Hopefully you've sent yours out

The first Christmas card was created in England on December 9, 1843

Like most of us, Henry Cole, an Englishman, was too busy to write personal greetings for all of his Christmas greetings in 1843. Cole hired artist John Calcott Horsley to design a ready-to-be-sent card.



The hand-colored card Horsley designed was lithographed on stiff, dark cardboard and featured adults and children raising wine glasses in a toast. Some thought the card blasphemous with the family, surrounded with religious symbols, holding glasses of wine



Printed in an edition of 1,000, Horsley's card was sold in London stores. At the time, the greeting cards could be mailed for a penny each. Less than a dozen of those cards exists today. Printed cards soon became the rage in England; the controversy is thought to have helped promote Cole's idea.


December 9, 1947 -
An oft forgotten holiday classic, The Bishop's Wife, starring Cary Grant, David Nivens, and Loretta Young premiered in NYC on this date.



Originally Cary Grant played the Bishop and David Niven the Angel. When original director William A. Seiter left the film, Henry Koster replaced him and viewed what had been shot so far. He realized that the two were in the wrong roles. It took some convincing because Grant wanted the title role of the Bishop. He eventually accepted the change and his role as the Angel was one of the most widely praised of his career.


December 9, 1965 -
A pre-teen drama about the bi-polar kid and his wacky friends first experiences of the depressive nature of the holiday season premiered on this date -



The original broadcast included some brief animated sections which included the logo of Coca-Cola, the show's original sponsor. These have been edited out of subsequent broadcasts and the video release. Right after the opening title, Linus crashed into a sign advertising Coca-Cola after being tossed by Snoopy. (Look at current versions and you'll notice that we never see where Linus lands!) The closing carol originally included the complete verse (instead of fading out) with a final on-screen "Merry Christmas from your local bottler of Coca-Cola" right after the United Feature Syndicate credit at the end.

Now you know.


December 9, 1973 -
Nicolas Roeg's iconic thriller Don't Look Now, starring Julie Christie and Donald Sutherland, was released in New York City on this date.



When he appeared on Inside the Actors Studio, Donald Sutherland recounted the story of how the famous sex scene was actually shot and that it was anything but a sexy or erotic experience for those involved. He and Julie Christie were on the set at 7 a.m. in dressing gowns, waiting downstairs while the room was prepared and both had a glass of champagne to calm their nerves. Inside the room was Nicolas Roeg and cinematographer Anthony B. Richmond, each operating their own Mitchell 35mm camera. Sutherland and Chiststie disrobed and got onto the bed and Roeg and Richmond began filming. The huge Mitchell cameras were unblimped (unsilenced) and as the room was oak panelled the noise from the two cameras was amplified hugely. At the same time, Roeg began shouting directions (over the noise of the cameras)to the actors such as "Lick her nipples" "Put your hand between her legs" "Get on top" etc.The shoot lasted until well into the afternoon before Roeg was satisfied and wrapped.  In order to avoid an X-certificate rating for the film's American release, 9 frames (less than half a second) had to be cut from the intimate love sequence between Donald Sutherland and Julie Christie.


December 9, 1989 -
Billy Joel's history lesson, We Didnít Start the Fire hit No. 1 on the Billboard charts on this date.



Joel wrote the lyrics first, which he rarely does. He says that is why the song has no melody. Joel told Billboard magazine: "It's terrible musically. It's like a mosquito buzzing around your head."


 December 9, 2005 -
The adaptation of C. S. Lewis's fantasy series, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe premiered on this date.



The wolves that destroyed the Beavers' home were mostly real animals, with one or two CGI ones added in, although their tails had to be digitally removed and re-added. Their tails kept wagging while filming the scene, making them seem less vicious, showing instead, being happy with frolicking around.


December 9, 2005 -
Rob Marshall's adaptation of critically acclaimed novel (of the same name) Memoirs of a Geisha, starring Zhang Ziyi, Ken Watanabe, Gong Li, Michelle Yeoh, Youki Kudoh, and Suzuka Ohgo premiered in the US on this date.



The three leading non-Japanese actresses, including Zhang Ziyi, Gong Li, and Michelle Yeoh, were put through a six-week crash course on geisha culture through a "geisha boot camp" before production commenced, during which they were trained in traditional geisha practices of musicianship, dance, and tea ceremony.


(Today's Special - The holidays can really bring you down)

Today in History:
December 9, 1783 -
The site of London's executions (via the gallows) was moved from Tyburn to Newgate. The public spectacle of prisoners' executions drew large crowds.



Out with the old, in with the new.


December 9, 1902 -
A great deal of my mail comes from fans of the 'Oz' picture - fans of all ages. The scholarly, the curious, the disbelievers write and ask how? why? when? what for? did you fly? melt? scream? cackle? appear? disappear? produce? sky-write? deal with monkeys? etc., etc., etc.



Margaret Hamilton, celebrated character actress best known for her portrayal of The Wicked Witch of the West in the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz, was born on this date.


December 9, 1957 -
Donny Osmond was born on this date!



Still a little bit Rock and Roll.


December 9, 1968 -
The John Birch Society, is a political education and action organization founded by Robert W. Welch on this date.



The society supports associated with traditionally conservative causes such as anti-communism, support for individual rights and the ownership of private property.

If you think I'm going to make fun of them, given some of the things that the president has said, you've got another thing coming.


December 9, 1994 -
Surgeon General Joycelyn Elders was dismissed after suggesting discussion of masturbation in school classes on sexuality.









This gives rise to the euphemistic term "firing the surgeon general."


Useless Christmas Trivia:

The lighting of candles and decorating with candles has always been popular, but also one of biggest sources of danger during the Christmas holidays.



Thomas Edison's partner, Edward Johnson in 1882, just three after the incandescent bulb was invented, hand-wired 80 red, white and blue bulbs and wound them around a rotating evergreen tree in his home. For some unknown reason, a New England Telephone employee, Ralph Morris, is credited with the idea of pulling the lights from an old telephone switchboard and wiring them on a tree, and thusly "inventing" the electric Christmas tree lights. This incident is actually true, but it happened in 1908 -- more than a quarter century after a close associate of Edison's actually did the inventing.

In 1923, after his daily scalp massage with Vaseline, President Calvin Coolidge started the annual tradition of the National Christmas Tree lighting ceremony on the White House lawn.



And so it goes


Before you go -

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