Visions of Santa

Yes, Virginia, before Haddon Sundblom's portrayal of Santa, Santa was almost never rendered the same twice. Every artist had their own vision, and some were rather . . . peculiar.

Some were come hither . . .

Some were grandfatherly . . .

Some were gaunt . . .

Some were color blind . . .

Some were from the land of Oz . . .

Some from the holy land . . .

Some came from deep in the forest . . .

Some were kindly old eccentrics . . .

Some were definitely from the far north . . .

Some, Yoda-like they were . . .

Some were drawn by Mary Engelbreit, long before she was born . . .

Some were reindeer wranglers . . .

Some were bound to the ground . . .

Some gave up reindeer altogether . . .

Some were modernized . . .

and were in a hurry . . .

Some were blatantly commercial . . .

Some were secretive and sly . . .

Some were downright scary looking. . .

and some were a child's worst nightmare . . .

I, for one, thank Haddon Sundblom for his contribution to the mythos.