Christmas
Berzerk Blawndz – “Santa is Injured”
Berzerk Blawndz released a new Christmas album, Go Berserk This Christmas!, in early December. The post-Christmas release of the music video for “Santa is Injured” tells the story of how St. Nick was unable to deliver presents this year, so the band did the job using Steve Solkela’s minivan.
PDD Bandcamp Playlist: Holiday Sampler, Volume Two
In the interest of making your yuletide as gay as possible, here’s another sampling of Christmas or “Christmasish” tunes by artists in the Duluth music scene. (more…)
Steve Solkela – “En Etsi Valtaa, Loistoa”
Steve Solkela performs the Christmas song “En Etsi Valtaa, Loistoa” or “I Seek Not Power, or Glory,” composed by Jean Sibelius. He dedicates the song to the recently departed Rev. Martti Hyhkö of Ontario, Canada. (more…)
PDD Quiz: Christmas City
How well do you know the song “Christmas City”? Put your knowledge to the test with this edition of the PDD Quiz.
A 2025-in-review quiz comes your way on Dec. 28. Please submit question suggestions to Alison Moffat at alisonlinnaemoffat@gmail.com by Dec. 21. (more…)
Quiet Santa preserves tradition for kids with sensory needs
Patrick and Sandy Baumann, dressed and ready for families to arrive at the fourth annual Quiet Santa event in November. (Photo by Julia Guttenfelder)
Each year, as the snow begins to fall, families crowd into chaotic shopping centers and join the staggered lines, waiting for their turn to meet Santa Claus. It’s a beloved holiday tradition, but it can be overwhelming for children with sensory processing challenges.
Among the smiling, happy faces found on a Google image search for “kids on Santa’s lap” are many photos of wailing youngsters squirming on Santa’s knee while he tries to keep a pleasant and slightly strained smile, unsure of what to do next.
Recognizing the need for a more subdued St. Nick to greet children with autism or other sensory needs, Fairlawn Mansion in Superior held its first Quiet Santa event in 2021. (more…)
The inaugural Christmas City of the North Parade was in 1961
Debate about when the first Christmas City of the North Parade happened has been rekindled numerous times since 2008, when KBJR-TV promoted the 48th annual parade as the “50th annual.” That year Andrew Krueger, then a copy editor at the Duluth News Tribune, set the record straight, digging through newspaper archives that strongly suggested, but maybe didn’t definitively prove, the parade was first held in 1961.
KBJR, then and now, points to 1958 as the first year of the parade.
It is finally time to set aside unreasonable doubt. The short version of the story is this: Krueger was correct. The first Christmas City of the North Parade was held Nov. 17, 1961. (more…)
How Julann Griffin invented Jeopardy! on a flight out of Duluth
A trip to Duluth led to the development of the television game show Jeopardy! A recent episode of the podcast Twenty Thousand Hertz recounts the music and sound effects of the show and includes the historic tidbit about the role Duluth played in its creation story.
The mention comes around the 2-minute mark of the episode titled “The Music of Jeopardy! From a Lullaby to $100,000,000,” which is embedded above. (more…)
Selective Focus: The Elf on the Shelf
The Christmas-themed Elf on the Shelf doll is the protagonist character of a 2005 children’s book with the same name. Since its emergence to mainstream popularity, the decorative figurine has inspired parody photographs in which the Elf is staged in a wide range of holiday scenes causing chaos, or referenced in memes.
Below are some elves spotted and submitted by Duluthians, as well as some local art inspired by this internet trend. (more…)
Selective Focus: Dunedinville
A few families in the Hunters Park neighborhood created Dunedinville during the pandemic when the only way to roam Bentleyville was by car. This past weekend, they gathered for the fifth year in a row, celebrating the holiday season in multiple yards. The gathering has grown since its first iteration and now includes its own website, podcast, origin story, board game, theme songs, live music and a comic book. The celebration is “famous for its killer sled tracks, fueled by in-house ice and snow-making capabilities.” Check out some of their slick slopes, light fixtures and moments from this year. (more…)
PDD Quiz: Merry Kiss Cam Filming Locations
‘Tis the season for cheesy holiday movies! This week’s quiz tests your knowledge of filming locations for Merry Kiss Cam, which was shot in Duluth during the summer of 2022.
A year-in-review PDD quiz comes your way on Dec. 29. Please email question suggestions to Alison Moffat at alisonlinnaemoffat@gmail.com by Dec. 26. (more…)
Selective Focus: Boubville 2024
Boubville — not at all to be confused with Bentlyville; that would never happen — is a winter celebration that takes place on a property in Duluth’s Central Hillside neighborhood. In addition to the musicians performing, some of the artistic experiences this year include an interactive phonebooth called “Bent-to-Boub InterOpterative Phones” by Swertyman, “Ghosts of Dinners Past” by Annmarie Genuisz, “Silent Crude” projections by Allen Killian-Moore, a gift shop to peruse, a blacklight forest, an interactive electronic instrument made by Digetic and Ginger Juel, and more. Collected here are some snapshots captured by Jess Morgan at the first two nights of the 2025 spectacle. (more…)
Steve Solkela & Party Marty – “Carol of the Bells”
Accordionist Steve Solkela performs the popular Christmas song “Carol of the Bells” with Party Marty working the guitar and wine glasses.
The Nutcracker Christmases
Christmas gives me the blues. I miss the magic of childhood Christmases spent with my siblings, and I miss the magic of Christmas mornings I spent with my young children. I miss family and friends who have passed away, and the special Christmas traditions we had. Because nothing stays the same, nostalgia can be heart-wrenching.
So, I’m weaving some new traditions into some old ones.
The Nutcracker of the Past
When I was in my twenties, my mother-in-law took me to my first ballet, along with my two sisters-in-law. It was December, so of course, we went to The Nutcracker. I loved it. For two hours enchanting music, graceful dancing, sparkling costumes, and magical sets swept me away to another world. Attending The Nutcracker with my mother-in-law became a tradition for a handful of years.
This year I took my twelve-year-old granddaughter, Clara, to see The Nutcracker, her first ballet. My mother-in-law would be happy to know I’m reviving her tradition. If life were A Christmas Carol, my mother-in-law would have been Fred, the ever-cheerful nephew of Ebenezer Scrooge. She knew how to keep the spirit of Christmas in her heart all year long and how to rise above characters like Scrooge. (more…)
Mom Versus Reality: Holiday Edition
Comedian Mary Mack presents this short holiday video as a gift to you, noting “I think it may be one of those ‘if you know, you know’ things.”
Sydney Hansen – “Kringle Tingle”
Duluth native Sydney Hansen has a new, original Christmas song. “Kringle Tingle” was written with Corey Lee Barker and produced by Kent Wells.
Shippee – “To You: (Merry Christmas)”
Duluth’s Blake Shippee has a new Christmas song. The video is directed by Lance Lindahl. (more…)
Duluth: Where it’s Christmas every day for a month
1970 promotional ad for Duluth.
Breanne and Anya Tepler – “It’s Time to Go to Bentleyville”
It’s not quite time to go to Bentleyville yet, but members of the Tepler family have a new music video ready for when Duluth’s annual holiday light display opens Nov. 18. (more…)
Selective Focus: Boubville 2022
Ollie Morris (left) helped curate the tree (behind) that’s spoofing the one found at Bentleyville. (Photo by Jess Morgan)
Described as a “punk version of Bentleyville,” Boubville is a winter celebration centered around connection and play between artists as they imitate the light displays found the Bentlyville “Tour of Lights.” The event is also functioning as a fundraiser for the Embassy art collective. Despite the recent blizzard, Duluthians looking to connect and dance still made it over to the first night of Boubville. (more…)
The Embassy presents Boubville
Duluth’s finest art cult, the Embassy, is planning an unusual fundraiser. WDSE-TV‘s Julie Zenner and Dennis Anderson chat with Emily Koch and Zanta about the irreverent version of a holiday festival called Boubville in this Almanac North segment.
PDD Quiz: Holiday Tunes
Whip up a Tom & Jerry, spin a festive record, and settle in for this week’s quiz about local(ish) holiday tunes!
The final PDD quiz of the year will look back at headlines from 2022; it will be published on Dec. 25. Submit question suggestions to Alison Moffat at aklawite@d.umn.edu by Dec. 21. (more…)
Traditional Christmas folk musical stylings of Goat Hill Quartet
On Saturday, I was at Wussow’s for coffee, and midway through the morning Goat Hill Quartet appeared. The group’s traditional Christmas folk musical stylings raised money for Loaves and Fishes.
Roy Halvorson: Christmas Tree King
From the December 1957 issue of Flying magazine, “the world’s most widely read aviation magazine,” comes the story of Duluth’s Roy Halvorson, “Christmas Tree King.” (more…)
Emily Haavik – “All is Bright”
Duluth native Emily Haavik released an original holiday song and music video today. A group of her friends recorded segments to help put the video together. Haavik performs the song with Phil Miller on cello and Dave Mehling on bass and guitar. The mix is by Mehling and the mastering by Eric Martin. Proceeds from downloads go to help Haavik’s friend Sonya Goins fight breast cancer.
Bentleyville 2021 Aerial Video
Videographer Adam Jagunich flies his Yuneec Typhoon H Plus hexacopter over Bayfront Park in Duluth during the Bentleyville Christmas light display while the bulk carrier Drawsko sails under the Aerial Lift Bridge and into the Duluth Harbor.
For ghosts of Christmas’ past, check out “A Perfect Duluth Christmas: PDD’s Holiday Video Showcase.”