12/white-christmas.html.

"White Christmas" still courtesy blogspot.com.

The Most Famous Christmas Movie

Last night, we watched the 1947 classic, "Miracle on 34th Street", the most famous New York City Christmas movie.  In the summer of 2012, when Rob and I walked to the Empire State Building, spotted Macy's and realized we were on 34th Street, it was a surreal moment for us; all the memories of the movie came flooding back.  Here are fifteen facts you may not know about the movie.

1.  "Dear Santa" letters were up by 25% in 1947 after movie goers saw the 21 sacs of mail sent to Santa in the 1946 movie.

2.  Edmund Gwenn, who played Kris Kringle in the movie, also played Santa Claus in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade of 1946.

3.  Edmund Gwenn's character replaced the drunk Santa in the parade.  In 1948, the New York Times magazine reported a "Santa who grabbed a trim young mother, set her on his knee and suggested they both go out and have a drink".

4.  In the opening scene of "Miracle on 34th Street", Edmund Gwenn's character walks down a New York City street and notices Santa's reindeer in a store window.  Rudolph, however, is missing. While Rudolph had already been invented in 1939 in the Gene Autry song, he did not become popular until the 1964 TV special "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer".

5.  Edmund Gwenn's character was given a psychological test in which he had to answer a series of questions including "Who was the Vice President of the united states under John Quincy Adams?"  He answered it incorrectly by saying "Daniel D. Tompkins."  The correct response should have been John C. Calhoun.

6.  The headline "'Kris Kringle Krazy!  Kourt Kase Koming Kalamity!"'  Kry Kiddes" was probably inspired by the absurd headlines run by the Daily Variety in the 1930's and 1950's including "Sticks Nix Hick Pix".

7.  The Santa suit that Edmund Gwenn wore was auction for $22,500 in 2011.

8.  A little Dutch girl meets Santa at Macy's and sings the traditional Dutch song "Sinterklaas Kapoentje".  Edmund Gwenn's character, who happens to speak Dutch, sings along with her.

9.  A real life rivalry did exist between the two departments stores, Macy's and Gimbel's, from 1910 until 1987, when the latter when out of the business.

10.  Every year at Christmas time, U.S. courts re-enact the trail of Kris Kringle for children.

11.  Screen writer Valentine Davies was inspired to write "Miracle on 34th Street" after Christmas shopping in 1944.

12.  Edmund Gwenn grew a white beard and gained 30 pounds for the role of Kris Kringle.  He won an Oscar for his performance.

13.  Three hundred children each year sit on Santa Claus's knee at Macy's.

14.  "Miracle on 34th Street" could have been called "It's Only Human", Mr. Kringle of "The Big Heart".

15.  Seven-year-old Actress Natalie Wood, who played the little girl who didn't believe in Santa Claus, actually thought Edmund Gwenn was the real McCoy.

Note:  For more information on the movie, read my post "Rickety Wooden Escalators & Cracked Marble Floors" at http://alinefromlinda.blogspot.ca/2012/08/august-11.html.

Source:  theboweryboys.blogspot.ca/2014/12/the-real-miracle-on-34th-street-21.html AND
blogs.amctv.com.

Edmund Gwenn in "Miracle on 34th Street" courtesy theboweryboys.blogspot.ca.