jslarkin

The attachment is from an editorial by Francis Pharcellus Church, which appeared in a New York-Sun newspaper, on September 21, 1897, and became one of the most famous editorials, if not the most famous editorial ever published, in the answer to a question posed by 8 year old Virginia O’Hanlon when writing to the paper to ask – ‘Is there a Santa Claus?’ Hence the title.

The editorial was initially published anonymously, and Francis Church’s authorship wasn’t disclosed until after his death in 1906. The Sun gradually accepted the popularity of the story and republished it during the Christmas season every year from 1924 to 1950, when it ceased publication.

‘Is There a Santa Claus?’ is commonly reprinted during the Christmas and holiday season, and has been cited as the most reprinted newspaper editorial in the English language. It has been translated into around 20 languages, and adapted as both films, and television presentations, and while many do have their favourite film version of ‘Yes Virginia, there is a Santa Claus’ … I lean towards the 1991 version with Charles Bronson in the role of Francis Church, and if you like ‘It’s a wonderful life’ with James Stewart, and old-style Christmas films that can be found on Hallmark… then ‘Yes Virginia, there is a Santa Claus’ will tick your boxes.

The Youtube film is a very good version, but for those of you who can access Tubi.tv, Yes Virginia, there is a Santa Claus, can be found there, and on Tubi, many more Christmas films. But if you have any problems with Tubitv, send me an email to jslarkin.writer@gmail.com – and I’ll do what I can to help you.