Merry Little Podcast of MyMerryChristmas.com

12/10 2021

Christmas of the 20th Century – Part 3

Christmas of the 20th Century takes a very progressive turn in Part 3 of this series, this one covering the 1920s. It was a time of technological explosion and it touched nearly every part of Christmas. American homes were increasingly converted to electric service, making the use of washing machines, dishwashers, lights, and every imaginable appliance now a fact of modern living. There were many devices that affected Christmas: the radio, the phonograph and the light bulb. All of these had a huge impact on Christmas. In this episode we explore how Christmas changed with these innovations - and how Christmas played a part in bringing each to market. Music was the biggest benefactor in bringing the industry of sound recording together with radio broadcasting. For the first time, diverse types of Christmas music were heard all over the country. And the country rose up to embrace it. This episode features a wide variety of recorded music from this era known as the Roaring 20s. There were other innovations that impacted thing - even non-electric stuff such as cameras and telephones. These items and how they were marketed, especially at Christmas, would go on to influence Christmas for generations. Underlying all this innovation was a progressive time especially for women. This is another topic of exploration that, again, would influence Christmas more in the decades ahead. This is a fun and expansive episode. In fact, we could - and probably will - get another couple of episodes out of this glorious time in Christmas history.

41m

24/9 2021

Christmas of the 20th Century – Part 2

Christmas of the 20th Century continues with this new episode exploring the years from 1910 to 1919. It was an epic era of change fueled by World War I and a global pandemic. But what was it really like? Everything in the world was changing. During these years we went from horse-and-buggy to speedy automobiles. News was soon to be heard over the radio before it could be printed in newspapers. Houses were starting to become wired for electricity and life in the home was forever changed as technology made new appliances do the work that previously was nothing short of manual labor. Christmas changed too -- especially in movies and in music. The Victrola - a talking machine that recorded sound and played it back - became the must-have device of this decade. We tell the story of how recording and playback was done. It was advanced science for the times but primitive to us today. The fascinating story of the Columbia Record Company is told as it worked to bring recordings of large choral and orchestra groups to the mass market. This episode features lots of music from era and showcases just how far sound has come. Movers and shakers, especially as it related to Christmas, include Norman Rockwell, who is featured prominently in this episode. We also explore the history of World War I and how that global event was affected by Christmas during each year of the war. The decade closes with two major events: a global pandemic and the onset of Prohibition. These two changed everything about Christmas, with headlines that eerily mirror what we are experiencing today.

37m

26/8 2021

Christmas Decorating

Christmas decorating could be a problem this year. Have you noticed how your local grocery store has no selection of bottled water? Believe it or not, the same thing causing a shortage of bottled water could affect Christmas decoration supply this year. It just another reality heading into our 2nd pandemic Christmas. This episode of the Merry Little Podcast talks about how Christmas decorating will be different this year because of all the weird going on in the world. We reached out to experts at Bronners.com [https://bronners.com], the world's largest Christmas store, to tell us what is going on and how everything to do with Christmas decorating will be affected. While decking the halls will be different they will be decked. It is a tradition of antiquity. To that end we explore the history of "Deck the Halls" and explain why it wasn't only just a holiday tradition back in the day but also why it is as much a party song as it is a carol. Of course, we find joy in sharing the decorating of Christmas as well with our 16th Annual Ornament Exchange [https://mymerrychristmas.com/events/annual-ornament-exchange/] at the Merry Forums of MyMerryChristmas.com. Pandemic or no, we're celebrating. To that end, we invite you as well to explore more about Bronners with this great episode from our friends at the Sleigh Bells and Mistletoe Christmas Podcast [https://directory.libsyn.com/episode/index/show/sbmchristmas/id/19782878], who talk with CEO Wayne Bronner about the story of the world's biggest Christmas store.

29m

4/8 2021

Christmas of the 20th Century – Part 1

Christmas of the 20th Century is a new series of the Merry Little Podcast that focuses on a full century of change. How we celebrate Christmas evolved with the changes in technology and media as the 20th century progressed. In this episode we explore the emerging technologies of Christmas of the 20th century in Christmas decor through electrifying the Christmas tree. Christmas tree safety was long a top of debate but adding the safer and more festive elements of electric lights was no cheap feat. Recorded music likewise was in its infancy and few could afford what little music was offered. Movies were only beginning between 1900 and 1910 but Christmas was at the forefront of this new technology. The very first movies put on film were about Christmas, including a now-famous 1898 production that featured Santa Claus landing on the roof of a home and delivering presents to sleeping children. A hold-over from the previous century was the Christmas card. It only became more popular in the new century and it burdened post offices everywhere. Coast-to-coast media, even if it was only in print, went far to influence the fads of Christmas and few fads were as crazy as the toy teddy bears of the early 1900s, a tradition that has endured well into the 21st century. Marketed by importers of pin cushions, the teddy bear craze was driven by President Teddy Roosevelt, who famously refused to kill a bear that had been set up by the media.

24m

27/5 2021

Christmas Cowboys and Anniversaries

Our annual anniversaries episode of the Merry Little Podcast celebrates Christmas Cowboys and several iconic elements of the season celebrating a Christmas birthday of sorts. Our friend Glen Warren of the Seasons Eatings Podcast [https://seasonseatingspodcast.libsyn.com] sets down his ladle for a look into the legend and life of Gene Autry, the original crooner of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and author of a variety of legendary Christmas hits. This episode also celebrates the 75th anniversary of both The Christmas Song by Nat King Cole and It's a Wonderful Life. What would Christmas be without them? Other milestones enjoying a Christmas birthday this year are Christmas albums from Elvis and Kenny Rogers and - can you believe it? - it's the 10th year anniversary Michael Buble's Christmas.

40m

31/1 2021

The Future of Christmas Present

The future of Christmas present is definitely on the minds of many as we head into the New Year. What just happened? How do we explain the Christmas we just experienced? Try as we might to predict ahead of time what Christmas 2020 would be like we still have been flooded with feedback about the Christmas we all just went through. For many of us, it was a Christmas unlike any other in our lifetime. But - it's not like history has not recorded a Christmas like this. In this episode we look back to the Christmas of 1943 - a dark, unexpected, unusual and isolated Christmas that saw many separated from their families for the first time. Framed by Bing Crosby's classic, "I'll Be Home for Christmas", the lessons of Christmas 1943 are learned through not only the sacrifices of those in our family past but also of those from every side who found a way for their humanity to command in a time of war. We share the incredible story of a real combat mission flown over Germany on December 20th, 1943 when an American B-17 bomber commanded by Lt. Charles Brown was shredded by German air defenses and 15 German fighters. The tells the impressions of German Pilot Franz Stigler who couldn't believe the American plane was in the air. His choices were stark: he could shoot them down and win Germany's highest wartime honor for aviators or he could risk court martial and certain execution by allowing the B-17 to escape to safety. It was a story not only of Christmas 1943 but one that took 50 years to resolve when Lt. Brown met Franz Stigler in the 1990s. The lessons of humanity a there for us to learn from every Christmas. We also share a simple story of a loss we suffered on the Merry Forums - and how the discovery of our simple community taught a grieving daughter a new level of love from her Mother who spent so many years with us online. This thoughtful episode contemplates but does not predict the Christmas coming to us next. Instead it projects what Christmas can be -- if we can only remember what it is all really about.

38m

7/12 2020

Shepherds and Angels

Shepherds and Angels are forever a part of the Christmas story. But why? And what things can we learn from them? In this exploration of a different angle on the Nativity story we ask a lot of questions. The idea is not to cast doubt. It is to celebrate clear facts -- surprising things about the shepherds and angels that you may not know. In this merry episode we discuss the part that shepherds in particular played in the story. They were a curious choice for being key witnesses to the most heralded event in human history. Scholars do not agree about who they exactly were and what they may have known before that night of angelic manifestation. But there is a lesson to be learned by what they saw and how they reacted to it. Angels too are an interesting element of the Christmas story. For many people, angels are a fact of everyday life. Why are there angels? What is their purpose? Why did so many involved in the story of Christmas see angels? This is a celebration as well of beautiful Christmas music, including: This Holy Night -- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ds7aH69y29I by Broken Bow Music [https://www.facebook.com/BrokenBowMusic1/] | Amazon [https://www.amazon.com/This-Holy-Night-Broken-Music/dp/B08NFMW5H6/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Broken+Bow+Music+This+Holy+Night&qid=1607282320&sr=8-1]I Wonder as I Wander -- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g1hMgD613Lo Tabernacle Choir God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen -- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yCoy7URHuY4 Madilyn Paige & Her Sisters Angels from the Realms of Glory -- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PrLoWt2tfqg The Piano Guys & Cast of Thousands

35m

26/11 2020

The Magic of Turkeys and Santa

In this episode we celebrate Thanksgiving and Christmas together with a mix of old and new. Thanksgiving -- that All-American holiday of festive foods married with historical debates -- get a look through the lens of pandemic past. We explore the Thanksgiving of 1918 and how it was the same and how it was different. This conversation comes as a backdrop to modern-day calls to abolish Thanksgiving by The New York Times and The Atlantic. While we agree some liberties have been taken with the history of Thanksgiving we have to take a real-world look at what Puritans and Native Americans really have to do with the Thanksgiving we really celebrate. But highlighting this episode even more is the fact that Thanksgiving, as always, sets the Christmas stage and helps build the delicious anticipation we all get in Santa Claus. Our merry little Thanksgiving Gobble Contest has yielded some festive results that we shared include the laughter of my 5 year old grandson who grabbed the microphone to tell me a Christmas tale that happened in my home just last Christmas. Mind you, I've never heard this story before -- and it is, as all Santa stories are -- a legendary thing. And that led to the debut of our first edition of our reading of A Visit from St. Nicholas - the Merry Forums sponsored event we call the Twas the Night Before Christmas Read-a-thon [https://mymerrychristmas.com/twas-the-night-before-christmas/]. This is an activity we have talked about for years that we have finally made a reality. And it is a little production sure to produce a smile and loads of Christmas spirit. We also share some more new music. A new song from Robyn Scott titled I Saw Santa Last Night brings a party feel to this episode. Song Details: Title: I Saw Santa Last Night Artist: Robyn Scott Writers: Robyn Scott & Brian Dolph Length: 2:54 BPM: 100 ISRC: CA8ZW1900001 Social Media Links Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/Robynscottsingscountry [https://www.facebook.com/Robynscottsingscountry]Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/country.singer.robyn.scott/ [https://www.instagram.com/country.singer.robyn.scott/]Twitter:https://twitter.com/RobynScottsings [https://twitter.com/RobynScottsings]I Saw Santa Last Night - Links: Spotify:http://bit.ly/RS_Santa_Spotify [http://bit.ly/RS_Santa_Spotify]iTunes:http://bit.ly/RS_Santa_iTunes [http://bit.ly/RS_Santa_iTunes]Apple Music:http://bit.ly/RS_Santa_AppleMusic [http://bit.ly/RS_Santa_AppleMusic]Amazon:http://bit.ly/RS_Santa_Amazon [http://bit.ly/RS_Santa_Amazon]Google Play:http://bit.ly/RS_Santa_GooglePlay [http://bit.ly/RS_Santa_GooglePlay]YouTube:http://bit.ly/RS_Santa_GooglePlay [http://bit.ly/RS_Santa_GooglePlay]

32m

16/11 2020

New Christmas Music 2020

New Christmas music in 2020 is like everything else related to 2020: very different. In fact, we would say there is more heart to the music this year and nothing showcases that better than the good work of the artists and musicians whose songs we feature in this traditional episode of the Merry Little Podcast. Each year we try to do this. To share new music of Christmas is to share Christmas better than almost anything else. We purposely steer clear of the mainstream and the known in this episode to feature those emerging artists who give their all to Christmas in their art. That's what makes this episode powerful and that's what makes it fun. Here is the new Christmas music we're featuring this time around: Home for the Holidays – Sudden Flying Website: https://SuddenFlying.com [https://SuddenFlying.com]YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZfaeSS2T4F0 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZfaeSS2T4F0]Purchase: https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/suddenlyflying/home-for-the-holidays-feat-christopher-weeks [https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/suddenlyflying/home-for-the-holidays-feat-christopher-weeks]When This is Over – Harper Denhard Website: http://www.harperdenhard.com/ [http://www.harperdenhard.com/]Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/album/songs-of-hope-and-light-ep/1537645239 [https://music.apple.com/us/album/songs-of-hope-and-light-ep/1537645239]YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLoLIjsHby9rqwv-MaznQYqH1CIBPLQr1f [https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLoLIjsHby9rqwv-MaznQYqH1CIBPLQr1f]Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/5nPeuoMiz9QS8RnoC2MZqJ?si=BkmIOWUMQ2Oju_6TKc3AZw [https://open.spotify.com/album/5nPeuoMiz9QS8RnoC2MZqJ?si=BkmIOWUMQ2Oju_6TKc3AZw]Christmas Time is Here – Amanda King Website: https://amandaking.com [https://amandaking.com]YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FfM713j4uE8 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FfM713j4uE8]I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day – Jim Brickman Website: https://jimbrickman.com [https://jimbrickman.com]YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/thejimbrickmanmusic/videos [https://www.youtube.com/user/thejimbrickmanmusic/videos]The Gingerbread Man – Jack Tempchin Website: https://jacktempchin.com [https://jacktempchin.com]YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=POZfVo0Kv9k [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=POZfVo0Kv9k]Darkness Won’t Prevail – Tim Bowen, Eternal Friends Music WebSite: https://eternalfriendsmusic.com [https://eternalfriendsmusic.com]YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hNCiCFN0k-4 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hNCiCFN0k-4]Home for Christmas – Performed by Rachel Warren YouTube: https://youtu.be/ggQnkqfC15E [https://youtu.be/ggQnkqfC15E]Sheet Music Plus: https://www.sheetmusicplus.com/title/home-for-christmas-digital-sheet-music/21802722 [https://www.sheetmusicplus.com/title/home-for-christmas-digital-sheet-music/21802722]I Wonder What You Got for Me -- Leah Belle Faser Website: https://www.leahbellefaser.com [https://www.leahbellefaser.com]Album preview: https://ffm.to/crossing-hermis-bridge [https://ffm.to/crossing-hermis-bridge]Let It Snow - -- Luke McMaster Website: https://lukemcmaster.com [https://lukemcmaster.com]YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6_sAr2mGBsU [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6_sAr2mGBsU]Christmas Kielbasa – Mike Schneider Band Website: https://www.mikeschneiderband.com/christmas [https://www.mikeschneiderband.com/christmas]Facebook: www.facebook.com/mikeschneiderband [http://www.facebook.com/mikeschneiderband]YouTube: www.youtube.com/mikeschneiderband [http://www.youtube.com/mikeschneiderband]Follow That Star – Joanna Jones Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/johannalynjones/?hl=en [https://www.instagram.com/johannalynjones/?hl=en]YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDrA1j48lspaWcU9VKHC2N4LqnZyiTA9q [https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDrA1j48lspaWcU9VKHC2N4LqnZyiTA9q]

47m