For many of us, the bearded present-giver in the red suit remains a time-honored part of the holiday season, long after were stopped believing hell have a present for us. The legend of Santa Claus can be traced back hundreds of years to a monk named St. Nicholas. Discover the best of France-Amrique every week in our newsletter. login to share thoughts or upload a photo of your latest creation. His new fame spread all over the New World. St. Nicholas's migration to the North Pole is due most directly to Thomas Nast, an American cartoonist who submitted 33 Christmas drawings to Harper's Weekly magazine between 1863 and 1886, one of which featured a village called "Santa Claussville, N.P.". The city of Port now called Saint-Nicolas-de-Port and renowned for its fairs and markets extended Saint Nicholass worship well beyond the Duchy, to Germany, Belgium, Poland and the Netherlands, where he became known as Sinterklaas. s.parentNode.insertBefore(t,s)}(window,document,'script', Also a trained anthropologist, Hurston collected folklore throughout the South and Caribbean reclaiming, honoring and celebrating Black life on its own terms. A December 1930 ad by artist Fred Mizen showed a department store Santa in a crowd drinking a bottle of Coke. He gained weight, grew a beard, wore fur and kept his peddlers bag on his shoulder: a right jolly old elf. Nast immortalized this transformation in his best portraits, sometimes depicting his own children and his Morristown family home in New Jersey. He was known for his generosity and for discreetly helping the poor and unfortunate. He studied art at the National Academy of Design and at the age of 15 became a draftsman for Frank Leslies Illustrated Newspaper and at 18 for Harpers Weekly. In 1859 he moved to the New York Illustrated Newsand in 1860 he was sentto Englandproviding coverage of a major prizefight and he also went to Italy to provide coverage of Garibaldis campaigns in Italy. That pagan figure appeared in numerous Victorian images. His contributions to other journals became infrequent and, having lost nearly all his savings in the failure of the brokerage house of Grant & Ward in 1884, he became destitute. Thomas Nast (/nst/; German: [nast]; September 27, 1840 December 7, 1902) was a German-born American caricaturist and editorial cartoonist often considered to be the Father of the American Cartoon. This is a cool infographic on the Civil War from the Civil War Trust, Your email address will not be published. It is believed that Nicholas was born sometime around 280 A.D. in Patara, near Myra in modern-day Turkey. On a Christmas cover of, The origin of the red color of Santa Claus outfit is a mystery. Nasts illustrations in Harpers Weekly were printed in black and white. Every December 24th millions of people are visited by a short, fat guy in a red suit. He was also the man who invented Santa Claus. The first mention of a well-fed old man riding on a sleigh pulled by reindeer. It was the 1930s, in the middle of the depression, and not a happy time for many people. Curiously, the Church celebrates his birthday not on December 6, but on the day of his death. A year later, the company chose an image of Santa designed by Haddon Sundblom to appear in a widespread magazine ad campaign . 11 Most Expensive Comic Illustrations Auctioned in the Last 10 Years. She holds a B.A. Nast began to develop artistic skills in his youth and . He was appointed as U.S. counsel general for Ecuador byTheodore Roosevelt in 1902. Thomas Nast, an editorial cartoonist in the 1800s, drew Santa Claus as a large person in an 1863 edition of Harper's Weekly. The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user. He is considered the "Father of the American Cartoon." Our modern image of Santa Claus is directly indebted to Nasts dozens of Christmas illustrations for Harpers Weekly magazine in the 1860s-80s. The poem was an instant success and played a key role in introducing a portly and larger-than-life Santa Claus to the collective American imagination. Nast, who was reportedly a rather rotund figure even in childhood, seems to have partially based Santa Clauss physique and appearance on his own. Nast makes it clear that Santa supports the Union, not the Confederacy. Where did he come from, why does he do it, and how does he accomplish this seemingly impossible task? Historians review some myths and misconceptions about the Reconstruction era. From the 19th century: Thomas Nast's vision of old Saint Nick. A strong supporter of the Republican party, African-American rights, and abolitionism, Nast vigorously attacked all that he found to be corrupt and immoral in 19th-century American politics. He had a broad face and a little round belly; That shook when he laughed, like a bowlful of jelly! As for France, it adopted the Santa Claus theme by giving him nice big cheeks, a red costume and a sack filled with toys, and officially renaming him le Pre Nol. How did Ida Tarbell expose the Standard Oil monopoly quizlet? In 1946, when Thomas was 6 years old, his mother, Appolonia, brought him and his sister to the United States, settling in New York City. The significant role played by bitcoin for businesses! It is because of Nast that we have the donkey and the elephants as symbols for the two major political parties in the United States, it is because of Nast that we have a goateed Uncle Sam, and it is because of Nast that we have the modern Santa Claus. Thomas Nast: self-caricature Nast arrived in New York as a boy of six. He received particular affection from New York City, where the influence of so-called Knickerbockers, the old New York families descended from original Dutch settlers, was strong. Filled to the brim with inviting warmth and vivid detail, its really no wonder that Thomas Nasts Christmas illustrations have been so influential and enduring. 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Nasts cartoons were among the first to portray Santa Claus as a plump, jolly old man with a white beard and a red suit, and his illustration of the Republican elephant and the Democratic donkey are still used today. Nast continued to draw Santa for 30 years, changing the color of his coat from tan to the red he's known for today. Before that, Santa had . The story of Santa Claus stems from a real man who started out as a monk and became the patron saint of children. IsThisthe Equal Protection of the Laws? Santa Claus represents one of the Christmas seasons most iconic images. It shows a Santa in an egg-shaped profile, turning towards the viewer and carrying an armful of toys. Why did European countries adopt the euro? Nasts Santa appeared as a kindly figure representing Christmas, the holiday celebrating the birth of Christ. You can find him in the department stores of Tokyo and Singapore as well as New York and London. The first Colonists, primarily Puritans and other Protestant reformers, did not bring Nicholas traditions to the New World. Santa Claus speaking to a child on the telephone, based on a Thomas Nast illustration. Required fields are marked *. IsThisProtecting Life, Liberty, or Property? His cartoons After the Battle (1862), attacking Northerners opposed to energetic prosecution of the war, and Emancipation (1863), showing the evils of slavery and the benefits of its abolition, were so effective that Pres. Almost certainly descended from pagan traditions in the pre-Christian British Isles, there is evidence for him from at least the 15th century. In the right corner of the drawing Santa Claus is shown riding a sleigh pulled by reindeer. Thomas Nast is considered to bethe Father of the American Cartoon and the man who conceived and introduced our modern image of Santa Claus. His January 3, 1863 cover depicted Santa Claus handing out presents to Union soldiers. 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