Read Anywhere and on Any Device!

Subscribe to Read | $0.00

Join today and start reading your favorite books for Free!

Create Free Account

Quick and Easy Sign Up!

It takes less then 1 minute to sign up, then you can enjoy Unlimited eBooks.

Sign Up Browse

Read Anywhere and on Any Device!

  • Download on iOS
  • Download on Android
  • Download on iOS

The Santa Claus Man: The Rise and Fall of a Jazz Age Con Man and the Invention of Christmas in New York

Alex Palmer
3.78/5 (483 ratings)
Read Now Download Now
Before the charismatic John Duval Gluck, Jr. came along, letters from New York City children to Santa Claus were destroyed, unopened, by the U.S. Post Office. Gluck saw an opportunity, and created the Santa Claus Association. The effort delighted the public, and for 15 years money and gifts flowed to the only group authorized to answer Santa’s mail. Gluck became a Jazz Age celebrity, rubbing shoulders with the era’s movie stars and politicians, and even planned to erect a vast Santa Claus monument in the center of Manhattan — until Gotham’s crusading charity commissioner discovered some dark secrets in Santa’s workshop.

The rise and fall of the Santa Claus Association is a caper both heartwarming and hardboiled, involving stolen art, phony Boy Scouts, a kidnapping, pursuit by the FBI, a Coney Island bullfight, and above all, the thrills and dangers of a wild imagination. It’s also the larger story of how Christmas became the extravagant holiday we celebrate today, from Santa’s early beginnings in New York to the country’s first citywide Christmas tree and Macy’s first grand holiday parade. The Santa Claus Man is a holiday tale with a dark underbelly, and an essential read for lovers of Christmas stories, true crime, and New York City history.
Format:
Hardcover
Pages:
320 pages
Publication:
2015
Publisher:
Rowman & Littlefield Publishers
Edition:
Illustrated
Language:
eng
ISBN10:
1493008447
ISBN13:
9781493008445
kindle Asin:
B014W13I5G

The Santa Claus Man: The Rise and Fall of a Jazz Age Con Man and the Invention of Christmas in New York

Alex Palmer
3.78/5 (483 ratings)
Read Download
Before the charismatic John Duval Gluck, Jr. came along, letters from New York City children to Santa Claus were destroyed, unopened, by the U.S. Post Office. Gluck saw an opportunity, and created the Santa Claus Association. The effort delighted the public, and for 15 years money and gifts flowed to the only group authorized to answer Santa’s mail. Gluck became a Jazz Age celebrity, rubbing shoulders with the era’s movie stars and politicians, and even planned to erect a vast Santa Claus monument in the center of Manhattan — until Gotham’s crusading charity commissioner discovered some dark secrets in Santa’s workshop.

The rise and fall of the Santa Claus Association is a caper both heartwarming and hardboiled, involving stolen art, phony Boy Scouts, a kidnapping, pursuit by the FBI, a Coney Island bullfight, and above all, the thrills and dangers of a wild imagination. It’s also the larger story of how Christmas became the extravagant holiday we celebrate today, from Santa’s early beginnings in New York to the country’s first citywide Christmas tree and Macy’s first grand holiday parade. The Santa Claus Man is a holiday tale with a dark underbelly, and an essential read for lovers of Christmas stories, true crime, and New York City history.
Format:
Hardcover
Pages:
320 pages
Publication:
2015
Publisher:
Rowman & Littlefield Publishers
Edition:
Illustrated
Language:
eng
ISBN10:
1493008447
ISBN13:
9781493008445
kindle Asin:
B014W13I5G

More Books

Father Christmas and Me (Christmas, #3)

Matt Haig

Christmas Curiosities: Odd, Dark, and Forgotten Christmas

John Grossman

Chicken Soup for the Soul: Christmas Cheer: Stories about the Love, Inspiration, and Joy of Christmas

Jack Canfield

You Better Not Cry: Stories for Christmas

Augusten Burroughs

Framed & Hunted: A True Story of Occult Persecution

Edward Williams

A Lowcountry Christmas (Lowcountry Summer, #5)

Mary Alice Monroe

On Christmas Day in the Morning

Grace S. Richmond

His Forefathers and Mick 2nd Edition

Michael G. Kramer

Shepherds Abiding (Mitford Years, #8)

Jan Karon

The Magical Christmas Cat (Breeds, #12.5; Feline Breeds, #11; Murphy Sisters, #2; Psy-Changeling, #3.5)

Lora Leigh

Unwrapping Christmas

Lori Copeland

A Christmas Promise

Anne Perry