THE PUZZLE CORNER: DECEMBER 16, 2023

 😎FUN FACT

December 22 is the 75th anniversary of ♫Deck Us All With Boston Charlie♫ from Walt Kelly’s classic comic strip Pogo.

TRIVIA TIME⌚

Who was the first Pogo character to actually sing ♫Deck Us All With Boston Charlie♫?

THE LETTER SHUFFLE

How many new words can you spell out of the letters in CHRISTMAS?

We’ll reveal all next weekend but for now, let’s open up THE ANSWERS BOX🎁 and discover the results from the December 9, 2023 Puzzle Corner.

🥇FAMOUS FIRSTS: THE CHRISTMAS CAROL EDITION

Just about everyone has sang every song, to date, for the holiday season. But do you know who the first to perform each tune listed was?

01. Frosty the Snowman⛄ was first sung by Gene Autry in a 1950 recording.

02. Have A Holly Jolly Christmas was actually first performed by The Quinto Sisters in 1962, although Burl Ives’ rendition is the most famous and popular, in part to being featured during the original Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer Christmas special.

03. Judy Garland was the first to sing Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas during the 1944 MGM musical Meet Me In Saint Louis.

04. Here Comes Santa Claus🎅 was first sung by its co-writer Gene Autry in 1947, although the classic radio version is actually of a later recording.

05. I’ll Be Home For Christmas was first sung by Bing Crosby in 1943 as a World War 2 morale booster, but has since taken on a life of its own.

06. The Jingle Bell Rock was first performed by Bobby Helms in 1957.

07. Vaughn Monroe first pleaded Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow❄❅❆ in 1946.

08. Then 13 year old Brenda Lee first sang Rocking Around The Christmas Tree🎄 in 1958.

09. Believe it or not, there are two possible answers for this one!

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer🦌 first shined in 1948 when Harry Brannon sang it live on various New York City radio programs, but Gene Autry was the first to actually record the song the following year.

10. Eartha Kitt first purred Santa Baby🎅 in 1953. Madonna’s version isn’t bad, but wouldn’t you like to see Harley Quinn take a whack at it?

11. 🎅Santa Claus Is Coming To Town is actually the oldest song on our list. Eddie Cantor was the first to sing it in a 1934 recording, although I personally like the rendition by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band.

12. Silver Bells🕭🕭 was first performed in the 1951 Paramount Picture The Lemon Drop Kid by its star Bob Hope, who continued to perform it on every TV Christmas special he did until his passing.

13. Sleigh Ride🛷 as an instrumental was first performed by The Boston Pops Orchestra conducted by Arthur Fiedler in 1949, although the popular radio version is actually one of their later performances.

14. The Andrews Sisters were the first to sing Sleight Ride's lyrics in a 1950 recording, although Peggy Lee’s I Like To Sleigh Ride version from 1960 is pretty cool.

15. You are right to say Bing Crosby was the first to ever perform White Christmas, but he did so during his radio show on Christmas Day 1941. The movie Holiday Inn that first showcased the song was released in 1942, and the remake movie White Christmas in 1954.

16. Paul McCartney first celebrated having a Wonderful Christmas Time in 1979.

17. While many think Boris Karloff performed You’re A Mean One, Mister Grinch for the 1966 Chuck Jones produced animated adaptation of Doctor Seuss’ How The Grinch Stole Christmas, an originally uncredited Thurl Ravenscroft actually sang the Seuss lyrics.

SUNDAY FUNNIES: WORDY PUNS & VOWEL PLAY

Hello Everybody! Waxy Dragon here!

To be broke is to be POOR.
To serve water is to POUR.
Body acne is a clogged PORE.

♫Oh what magic in a word we found by switching the letters around.♫—From The Flintstones' song "Yabba-Dabba-Dabba-Dabba-Doo" by Hoagy Carmichael from the episode: "The Hit Song Writers".

Or in other words, let's have some pun! Ready?

Most people write CONGRATS because they don't know how to spell congrajulashions.
Congratulayshuns.
Congratulei...
GOOD JOB! 😁

When you can't sleep, what idiot called it INSOMNIA and not RESISTING A REST?💤😪😴

He won the late chess game after dark by pinning his opponent's King with the men on horses.
It was a good knight.♞

For solitude: ♫Oh give me a zone, where there ain't no cell phones, and the service is out of range.♫

What kind of dinosaur has a lot of car accidents?
T-wrecks.

Can anyone tie a rope using telekinesis?
I thought knot.

If you put a picture of yourself in a locket, you could say you're independent.

Let he who is without pun, cast the first groan.

And on that note♫, have a great week everybody, but be sure to be back here next weekend when Autumn the Puppy and I host our annual Christmas Party edition of The Sunday Funnies!—wd.

THE PUZZLE CORNER: DECEMBER 16, 2017

😎FUN FACT
The Canadian Postal Service, the closest to the North Pole, has established an official zip code for Santa Claus: H0H 0H0! (A combination of H's and zeros.)

AKA, ALSO KNOWN AS
First introduced during A Charlie Brown Christmas, what is the official title of ♫The Peanuts Theme♫?

COMMON BONDS
The people in each subset have something in common. Do you know what it is?
01. {Justin Trudeau, Sissy Spacek, Jimmy Buffett}
02. {Rod Serling, Humphrey Bogart, Clara Barton}

We’ll reveal all next weekend, but for now, let’s open up THE ANSWERS BOX and discover the results from the December 9, 2017 Puzzle Corner.

REBUS
Something familiar is represented in the image on the right.
Do you know what it is?

A ♫Partridge In A Pear Tree♫, with the late David Cassidy of The Partridge Family.

THE LETTER SHUFFLE
How many new words can you spell out of the letters in CHRISTMAS?

A, act(s), ah(s), aim(s), air(s), am, arc(s), arch, arm(s), art(s), as, ash, ass, at
Cam(s), car(s), cart(s), cash, cast(s) cat(s), char(s), chair(s), charm(s), chart(s), chasm(s), chat(s), cram(s)
Ha, hair, ham(s), harm(s), has, hat(s), hi, him, his, hiss, hit(s)
I, I’m, is, it, its, itch
Ma, mach, march, mart(s), mash, mass, mast(s), mat(s), match, math, mint(s),mirth, miss, mist(s)
Racism, racist(s), ram(s), rash, rat(s), rich, rim(s)
Sash, sat, scam(s), scar(s), scat, sham(s), shirt(s), Sir, sis, sit(s), smash, smart(s), stair(s), star(s), starch, stash, stir(s)
Tar(s), this, trash, tram(s), trim(s), Tsar

Besides the 132 words listed above, Chris, Christ, and Sam might be eligible, depending upon your position of counting proper names in a game like this. Other words might also be possible.