CHRISTMAS COUNTDOWN ADVENT BLOG Tuesday 22nd December 2020
jeanniejeanniejeannie.co.uk
12 RAMBLINGS OF CHRISTMAS
ONLY 3 SLEEPS TO CHRISTMAS
- A CHRISTMAS QUOTE
Anyone who believes that men are the equal of women has to see a man trying to wrap a Christmas present. – Anom
- CHRISTMAS FEATURE – The Christmas No.1s January 1940 – December 1951
The last two days we’ve considered all the Christmas No.1s since there has been an Official Chart from 14th November 1952. What about Christmas No.1s before there was an Official Chart?
Well, I’ve managed to get a list of those too, for the 12 years December1940 until December 1951.
I have a book “British Hit Singles January 1940 – October 1952 – The Missing Charts by a guy named Steve Waters.
“The Missing Charts” which, through the labours of one man, the late Colin Brown, compiles sales figures from music publishers and record companies to provide us with detailed listings of the top-selling records in the decade before the Official Charts began in 1952.
The very first number one in 1940 (8th January, 1940) mwas, not surprisingly, Vera Lynn with “We’ll Meet Again”.
Here are the 12 Christmas No.1s 23-Dec-1940 to 17-Dec-1951
23-Dec-40 Bless You Ink Spots
22-Dec-41 Yours (Quiereme Mucho) Vera Lynn
21-Dec-42 White Christmas Bing Crosby
20-Dec-43 Paper Doll Mills Brothers No.2 White Christmas Bing Crosby
18-Dec-44 The Cornish Rhapsody Harriet Cohen No.2 White Christmas Bing Crosby
17-Dec-45 You Belong To My Heart Bing Crosby No.2 White Christmas Bing Crosby
23-Dec-46 White Christmas Bing Crosby
22-Dec-47 White Christmas Bing Crosby
20-Dec-48 White Christmas Bing Crosby
19-Dec-49 White Christmas Bing Crosby
18-Dec-50 White Christmas Bing Crosby
17-Dec-51 White Christmas Bing Crosby
“White Christmas” is an Irving Berlin song reminiscing about an old-fashioned Christmas setting, released in 1942. The version sung by Bing Crosby is the world’s best-selling single with estimated sales in excess of 50 million copies worldwide. When the figures for other versions of the song are added to Crosby’s, sales of the song exceed 100 million.
Accounts vary as to when and where Berlin wrote the song. One story is that he wrote it in 1940, in warm La Quinta, California, while staying at the La Quinta Hotel, a frequent Hollywood retreat also favoured by writer-director-producer Frank Capra, although the Arizona Biltmore also claims the song was written there. He often stayed up all night writing. One day he told his secretary, “I want you to take down a song I wrote over the weekend. Not only is it the best song I ever wrote, it’s the best song anybody ever wrote.”
The first public performance of the song was by Bing Crosby, on his NBC radio show The Kraft Music Hall on Christmas Day, 1941; a copy of the recording from the radio program is owned by Crosby’s estate and was loaned to CBS News Sunday Morning for their December 25, 2011 program. He subsequently recorded the song with the John Scott Trotter Orchestra and the Ken Darby Singers and for Decca Records in 18 minutes on May 29, 1942, and it was released on July 30 as part of an album of six 78-rpm discs from the musical film Holiday Inn. At first, Crosby did not see anything special about the song. He just said “I don’t think we have any problems with that one, Irving.
Today there is an extra Blog Post with 7 News Tit-bits JUST CLICK THE LINK below:
7 NEWS SNIPPETS FOR YOU 22 Dec 2020 – jeanniejeanniejeannie.co.uk
3. CHRISTMAS MOVIE
Arthur Christmas (2011) Budget $100m Box Office $147m
4 CHRISTMAS SONG
- 89 Vonda Shepherd - The Man With The Bag
5. CHRISTMAS CHILDREN’S BOOK
Magnificent Mabel and the Christmas Elf by Ruth Quayle (Author), Julia Christians (Illustrator)
Paperback : 112 pages
Reading level : 5 – 7 years
Publisher : Nosy Crow Ltd
Meet Mabel – she’s MAGNIFICENT. Sometimes life isn’t fair for Mabel Chase. Like for instance a naughty Christmas Elf gets her into LOTS of trouble. And the new boy in her class at school REFUSES to be her friend. And no-one lets her look after her little cousin, even though she is BRILLIANT with toddlers. But none of that matters in the end … because Mabel is still MAGNIFICENT. The second book in a hilarious new series, highly illustrated throughout and with three short stories, this is ideal for newly-confident readers. Look out for: Magnificent Mabel and the Rabbit Riot Magnificent Mabel and the Magic Caterpillar
6 CHRISTMAS CAROL
7. IT’S A CRACKER (CHRISTMAS CRACKER JOKE)
What you can call a reindeer which wears ear muffs? Anything you want. He can’t hear you!
8. EVERY CHRISTMAS TV TIMES COVER
9. A FAMOUS SCROOGE
Anthony Newley
10. SOMETHING TO LAUGH ABOUT – A TOP TV CHRISTMAS SPECIAL FROM THE PAST
The Office (U.K.) – Christmas Special, Part 2
UK/Special/2003Aired on BBC
The second series of The Office averaged four million viewers per week when it was broadcast on BBC Two. To get as many viewers as possible for the Christmas specials, the BBC’s director of television Jana Bennet allowed it to be moved to BBC One. The ratings were deemed a success by the BBC; Part 1 received 7.17 million viewers and a 30.97% share of the audience, and Part 2 received 6.14 million viewers and a 25.66% share. Part 1 was the third most popular programme on Boxing Day. The Office UK – No. of series 2
No. of episodes 14
11. NICE LITTLE CHRISTMAS NUMBER
211 3.5 million people attend Macy’s New York Thanksgiving Day Parade
212 2.5 miles,is the route running from 77th Street and Central Park West to the Macy’s Store at 34th Street at Broadway
213 8,000 participants, including celebrities, Broadway performers, marching bands, dancers, Macy’s colleagues
214 16 giant character balloons usually feature and 40 novelty balloons, balloon-based vehicles balloonicle, and balloonheads along with more than 1,600 handlers will corral the balloons will be on hand, or about 90 per giant balloon.
215 2,793. – In previous years 2,793 marching band members attended along with 600 cheerleaders and 600 dancers from across the U.S.
216 1,000 clowns were seen in 2019 Macy’s New York Thanksgiving Day Parade
217 $11.6 million – Total costs for the Macy’s New York Thanksgiving Day Parade have been estimated to be between $11.6 million and $13.4 million, with the giant balloons costing at least $510,000 each just to inflate. It takes 18 months to plan.
218 8,276 – The smallest Christmas card was made by scientists at the University of Glasgow in the United Kingdom in 2010. At only 200 x 290 micrometers in size, 8,276 of these cards would fit in one postage stamp.
219 1930s- In the 1930’s, an American toilet bowl brush manufacturer changed the look of artificial trees. The Addis Brush Company created the first artificial brush tree. This tree was actually manufactured using the same equipment as the company’s toilet brushes. The introduction of these trees increased the popularity especially during World War II, of the artificial tree. they could hold heavy decorations and were not flammable.
220 350 – The legend of St. Nick begins with a single act of charity that’s echoed down the centuries. Around 350 AD, there lived a Greek Orthodox bishop in what’s now Turkey by the name of Nicholas. Legend states that Christmas stockings had a backstory featuring three poor sisters. They believed that they had to resort to prostitution for being too poor to marry. Thankfully, Bishop Saint Nicholas of Smyrna sneaked down their chimney and had gold coins overflow their stockings.
12. CHRISTMAS TV ADVERT
Haford Hardware 2019 Christmas TV Advert