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ALMOST EVERYONE HAS a childhood horror story about exploding into uncontrollable, inconsolable tears and screaming upon meeting Santa Claus.
Maybe you were in a dark and dingy corner of some shopping centre, or you were convinced you were on the naughty list, or the sheer awe of meeting an immortal supernatural being who makes your dreams come true every year, was overwhelming.
But on a December day many years ago, one group of excited kids avoided a true nightmare, when Santa never stepped on stage.
As reported by the Pittsburgh Press the next day, a special Christmas party took place at the YMCA club on the east side of the city, on 15 December 1937.
Dozens of boys and girls from the Industrial Home for Crippled Children sang carols and demanded to get their presents from the man in red, a Peter P Dolata, 51.
He had reportedly been chosen for his “round, red cheeks, his physical build and his twinkling eyes.”
After joking around with the kids at a special dinner in the YMCA, where he lived, Santa slipped into a side room, and promptly dropped dead.
As word spread, another resident stepped up to the plate, and made this truly wonderful announcement.
“Boys and girls,” said John Hoop. “We have just had a long distance telephone call from Santa.”
He said he was sorry to disappoint you, but he’s very busy tonight and said he would probably be very late getting here, and for you not to wait for him this time.
The kids lined up and received their presents – no doubt bitterly disappointed, but protected from what would have been the Santa Claus horror story to beat them all.
The bizarre demise of Santa Claus in Pittsburgh, 1937, appears to have been lost in the collective memory hole, until it was recently revived by a local Pittsburgh history Facebook page.
A bit of genealogical digging sheds some light on the man who deserves a place in the annals of Christmas ephemera.
Peter Paul Dolata was born 22 June 1886, in the German-occupied part of Poland, and emigrated to Pennsylvania with his parents, at the age of one.
His World War I draft card describes him as a “short and stout” 30-year-old man, with a wife and at least one child.
He worked for the Central District Telephone Company, and later Bell Telephone, for 31 years.
Dolata’s death cert, signed by his son, who shared his name, identifies his wife as Cecilia, and lists his cause of death as “cerebral haemorrhage.”
Peter Paul Dolata, the Santa Claus that time forgot, was 51 years old.
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What’s the chances of a qwertyless Christmas instead?
Zero
Slow news day eh?
As the headline says,worst Christmas ever,for whom?the kids or the poor f€& ker that popped his clogs?
Santa belongs in the past. Let’s all do away with Santa. Have a happy Santaless Christmas everyone!
Grinch?
No, I just believe that children can enjoy Christmas fully without being lied to.
Part of a childhood is imagination and wonder
They can still marvel at the wonder of capitalism and how their presents were manufactured in factories and transported around the world in container ships using an economy of scale. The ingenious concept of marketing and how marketers know what children like depending on their developmental stage. How even music CDs intended for teenagers made by supposedly rebellious bands and singers still adhere to the system and are given warning labels and barcodes so they can be sold in a shop. The truth that Santa is a made-up figure and how an originally Christian celebration has become a celebration of consumerism. Absolutely awe inspiring.
Worst troll ever.
Fcuk me, you must really light up the Christmas party scene.
That’s a pretty funny summation in fairness :) Can’t really argue with it but I’m happy enough to play along every year
The Grinch turned out OK!
I actually thought some kid saw Santa drop dead in front of him.. There wasn’t much to this story was there?
Man dies. Next…
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