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Tuesday, December 04, 2012

December 4, 1957


It’s Day #4 of “The Pop Culture Addict’s Advent Calendar”, and it also happens to be a Tuesday Timeline entry.

In keeping with the holiday tradition, I thought that I would take the opportunity to try and find a subject that has something to do with Christmas.  It wasn’t easy to find a decent topic to talk about (of the Tuesday Timelines for this month, December 4 was a particularly hard date to find a Christmas topic on).  Luckily, after consulting several websites (including the “Today in Oldies Music History” site), I believe that I found the perfect topic.

A topic that you now know involves some sort of oldies music.

Before we launch into that though, we have some unfinished business to attend to first, such as celebrity birthdays for December 4, as well as other events that took place throughout history on this date.

I think we’ll start with the famous faces chowing down on birthday cake today.  Celebrating a December 4 birthday are Deanna Durbin, Dena Deitrich, Ronnie Corbett, Jim Hall, Alex Delvecchio, Wink Martindale, Max Baer Jr, Yvonne Minton, Freddy Cannon, Gemma Jones, Chris Hillman, Anna McGarrigle, Roberta Bondar, Terry Woods, Southside Johnny, Jeff Bridges, Gary Rossington, Patricia Wettig, Rick Middleton, Tony Todd, Dave Taylor, Cassandra Wilson, David Green, Frank Reich, Jonathan Goldstein, Chelsea Noble, Marisa Tomei, Fred Armisen, Masta Ace, Jay-Z, Kevin Sussman, John L. Adams, Tyra Banks, Keith Caputo, Kristina Groves, Lauren London, Joe Thomas, and Orlando Brown.

And here are some of the major happenings that occurred on the fourth day of December...

1259 – King Louis the IX of France and King Henry III of England agree to the “Treaty of Paris”

1563 – The final session of the Council of Trent is held

1619 – 38 colonists from Berkeley Parish in England disembark in Virginia and give thanks to God (in what many believe to be the first Thanksgiving in the Americas)

1674 – Father Jacques Marquette founds mission on the shore of Lake Michigan to minister the Illiniwek (which would eventually become the settlement known as Chicago, Illinois

1783 – George Washington bids his officers farewell at New York City’s Fraunces Tavern

1791 – The world’s first edition of the Sunday newspaper, The Observer is published

1864 – Sherman’s March to the Sea takes place during the American Civil War

1867 – Former Minnesota farmer Oliver Hudson Kelley founds the Order of the Patrons of the Husbandry (or the Grange)

1872 – The crewless ship known as the Mary Celeste is discovered by British brig Dei Gratia

1875 – Boss Tweed, an infamous politician from New York City escapes from prison and flees to Spain via Cuba

1881 – The first issue of the Los Angeles Times is printed

1909 – The inaugural Grey Cup game is played between the University of Toronto Varsity Blues and the Toronto Parkdale Canoe Club, with the Varsity Blues winning

1921 – The first Virginia Rappe manslaughter trial against Roscoe “Fatty” Arbuckle ends in a hung jury

1937 – The Dandy Comic, one of the first comic strips to incorporate speech balloons is first printed

1939HMS Nelson is struck by a mine off the Scottish coast laid by U-31

1943 – Franklin Delano Roosevelt closes down the Works Progress Administration during World War II because of high levels of wartime unemployment within the United States

1945 – The U.S. Senate approves the motion for the United States to join the UN by a vote of 65 to 7

1954 – The first Burger King restaurant opens up in Miami, Florida

1956 – The “Million Dollar Quartet” of Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, and Elvis Presley get together at Sun Studios for the first and last time

1967 – Bert Lahr, the Cowardly Lion in the Wizard of Oz dies in New York City at the age of 72

1969 – Two members of the Black Panther Party are shot and killed during a raid by fourteen Chicago police officers

1971 – Switzerland’s Montreux Casino is set ablaze following someone carelessly using a flare gun during a Frank Zappa concert – the event would later be referenced in the Deep Purple song “Smoke on the Water”

1975 – Suriname joins the United Nations

1978 – Following the murder of San Francisco mayor George Moscone, Dianne Feinstein becomes the city’s first female mayor

1980 – Led Zeppelin breaks up following the September 25 death of John Bonham

1991 – Pan Am airlines ceases operations following its bankruptcy

1993 – Frank Zappa dies in Los Angeles at the age of 52

1998 – The second unit of the International Space Station, the Unity Module, is launched

2005 – Thousands of people in Hong Kong protest for democracy and call on the government to allow equal and universal suffrage

2006 – Six black youths are assault a white teenager in Jena, Louisiana, which causes the subsequent court case to become a cause celebre.

Now, for today’s blog entry, we’re going to be going back in time fifty-five years to the following date.



December 4, 1957.

But, before we go ahead with what happened on THAT date, we should really talk about the events that led up to December 4, 1957.

1957 was a year in which several artists made it big in the world of music.  Paul Anka, Jerry Lee Lewis, Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr, Dean Martin, Buddy Holly and the Crickets, Patsy Cline, and Harry Belafonte all released albums in 1957, amidst several others.  1957 was widely considered a year in which rock and roll began to overtake other genres of music in popularity.  Jerry Lee Lewis’ “Great Balls of Fire” was the #4 song of 1957 alone, while Danny & The Juniors’ hit “At The Hop” was #5.


Of course, nobody was bigger in 1957 than Elvis Presley himself.  All the girls wanted to date him, and all the boys wanted to be him.  And of the Top 5 songs of 1957, Elvis Presley had two of them...”Jailhouse Rock” and “All Shook Up”, which landed on the #1 and #3 positions respectively.  From his quivering lips to his gyrating hips, his very presence on the stage was enough to cause huge outbursts of emotions from his many fans.

Forget the Beatles and Justin Bieber.  Elvis Presley was the main heartthrob back in those days.

And in 1957, what better way to cement your status as one of the biggest names in music than by recording a Christmas album?

As is the case with most holiday themed albums, most of the songs were recorded during the summer months...in the case of Elvis’ Christmas album the majority of the songs were recorded between September 5 and September 7, 1957.  I would imagine that it would be kind of difficult to be singing about how one is dreaming of a White Christmas and how they were waiting for Santa Claus to come when the outside temperatures were scorching hot.  But, I suppose it couldn’t be helped.  After all, Christmas albums are usually released in late October/early November.


In the case of Elvis’ Christmas album, it saw an original release date of October 1957.  The album was entitled...wait for it...”Elvis’ Christmas Album”. 

The album contained eight Christmas songs, as well as four gospel songs that were previously included in his 1957 release “Peace in the Valley”.  The way the album was arranged, the first side of the record contained secular Christmas songs, while the second contained the gospel and more traditional songs.  On one side, you could hear songs like this one.


And, on the other side, you could hear songs like this one.


I think on a personal level it was a genius move for Elvis to do this.  The young people could jam along with the secular songs, while the parents could appreciate the more traditional and gospel tunes. 

And certainly the album was a successful effort.  The album has been re-released several times since its original pressing in 1957, and it ranked #1 for four weeks on the Billboard Top Pop Albums Chart.  It is estimated that “Elvis’ Christmas Album” has shipped out thirteen million copies of the album within the United States alone, and was the first of Elvis’ albums to reach Diamond certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).  In fact, “Elvis’ Christmas Album” is widely considered to be the biggest selling Christmas album of all time in the United States.

An amazing feat, given the controversy that surrounded the album upon its release.

I guess I should explain.  Of the eight songs that were Christmas themed, this was the one that caused Elvis the most trouble.


I know what you’re thinking.  How could a Christmas classic such as “White Christmas” cause so much drama?  After all, Bing Crosby helped cement its status as a legendary Christmas carol in the 1940s.



Well, according to the songwriter who wrote “White Christmas”, Irving Berlin, he was none too impressed by Elvis covering his creation.  As you can hear from Elvis’ version, he put his own spin on the song which sounded incredibly different to Bing Crosby’s original version.  And when Irving Berlin first heard Elvis Presley’s version, he described it as “a profane parody of his cherished yuletide standard”.

Ouch.

And that wasn’t all either.  Apparently, Irving Berlin was so offended by Elvis’ version that he actively launched a campaign to get radio stations in North America to stop playing Elvis’ version of the song, and actively sought to ban the entire album from being played on air!

Can you say, overkill?


The irony of the whole controversy was that three years prior to Elvis’ version being released, a similar sounding version of the classic hit was released by The Drifters, which hit the Top 10 on the R & B charts in both 1954 and 1955.  Apparently, Irving Berlin had no problem with the Drifters’ version, but heaven forbid Elvis Presley release his own version of the song! 

Now, when Irving Berlin launched his campaign of banning the album from radio, he reportedly called several radio stations all across the country, demanding they stop playing the song.  Quite a few American stations ignored Berlin’s request, although there were reports that some radio DJ’s were terminated from their contracts after playing the album.  What I found shocking was that while his campaign in the United States was hit or miss, Berlin did succeed in getting almost every Canadian radio station to ignore Elvis’ Christmas Album.

That is until December 4, 1957, when one Kingston, Ontario based radio station decided to take a stand and do what they thought was right.


The radio station known as CKWS was well aware of the controversy surrounding Elvis’ Christmas album.  The staff knew all about the bizarre plot by Irving Berlin to have the entire album banned from airplay, simply because of the fact that he did not appreciate Elvis Presley making a mockery of his song.

And yet on December 4, 1957, the staff of CKWS radio decided to rebel, and played Elvis’ Christmas Album in its entirety.  It was a rather daring move for the small radio station, given that most Canadian stations seemed afraid to play it.  But the staff of CKWS felt that the best way for the public to decide for themselves if the album was worth playing was to...well, play it.  The DJ’s even opened up the telephone lines for people to call into the station to voice their opinions.

And what did the public decide?  The majority of them seemed to approve of the album.  Many even wondered why the album was considered to be taboo.

And looking back on it, I myself wonder that.  I mean, yes, Irving Berlin was not happy with Elvis covering “White Christmas”, but not even he could stop Elvis’ Christmas Album from topping the charts.  I wouldn't be surprised to hear that the controversy generated by “White Christmas” was a key factor in the album’s rise to the top! 

As for CKWS, I have to applaud them for not being followers, but leaders.  Admittedly, they took a big chance in playing the whole album, but in the end, it seemed to pay off.  It not only introduced Canadian audiences to Elvis’ holiday favourites, but it also showcased a perfect example of standing up for what you believe in.  I’m actually quite proud of CKWS for making that call fifty-five years earlier, especially since it took place just a few miles away from where I grew up!

And that’s what happened on December 4, 1957.



The Advent Calendar continues tomorrow with DAY #5.  On that day, I talk about the Christmas that I ended up receiving my first actual working computer...though it’s not what you think...

Monday, December 03, 2012

Home Alone 2 - Lost in New York


I hope you're all enjoying The Pop Culture Addict's Advent Calendar for this month! Coming up with topics for this month has been a lot of fun, and I still have twenty-two more days to go!

We're heading into Day 3 of the near month long event, and this is our first look at a Monday Matinee. So, why not feature a movie that brings us all into the Christmas spirit?

Before I get into today's blog entry, I thought that I would talk about a subject that many people seem to get annoyed at, but I think that in some instances, it's okay.

I'm talking about product placement.

Product placement in film and television has been a regular sight to be seen since the days of the 1950s when some sitcoms acted out built-in commercials for products right in the show. You see it all the time in movies, such as subtle references to company logos, people name-dropping various brand names within the dialogue, and setting key scenes inside of a well-known restaurant chain.

I imagine that a lot of people hate the idea of product placement in movies, and for the most part, I tend to agree. People go to the movies to watch a couple fall in love, or to watch someone save the world, or to see a group of people get turned into hors d'oeuvres by a group of hungry zombies. They don't like being bombarded by impromptu commercials for items that they have no interest in purchasing. I know I certainly don't like watching ads within movies, especially now that I am an adult.

When I was a child though, I admit that I did like seeing toys and games played in various movies and television shows. After all, I will readily admit that a lot of my early Christmas lists were inspired by things I had seen in movies and television shows. For example, the 1988 film “The Wizard” was largely forgettable, but it was also the film which showed exclusive previews of the Nintendo game “Super Mario Brothers 3”, which was a game I received one Christmas morning. I also remember watching the 1982 film “ET: The Extra Terrestrial” and suddenly getting a craving for Reese's Pieces. It's funny how product placement really worked on my young mind, looking back on it.

I have one more story to tell you about product placement, and it takes place almost 20 years ago to the day.

In 1992, I was eleven years old, and I remember that Christmas being a particularly memorable one. My big gift that year was my Super Nintendo, and I also remember it being the first year that my mom's extended family had a get together on Christmas Eve, where we exchanged gifts. Christmas '92 was the second Christmas without my grandmother and right around that time, family togetherness was very important and we wanted to make a tradition to spend more time together.

(Ironically enough, the tradition only lasted a few years, as some family members kind of got along the same way that water got along with a frayed electrical cord...but hey, at least it was nice for the remainder of the 1990s.)

In addition to my Super Nintendo that year, I had also gotten some cash that year, and I decided to spend it at the movie theater. Back then there was a movie that I had wanted to see since it was released a month earlier, but never had the money to afford it. I ended up seeing the movie on the last day of 1992, and I thought it was a great way to ring in 1993.

The movie was actually a sequel to a popular 1990 film, and I remember wanting to see it because I had loved the first film. And for what it was worth, although the second film was very similar to the first, I did like it a lot. It helped that almost the same cast returned to the sequel to reprise their roles...but there was also something in the film that was featured a lot.

Something in the film that I really wanted.

You see, the main character in the film used a particular device throughout the film that helped him out a lot. He used it to manipulate his voice, recorded movie scenes that he played at certain times to escape danger, and used it to cause mischief around the house.



It was a device known as the Talkboy tape recorder. And I wanted one so badly. The problem was that at the time the movie was released, the Talkboy was not available in stores. I come to find out that the Talkboy tape recorder was made especially for the film itself. But I still wanted one, and apparently so did millions of children all over the world. The demand from children got so high that in 1993, Tiger Electronics began manufacturing the Talkboy tape recorder for sale in retail outlets, and it soon became one of the best-selling toys of 1993. I ended up getting my own version of the Talkboy for Christmas 1994, I believe, and I admit that it was neat toy the amount of time I owned it...though the sound quality wasn't that great.



But that Talkboy tape recorder sure did help Kevin McCallister out in a bind. With it, he checked into a hotel and kept the bad guys at bay. Not bad, considering that at the age of ten, he ended up lost on the streets of New York City.



And that's the basic plot of the film “Home Alone 2: Lost in New York”, a film directed by Chris Columbus and which starred Macaulay Culkin, Joe Pesci, Daniel Stern, Catherine O'Hara, John Heard, Brenda Fricker, Tim Curry, and Eddie Bracken.



The film was released on November 20, 1992 – a little over two years after the original “Home Alone” debuted, and the plot for the sequel was almost exactly the same as the first movie, only with a twist. Instead of Kevin McCallister (Culkin) being left home alone in his comfortable Oak Park, Illinois home, he somehow boards the wrong airplane and ends up in New York City while the rest of his family goes to Miami, Florida.

As if things aren't bad enough, Kevin is unaware of the fact that the Wet Bandits that he helped put away in the first movie have escaped police custody and are on the loose...in New York City.

The parallels between the original Home Alone and Home Alone 2 are eerily similar. Within the first half hour of the film, both movies begin almost exactly the same way.



(Home Alone) Kevin is forced to sleep in the attic after he pushes Buzz away and spills milk over the family's plane tickets to Paris.
(Home Alone 2) Kevin is forced to sleep in the attic after he pushes Buzz at a Christmas concert for making his ears glow during his big solo.

(Home Alone) Kevin wishes his family would just disappear.
(Home Alone 2) Kevin wishes he could go on his own vacation without his family.

(Home Alone) Kevin oversleeps and his family leaves without waking him up.
(Home Alone 2) Kevin ends up following another man wearing the same jacket as his father (Heard) and boards the wrong plane.

(Home Alone) Kate (O'Hara) realizes Kevin is missing on the airplane to Paris.
(Home Alone 2) Kate realizes that Kevin is missing at the Miami International Airport and faints.



(Home Alone) Kevin watches the movie “Angels With Filthy Souls” and gets scared.
(Home Alone 2) Kevin watches the movie “Angels With Filthier Souls” and gets scared.



(Home Alone) Harry (Pesci) and Marv (Stern) call themselves the Wet Bandits and they break into people's homes and steal things.
(Home Alone 2) Harry and Marv call themselves the Sticky Bandits, and they scheme to rob Duncan's Toy Chest.

(Home Alone) The McCallisters have a miserable time in Paris.
(Home Alone 2) The McCallisters have a miserable time in Miami.



(Home Alone) Kevin is initially afraid of Old Man Marley (Roberts Blossom) but later becomes his friend.
(Home Alone 2) Kevin is initially afraid of the Central Park Pigeon Lady (Fricker), but later becomes her friend.

Okay, so I see what you're saying here. The films are more or less the same movie with a different setting. But one reason why I loved the sequel of Home Alone was for the storyline.

You see, Home Alone was a great film as far as having an eight year old boy crafting up a blueprint of schemes and booby traps to stop Harry and Marv in their tracks. We learned that ice on a staircase is dangerous, crazy glue and feathers make an interesting costume, and that a blowtorch can be used as a hair removing device. And yet, the whole idea of the film was kind of self-serving. When you stop and think about it, yes, Kevin did learn a lot about what it was like to fend for himself, but ultimately he was only preventing Harry and Marv from taking his family's stuff. Electronic devices, jewelry, expensive clothing, and antiques. Things that could have been replaced with decent insurance coverage.

Not so in the second version.



You see, one of the many things that Kevin does on his sudden vacation to New York City (after using his Talkboy and his father's Visa card to check into a luxury suite at the Plaza Hotel) is head down to Duncan's Toy Chest, a toy store that is supposed to be almost similar to FAO Schwarz. And aside from purchasing such objects as bubble bath that looked like green slime (which served to aid Kevin later on in the movie), his attention was drawn to a Christmas tree that was on display on the counter of the toy store where Kevin first meets Mr. Duncan (Bracken). Mr. Duncan explains to Kevin that the tree contains ornaments of things that were featured in the classic Christmas carol “The 12 Days of Christmas”. He even allows Kevin to take home the two turtle dove ornaments, telling him that the doves are a symbol of friendship between two people.

Mr. Duncan also shows Kevin a chest filled with money, which Mr. Duncan explains is for a nearby children's hospital. The money not only funds the expenses needed for the hospital to run, but the money also helps the staff purchase gifts for the patients who are unable to go home for Christmas.



Right around this time, Harry and Marv discover that Kevin is in New York City, and try on multiple occasions to catch him and get rid of him. 



Of course, taking on Kevin McCallister is no easy task...and when Kevin overhears Harry and Marv talking about robbing Duncan's Toy Chest, Kevin discovers that he can't let them take Christmas away from sick kids, and he decides to take revenge on them. Luckily for Kevin, his uncle's townhouse is undergoing renovations, and he ends up using it as a home base to cause all sorts of pain to Harry and Marv. Now with 25% more paint, pipes, fire, and heavy objects!

Meanwhile, the McCallisters are trying to find Kevin and when they discover that he used Peter's credit card at the Plaza Hotel, the entire family travel there to find him, which leads to a rather humourous confrontation between Kate and the concierge of the Plaza Hotel (Curry).



The climax of the film takes place in Central Park, and it appears as though Kevin's luck has run out. Or has it?

I won't reveal what happens...but at the very end of the movie, Kevin has an unexpected ally come to his aid, and the turtle doves that Mr. Duncan gave him feature prominently within the last five minutes of the film.



So there you have it...the sequel to Home Alone 2. Not quite as good as the original, but still a movie worth watching for the holidays.

It certainly beats the lame third attempt and the even lamer fourth attempt following Home Alone 2 anyway.



Coming up tomorrow is Day #4 of the PCA Advent Calendar, and it also happens to be a Tuesday Timeline entry. We're going back to the 1950s to examine a Christmas album by a popular artist that many radio stations refused to play...until one Canadian station decided to take a stand. 

Sunday, December 02, 2012

Merry Xmas Everybody


Just in case you missed yesterday's blog entry, this is the beginning of an event that I like to call “The Pop Culture Addict's Advent Calendar”. From now until December 25, all the entries in the blog will have some sort of holiday reference.

Yesterday, we took a look at the holiday special “Olive, the Other Reindeer”, as part of the Saturday Holiday Special day...and today we're going to be featuring a Christmas themed song as part of the Sunday Jukebox.

This year, our Sunday Jukebox spotlights will have two twists to them. The first twist is that all of the songs featured during “The Pop Culture Addict's Advent Calendar” will be seasonal favourites. And the second twist is that all of the featured songs were recorded by artists from the United Kingdom. Believe me, I had no shortage of subjects for the Sunday Jukebox this year, as so many great artists from the United Kingdom released some holiday favourites that people have listened to while wrapping gifts and sipping on hot apple cider.

All right. Enough babbling from me. Let's just get right into the selected song for today. And today's song is such that depending on which country you live in, the song is either wildly popular, or virtually unheard of.

Take people in the United States and Canada, for example. This particular song is quite rare in both of those countries. The song failed to make an impression on the charts in either country, and I'll readily admit that the first time I ever heard the song was on an episode of the BBC dramatic series EastEnders years ago. So, for those of you who are reading this blog in the United States or Canada (and there's a lot of you out there, as those two countries are the ones who read this blog the most), consider this an introduction to a brand new Christmas tune.

Now, for those of you who are living in England, Scotland, Ireland, and Wales, you'll likely recognize this song right away. First things first, the song was a number one hit for the band who performed it. Secondly, the song managed to sell half a million copies during its first week of release! The single was certified UK Platinum in December 1980 (seven years after it was first released), and as of November 2012, it is estimated that the single has sold almost 1,200,000 copies in the United Kingdom alone!

The song was so successful in the United Kingdom that it ended up charting for years after its 1973 release. The song has made the top 100 list from 1980-1986, again in 1989 and 1990, 1998, and from 2006-2011!

So what song could have such staying power, and be beloved by so many in the United Kingdom?



Have you ever heard of the band known as Slade? The band formed in Wolverhampton, West Midlands, United Kingdom, and its original members were Noddy Holder, Jim Lea, Don Powell, and Dave Hill. The group began releasing albums and singles in 1969, and were a huge force to be reckoned with during the glam rock movement of the late 1960s/early 1970s.

Their career in their native country was phenomenal. During their time together, Slade released thirty albums, and it is estimated that the band spend a total of 531 weeks on the UK charts!

(That's a little over TEN YEARS on the charts, people!)

And let's talk about Slade's success on those very charts in great detail, shall we? Aside from beating out other established artists on the charts including Suzi Quatro, Wizzard, T. Rex, Gary Glitter, Roxy Music, and David Bowie, here are some more stats about Slade's hit singles.

  • Twenty-three Top 30 UK hits between 1969 and 2012.
  • Seventeen consecutive Top 20 hits between 1971 and 1976.
  • Six #1 singles.
  • Came very close to surpassing The Beatles record of most Top 10 records in a single decade during the 1970s.

Now, I suppose that some of you might be wondering why Slade never really seemed to catch on here in North America when they did so extremely well in the United Kingdom. I'm not entirely sure why this was the case. Listening to old Slade songs in preparation for this particular entry, I have to admit that they were a fantastic band, and had I grown up during the 1970s, I would have had them blaring from my record player all hours of the night! But, it wasn't as though Slade didn't try to make it big in the United States. In 1975, at the height of their popularity, the band tried to do some tours down there, and attempted to get noticed down there, but they found that success wasn't as easy to achieve in North America as it was in Europe.

The band did have a couple of singles charting in the United States during the 1980s with “Run Runaway” and “My Oh My”, though. And they did perform at the Reading Rock Festival after Ozzy Osbourne pulled out at the last minute in the early 1980s, which saw the band enjoy revived popularity. And even though the band officially split up in 1992, Powell and Hill have managed to reform the band with different members, and still perform together as of 2012.

Slade has also been a major influence on many bands which formed after Slade made it big. Some of these bands include Oasis, Nirvana, Smashing Pumpkins, The Clash, Quiet Riot, Twisted Sister, Def Leppard, Cheap Trick, Sex Pistols, and The Ramones.

That's quite a roster of bands, isn't it? I guess it just goes to show just how well loved they were by the public.

And I can't think of a better song to spotlight than this one.



ARTIST: Slade
SONG: Merry Xmas Everybody
ALBUM: N/A (strictly a single release)
DATE RELEASED: December 7, 1973
PEAK POSITION ON THE BILLBOARD CHARTS: N/A
PEAK POSITION ON THE UK CHARTS: #1

Now you know where the Christmas connection comes into play here.



This was the band's sixth and final #1 single in the UK, and many people would consider this seasonal favourite the band's signature hit.

The year that this song was released was the same year that Slade was at a career high. Their previous two singles that were released in 1973 (“Skweeze Me Pleeze Me” and “Cum On Feel The Noize” - the latter also being a hit for Quiet Riot) both debuted on the UK charts at number one, a very rare feat.

It was a mutual decision between Slade and their record company, Polydor Records, to come up with a Christmas release to end off the year 1973. To prepare for the song, Noddy Holder and Jim Lea did a lot of planning, even going through some of the old material that they had written as a band.

The melody for “Merry Xmas Everybody” was created by Lea in, of all places, his bathroom shower! As for Holder's contribution, it stemmed from a 1967 composition that he had put in the reject pile while the band worked under its previous name of the “N'Betweeners”. The song's title was originally “Buy Me A Rocking Chair”. By combining the melody of Holder's song with the melody that Jim Lea had come up with while showering, it formed the basis of the song's instrumental section. Lea's melody became the verse, while Holder's melody formed the chorus.

Of course, a great Christmas song couldn't work without lyrics, and Holder was the main man responsible for composing the verses for the song, which he did in one draft after a night of drinking.



In a 2007 interview with The Daily Mail, Holder went into further detail about how “Merry Xmas Everybody” was created.

We'd decided to write a Christmas song and I wanted to make it reflect a British family Christmas. Economically, the country was up the creek. The miners had been on strike, along with the grave-diggers, the bakers and almost everybody else. I think people wanted something to cheer them up – and so did I. That's why I came up with the line 'Look to the future now, it's only just begun'. Once I got the line, 'Does your Granny always tell you that the old ones are the best', I knew I'd got a right cracker on my hands.”

NOTE: I'm not very fluent in British slang, but from what I gather, “up the creek” is a phrase describing hardships, and “right cracker” I believe is slang for “a hit”. Maybe some of my British friends can help a confused Canadian here.

But you know something? Given the description that Noddy Holder gave in that interview, I think he succeeded in what he wanted the song to be all about. Why else did the song become a huge hit just one week after its release in December 1973? Why else has the song charted as recently as 2011? Why else do so many people from the United Kingdom reflect so fondly over this song?

It's because it mixed the flashy glam rock of the 1970s with traditional values of Christmases gone by. In short, the song really did have something for everybody.



TRIVIA: The song may very well have been a song filled with warmth and Christmas tradition, but the band suffered a setback about ten weeks before the song was recorded. Around that time, Don Powell and his girlfriend, Angela Morris, were involved in a serious car accident. Tragically, Angela was killed in the crash, and Powell was left in a coma for almost a whole week. The band had to wait until Powell recovered from his injuries to record the song.

So, what kind of legacy has “Merry Xmas Everybody” left on the world? Well, lots.

I already explained about the sales of the single, as well as the fact that it repeatedly appears on UK music charts around the holiday season, but that's just the tip of the iceberg. The song is still continually played at nightclubs and pubs all across the United Kingdom around the holiday season, and the song was listed at #2 for the Best UK Single of the 1970s.

Peter Buckley described the song as “arguably the best Christmas single ever” in The Rough Guide To Rock, and the song has appeared in many Christmas soundtracks and compilations throughout the years. The song has also spawned many cover versions by other UK acts including 4 Skins, The Mission, Westlife, and even the Spice Girls, believe it or not!

As for my take on the song, I actually wish it had been released here in North America. Yeah, sure, the lyrics tend to reflect a British Christmas season, but I think that the lyrics could apply to a modern-day 2012 North American Christmas as well. I think that many of us get so caught up in the materialism and commercialism that Christmas seems to be known for nowadays that we sometimes take our traditions and put them on the backburner. For me, Christmas would NOT be Christmas without the family traditions that we all take part in...traditions that Slade successfully sang about thirty-nine Christmases ago.

So here it is, merry Christmas
Everybody's having fun.
Look to the future now,
It's only just begun...

So, that wraps up Day #2 on the Pop Culture Addict's Advent Calendar. But like Slade says in the song, it's only just begun.




Day #3 will feature the first of the holiday Monday Matinees. And the only clue you get for tomorrow is that I looked at the original movie last year around this time. This year, we're examining the sequel. So, grab yourself a cheese pizza and sit down to watch “Angels With Filthier Souls”...the Monday Matinee Christmas edition starts tomorrow.

Saturday, December 01, 2012

Olive, the Other Reindeer


Hello, everybody! And welcome to December!

And since it's December, I thought that I would take this month and make it really fun this year by having every day leading up to the twenty-fifth of December a holiday themed entry.

Now, I know most of you out there have heard the song “The Twelve Days of Christmas”, right? The song where a person gives his one true love five golden rings, a bunch of drummers, at least nine dancing ladies, eight maids-a-milking, and a whole bunch of fine feathered friends.

(Come to think of it, I wonder how much money it would set you back if you tried to buy every item on the 12 Days of Christmas song. I know someone figured it out a few years ago, but I can't remember what the figure is. I imagine that the five gold rings alone would set you back at least four thousand dollars given the price of gold these days.)

Besides, I always like to make every special event HUGE for the holiday season. After all, you know what they say...go big or go home, right? And, I don't think I'm ready to take my typing fingers away from the keyboard any time soon.

So, why would I stop at only TWELVE days of holiday celebrations, when I can do it until Christmas?

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls...prepare yourselves for the special event this month known as...

THE POP CULTURE ADDICT'S ADVENT CALENDAR!!!

I'm sure that most of you out there know what an advent calendar is, right? Well, if you don't know, I'll explain it. You might have seen in stores those little cardboard boxes with little slots cut into them? In most cases, the doors are numbered 1-24, but some of the more modern ones have thirty-two slots, to last well into the new year. What one does is they purchase an advent calendar right around the end of November leading into December. When December 1st rolls around, a person is supposed to open up the door that has the number “1” marked on the outside, and when they do that, they get to eat the yummy piece of chocolate or candy within. You did this every day of December until Christmas Eve, when you opened up the “24” door, which always had the largest piece of chocolate behind it. It was a brilliant (and delicious) way to count down to the big day, and I think I had an advent calendar well into my teenage years (I think I gave them up when I was seventeen to be completely honest with you...what can I say, I loved chocolate shaped like bells and wreaths).

I suppose that you're probably wondering how I'm going to pull off an advent calendar on this blog. It's not as if I could make you open up a door and I will be able to send you chocolate through the Internet. I really wish we had the technology to be able to do that, but until that is possible, you'll just have to pretend. But what I can do is make every blog entry from today until Christmas Day holiday themed for your viewing pleasure. I will warn you ahead of time that I'm one of those people who does celebrate Christmas, but I will try to work in some mention of Hanukkah and Kwanzaa within this blog for those of you who do celebrate those holidays. After all, I believe that every celebration in December is important.

The theme days will remain the same, but here's what you can expect to see over the next 25 days.

MONDAY MATINEES will feature movies that have to do with Christmas and holiday themes.

The TUESDAY TIMELINE will feature a subject that has at least some reference to the holiday...even if it is minute. We've also designed a new colour scheme for the logo, which I previewed last Tuesday.

On the WEDNESDAY GIFT SHOP entries, we're going to take a look at toys (it is the season, after all), and these entries are toys that I know a little about, as all the featured toys were ones that I ended up getting as Christmas presents in my youth.

The THURSDAY DIARIES will feature some personal holiday stories, as well as my hopes and dreams for this and any future Christmases.

The day known as TGIF is going to look at some holiday themed television specials that you may have watched in your youth. Some you may remember, and some you may not, but I hope you'll have a good time reminiscing about them.

SATURDAY MORNINGS will be temporarily changing to SATURDAY HOLIDAY SPECIALS, and I hope that I will be featuring television specials that you love and remember.  The difference between this day and Friday is that the Saturday specials are going to be animated.

And the SUNDAY JUKEBOX this month will not only feature contemporary Christmas songs that hit the pop charts...but this year, all the songs will be performed by artists from the United Kingdom! It's a very British Christmas, guv'nor!



Okay, so let's start this advent calendar off in style. As I look at my calendar, it happens to be Saturday, which means that we're featuring a holiday special today. And the holiday special that I have chosen to spotlight this week is one that features a little dog with a lot of heart, determination, and desire to save Christmas...despite the efforts of a cold-hearted postal worker who has a grudge to settle.

And to my surprise, this television special was inspired by a book written by Vivian Walsh and illustrated by J. Otto Seibold, and in 1999, Simpsons creator Matt Groening, along with help from writer Steve Young and director Oscar Moore, brought the characters in the book to life.



And the end result became the television special “Olive, the Other Reindeer”.

Guess what! I've even included a link to the full length television special, which first aired on December 17, 1999. You can watch it HERE.



TRIVIA: Olive, the Other Reindeer premiered exactly ten years after another Christmas special that Matt Groening had a hand in creating...the very first episode of the Simpsons debut season (“Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire” originally aired December 17, 1989).



Olive, the Other Reindeer was one of two non-Simpsons projects that Matt Groening debuted in 1999 (the other one being the television series “Futurama” which has aired on and off since 1999), and it was quite unlike any Christmas special that had aired before it. The animation style was done by using paperlike character art in three-dimensional backgrounds, giving it the appearance of a Christmas card...or an episode of South Park. Whichever you prefer, I suppose.

And talk about an all-star voice cast! The star of the show was Drew Barrymore, who voiced the title character of Olive, but the rest of the cast was rounded out by Dan Castellaneta, Billy West (both of whom had roles in The Simpsons and Futurama respectively), Jay Mohr, Peter MacNicol, Joe Pantoliano, Ed Asner, Tress MacNeille, Tim Meadows, and R.E.M lead singer Michael Stipe!



Yes...THAT Michael Stipe.

The end result though was a cartoon special that was filled with a lot of heart and soul. Of course, like any other creation by Matt Groening, there are also a lot of sight gags and plays on words. (There is a character named Round John Virgin, for example.)



Now, because I've posted a link to the Christmas special within this blog, I don't think that I want to spoil the ending of the show, as I really want you all to watch it yourselves. But here's the gist of the show. Olive (Barrymore) is actually not a reindeer, but a dog. And Christmas happens to be her all-time favourite holiday (although in song, she also loves Valentine's Day, the 4th of July, Halloween, and Thanksgiving). She loves getting in the Christmas spirit, and she displays that spirit all year long. But there's trouble afoot when she returns home to her master, Tim (Mohr). She is shocked to see Tim putting away the decorations ahead of schedule, sadly telling Olive that there won't be a Christmas this year. At first, Olive doesn't know what Tim is talking about, but soon after, she hears a radio bulletin which confirms her worst fears. Apparently, Blitzen injured himself and is unable to take part in taking Santa Claus around the world to deliver presents to all of the good boys and girls. The radio broadcast stated that Santa hoped to be able to continue the journey with “all of the other reindeer”, which Olive seems to misunderstand as Santa needing her help.

Get it? All of the other reindeer = Olive, the Other Reindeer. Cute, huh?



Anyway, with Olive determined to help Santa save Christmas by becoming a reindeer (even though she happens to be a dog that can't fly), she makes getting to the North Pole a top priority. With assistance from a con-artist penguin named Martini (Pantoliano), whom Olive helped save from getting arrested when he was selling counterfeit watches, Olive ends up on a bus to the North Pole.



But there's one person who doesn't want to see her succeed...the evil, duplicitous mailman (Castellaneta), who has a score to settle with Santa ever since he was placed on his permanent “Naughty” list. His main goal is to try and get Christmas canceled for good at all costs...and the minute he hears Olive talking about her plan to become Santa's reindeer, he follows along and tries to stop her every step of the way.



But it isn't like Olive doesn't have allies along the way. In addition to Martini, she ends up getting support from a bus driver named Richard Stans (Meadows), a pair of Eskimo travelers, Round John Virgin and Blitzen's flightless cousin, Schnitzel (Stipe). At some point, all of these people end up helping Olive get to the North Pole to achieve her goal of saving Christmas, and getting an audience with Santa Claus (Asner) himself.

So, does Olive, the Other Reindeer save Christmas? Does Martini find a way to move past his con artist ways? Does the postman end up getting signed, sealed, and delivered far away from Olive? Does Santa manage to make his journey? Does Round John Virgin get the cordless drill that he wanted for Christmas?

I know, that last one sounds kind of random, but if you watch the show, it makes a lot of sense.



All in all, I highly recommend Olive, the Other Reindeer as part of your holiday viewing this Christmas, and I think it's a great way to kick off the Pop Culture Addict's Advent Calendar.



Coming up on DAY #2: A Christmas song by a British rock band that never caught on here in North America, but topped the charts on several different occasions in the U.K. Here's a clue.

So here it is, merry Christmas, everybody's having fun,
Look to the future now, it's only just begun...”