December 23: "The Night Before Christmas"

Today is the anniversary of the first publication, in 1823, of the poem known as "The Night Before Christmas". Here are 10 facts you may not know about the poem:

1. It was published anonymously in a New York newspaper and to this day, nobody is quite sure who actually wrote it. It is commonly attributed to Clement Clarke Moore, but there have been arguments put forward recently suggesting the author was a man called Major Henry Livingston, Jr.
2. The reasons for this are that Moore was thought to be a rather dour and scholarly person and a verse like this was somewhat out of character for him. He was also said to disapprove of tobacco and so having St Nicholas smoking a pipe would have been surprising to anyone who knew him, as well.
3. However, Moore did claim to have written it, several years after it was first published. He included it in an anthology of his poems. He claimed he'd got the idea during a winter shopping trip on a sleigh, and that his inspiration for the character of Saint Nicholas was a local Dutch handyman as well as the historical Saint Nicholas. He said he'd written it for his children, which explained the more light hearted style.
4. The original name for this poem was An Account of a Visit from St. Nicholas.
5. Cartoonist Thomas Nast created the images for the poem in 1863, and is thus credited with coming up with the image of Santa Claus that we know today. He's also known for coming up with the symbol of an elephant for the US Republican Party (but not, as is commonly thought, Uncle Sam).
6. The poem has been praised as "arguably the best-known verses ever written by an American”.
7. The first depiction of the poem on film dates to 1905, a silent film called The Night Before Christmas.
8. A "Canonical List of 'Twas the Night Before Christmas Variations" contains nearly 1000 versions of it.
9. Four hand-written copies of the poem exist. Three are in museums, including the New-York Historical Society library. The fourth, written out and signed by Clement Clarke Moore as a gift to a friend in 1860, was sold by one private collector to another in December 2006. According to the brokers of the sale, it was sold for $280,000.
10. Since 1911 the Church of the Intercession in Manhattan has held a service that includes the reading of the poem followed by a procession to the tomb of Clement Clarke Moore at Trinity Cemetery the Sunday before Christmas.

THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS

by Clement Clarke Moore (maybe)

'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house

Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;

The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,

In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there;

The children were nestled all snug in their beds,

While visions of sugar-plums danced in their heads;

And mamma in her 'kerchief, and I in my cap,

Had just settled down for a long winter's nap,

When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter,

I sprang from the bed to see what was the matter.

Away to the window I flew like a flash,

Tore open the shutters and threw up the sash.

The moon on the breast of the new-fallen snow

Gave the lustre of mid-day to objects below,

When, what to my wondering eyes should appear,

But a miniature sleigh, and eight tiny Reindeer,

With a little old driver, so lively and quick,

I knew in a moment it must be St. Nick.

More rapid than eagles his coursers they came,

And he whistled, and shouted, and called them by name;

"Now, Dasher! now, Dancer! now, Prancer and Vixen!

On, Comet! on Cupid! on, Donder and Blitzen!

To the top of the porch! to the top of the wall!

Now dash away! dash away! dash away all!"

As dry leaves that before the wild hurricane fly,

When they meet with an obstacle, mount to the sky,

So up to the house-top the coursers they flew,

With the sleigh full of toys, and St. Nicholas too.

And then, in a twinkling, I heard on the roof

The prancing and pawing of each little hoof.

As I drew in my hand, and was turning around,

Down the chimney St. Nicholas came with a bound.

He was dressed all in fur, from his head to his foot,

And his clothes were all tarnished with ashes and soot;

A bundle of toys he had flung on his back,

And he looked like a peddler just opening his pack.

His eyes -- how they twinkled! his dimples how merry!

His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry!

His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow,

And the beard of his chin was as white as the snow;

The stump of a pipe he held tight in his teeth,

And the smoke it encircled his head like a wreath;

He had a broad face and a little round belly,

That shook, when he laughed like a bowlful of jelly.

He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf,

And I laughed when I saw him, in spite of myself;

A wink of his eye and a twist of his head,

Soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread;

He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work,

And filled all the stockings; then turned with a jerk,

And laying his finger aside of his nose,

And giving a nod, up the chimney he rose;

He sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle,

And away they all flew like the down of a thistle.

But I heard him exclaim, ere he drove out of sight,

"Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good-night."

My Christmas Novella!

A Very Variant Christmas

Last year, Jade and Gloria were embroiled in a bitter conflict to win back their throne and their ancestral home. This year, Queen Jade and Princess Gloria want to host the biggest and best Christmas party ever in their palace. They invite all their friends to come and bring guests. Not even the birth of Jade's heir just before Christmas will stop them.

The guest list includes most of Britain's complement of super-powered crime-fighters, their families and friends. What could possibly go wrong?

Gatecrashers, unexpected arrivals, exploding Christmas crackers and a kidnapping, for starters.

Far away in space, the Constellations, a cosmic peacekeeping force, have suffered a tragic loss. They need to recruit a new member to replace their dead colleague. The two top candidates are both at Jade and Gloria's party. The arrival of the recruitment delegation on Christmas Eve is a surprise for everyone; but their visit means one guest now faces a life-changing decision.

Meanwhile, an alliance of the enemies of various guests at the party has infiltrated the palace; they hide in the dungeon, plotting how best to get rid of the crime-fighters and the royal family once and for all. Problem is, they all have their own agendas and differences of opinion on how to achieve their aims.

Not to mention that this year, the ghosts who walk the corridors of the palace on Christmas Eve will be as surprised by the living as the living are by them.

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