Crass Christmas Commercialism

[PurpleChez]

I am certainly NOT about to argue that Christmas is LESS commercialized now than it was when I was younger. The stores are certainly out to make a buck any way they can--and I don't blame them...that's what they do. But they don't decorate the way they used to, and I have to admit that I miss that.

When I was really little (early 70s), Kline Village (a 50s-era proto-strip mall) ringed its sidewalk awning with green garland studded with illuminated red balls and white lights; three large Christmas "trees" (garland cones) sat on its roof by the main road, and illuminated fuzzy mylar decorations hung from the light poles in the parking lots. The Union Deposit Mall (a weird cross between indoor and outdoor mall) also did the sidewalk garland. The Colonial Park Mall erected numerous displays of audioanimatronic elves engaged in elfin activities (toymaking and the like). And at the East Mall (the first modern indoor mall in the Harrisburg PA area), Gimbel's decorated their store's exterior with illuminated "christmas tree ornaments" that were as tall as the building, and Wannamaker's covered their place with giant illuminated snowflakes. At center court, not only could you visit Santa but you could also visit Frosty. Other places did trees on the roof, decorated light poles, etc. I don't think any of these places do any of these things today, and haven't for 20 years or more. Some malls (such as the aforementioned East Mall) have been known to go hog-wild with a Santa's Castle extravaganza, but otherwise store decor seems to be limited to generic swags of red ribbons and gold balls. As someone who not-so-secretly loves the innocent excesses of commercial christmas I really miss Xmas store decor. I know some big cities still have department stores that make a big deal out of decorating street-level windows, but otherwise Christmas commercial creativity seems to be dead.

And speaking of Christmas decorations...I moved to NE Georgia 10 years ago and have lived in the Athens GA area for over 6. Is it just my imagination, or do folks in some regions just not get into Christmas lights the way they do in others? The houses that make it into the local paper's "wacky Xmas house" articles down here would have been a dime a dozen back home. In an entire night we won't find enough Xmas lighting to equal even a single decent street back in Pennsylvania. I've tried to blame it on humorless baptists, but I know that's unfair.

[kestrel91316]

1. Maybe people just can't AFFORD to decorate like that anymore.

What with their homes worth half what they were, and transportation (gas) costs skyrocketing, and FOOD costs skyrocketing........

[PurpleChez]

2. But it's been the same way here for ten years

and when I go back home (PA), it's just like it was 15-20 years ago. No doubt economics might change things, but both of the locales in question have changed very little over the years...it seems to be an entrenched thing.