Archie Lee, the D'Arcy Advertising Agency executive working with The
For inspiration, Sundblom turned to Clement Clark Moore's 1822 poem "A Visit From St. Nicholas" (commonly called "'Twas the Night Before Christmas"). Moore's description of St. Nick led to an image of a warm, friendly, pleasantly plump and human Santa. (And even though it's often said that Santa wears a red coat because red is the color of
To learn more about the
(1) “My Hat’s Off to The Pause That Refreshes” — 1931. The magical transformation of the
(7) “Thanks for the Pause that Refreshes” — 1938. A child first showed up in 1938 when Santa appeared embracing a youngster in the family living room. Reeling from the Great Depression, Americans desperately needed to be reminded of pleasant moments, and Coke, as much as anything, provided those moments.
(10) “Here’s to Our G.I. Joes” — 1944. Santa and the Sprite Boy are featured saluting the troops during the holiday season. For many years the brand was only called
(13) “Now It’s My Time” — 1951. By the time Sundblom painted this Santa, he had become his own model using self-portraits from photographs, according to his wife Betty. But even in this painting, Sundblom tended to assume the three-quarter-view angle common to artists who paint themselves from a mirror’s reflection.
(14) “… and Now the Gift for Thirst” — 1952. Sundblom painted his next door neighbors in Tucson, Arizona — Lani & Sancy Nason. Yes, they were sisters, but Sundblom changed one to a boy to create more balanced scenes. Sundblom said, "I don't know whether she liked being a boy or not. I never asked her." The Nasons also appeared in 1952 and 1953 works.
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