Santa Hulk Down the Chimney 2003

December 10th: 15 days and counting…

I’ve had this ornament long enough I can’t remember where it originally came from.

The company responsible for this piece of whimsy began overseas with a dream by a visionary in the Christmas market.

Hallmark normally overshadows most other ornament makers, but Kurt S. Adler was christened America’s Father Christmas by Life Magazine in 2002 for his lifelong pursuit of production and profit.

Adler was born June 19, 1921, in Wurzburg, Germany. He moved to the United States at the age of 16 to live with an uncle to escape Nazi Germany. He served as a shipping clerk in the United States Army during World War II. When the war ended, he continued his trade learned in the armed forces by importing products to the U.S. He soon focused exclusively on European Christmas items such as figurines and snow globes. Next were artificial trees from Nuremberg in the 1950s and light strands from Italy in the 1960s.

His empire continued to grow with the licensing of figures from such well-known companies as Walt Disney and Warner Brothers.

Adler passed Nov. 25, 2004, due to heart failure. His legacy continues on many trees throughout the world, especially the United States.