The weekly news update featuring Hollywood Walk of Fame
To all North Pole City Elves, those in Santa's Village, in the Lower 48 and all around the world, this is your weekly update for the week of February 6, 2023. I'm your host Walter "Mistletoe" Livingstone and I'm your co-host, Becky "Marshmallow" Livingstone, Let's go to press.
For the week of February 6, 2023 your sponsor will be North Pole City Hotel. Looking for a place to hold an event? Want to spend the night in NPC? Spend it at the NPC Hotel. North Pole City's Premier and only hotel! Stop by for a visit today!
Santa has reported that he is disappointed that the elders have decided against doing a census, but understands their viewpoint. He is hoping that they are willing to help come up with some alternatives though rather than just replying with a no. Ultimately, he wanted to have the database created as a means to increase productivity and communication within NPC and just used sending presents to birthday elves as an example of how it could be used- it was not to be the main focus.
Also, the Clauses reportedly did like the idea of new candy cane flavors. They were not fans of all the flavors that were sent over for testing, but did give the approval for the confectioners to start making small batches of the candy to test out here in North Pole City. They suggested having the elves vote on new flavors at a tasting event and even have the elves suggest other flavors that could be made. The Clauses do think though, that any candy canes given in stockings to the lower 48 should be our traditional peppermint since it is the quintessential flavor of Santa and North Pole City.
Theodore E. Bear will be arriving this week in NPC. Security Detail is being directed to transfer T.E.B. around town, but he often goes rogue and escapes his security detail, so do not be alarmed if you see a large bear in NPC this week. He is also expected to stop by some of the Snowball games with Santa and Mrs. Claus as well.
Preparationas are also underway for next week's Singles Dinner at the NPC Hotel where Cupid will be in town and presiding over the event.
With an influx of visitors from outside NPC, security will be tightened a bit throughout the city in the upcoming weeks so be sure you have your security badges with you!
The WWW/PR division is continuing to work on updates to the webpage and creating databases for Santa and Edward Hinklemyer. They are also updating the servers simultaneously so it taxing there eyes... a visit to Dr. Twinklesteins may be in all their futures.
They will be adding another resource page to the workshop webpage soon as well. In the meantime, you can view it in the Peppermint Post. It is a document on making kites.
This week temperatures will be in the mid -20's for most of the week. There will be scattered flurries through Wednesday with accumulations of only up to 2 inches throughout the entire week. Wind will be at 20km/hour on Kite flying day, so not too windy, but those who are avid kite flyers will definitely use any wind they can get. Winds will kick up later in the week a bit, and so will sunshine, so maybe you can make your kites on kite day and fly them the rest of the week.
This week we are going to try to send several elves to do reports from events going on around town. We hope to be able to get them out to the Snowball Games and the Kite flying event too. They will be handing out WELF-NPC Radio stickers at the events, so be sure to stop and say "hi" to them!.
Some of your favorite show personalities will be the ones out and about including Corby Snow and his moose Barney, Becky "Marshmallow" Livingstone, and we might even get Walter "Mistletoe" Livingstone to get out and have some fun too!
On February 8, 1960, the official groundbreaking ceremony is held for the Hollywood Walk of Fame and construction began on the long-planned Walk.
The Hollywood Walk of Fame is an internationally-recognized Hollywood icon and has 24-30 induction ceremonies annually.
The man credited with the idea for creating a Walk of Fame, was E. M. Stuart, in 1953. In that year, according to a Chamber press release he proposed the Walk as a means to “maintain the glory of a community whose name means glamour and excitement in the four corners of the world.â€
Between May 1956 and the fall of 1957, selecting the honorees to be initially placed in the Walk began. Four committees were established for this to represent the four different aspects of the entertainment industry at that time – motion picture, television, recording and radio. The committees included some of the most prominent names in entertainment. For example, members of the Motion Picture Selection Committee included Cecil B. DeMille, Samuel Goldwyn, Jesse Lasky, and Walt Disney, among others. As many as 150 names a week were submitted for consideration at the time. Today The Walk of Fame includes six categories: Motion Pictures, Television, Radio, Recording, Live Theatre/Performance, and Sports Entertainment. The committee now receives an average of two hundred applications a year.
The price to build the Walk, including street lighting and street trees, was $1.25-million. Today there is a $250 application fee and a $55,000 fee for all new stars to be created, installed, and help pay for upkeep of the Walk.
According to the official website for the Hollywood Walk of Fame, the first permanent star to be laid in the new Walk was that of Stanley Kramer on March 28, 1960, near the intersection of Hollywood and Gower. However, there were 8 before that which were temporarily displayed on August 15, 1958, as the Chamber and City unveiled eight stars on Hollywood Blvd. at Highland Avenue to create excitement and to demonstrate what the Walk would look like. The eight honorees randomly selected from the innagural class included: Olive Borden, Ronald Colman, Louise Fazenda, Preston Foster, Burt Lancaster, Edward Sedgwick, Ernest Torrence, and Joanne Woodward. So they were really the first, but they were only in temporary places.
In any case, by November 23, 1960, work had progressed far enough that it was decided to dedicate the Walk on and held the dedication in conjunction with the Hollywood Christmas Parade. The original Walk was not completed until spring 1961, when it was finally accepted by the Board of Public Works, with the first 1,558 stars. It was not until December 11, 1968, that another star was added as they needed to create a procedure for determining how additional stars would be added and how to pay for them.
In 1978, the Cultural Heritage Board of the City of Los Angeles designated the Hollywood Walk of Fame as Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument #194 and today, The Hollywood Chamber of Commerce manages the walkway.
An average of two stars are added to the Walk on a monthly basis. The next star to be added will be one recognizing award-winning writer/director Jon Favreau on February 13. His star will be the 2,746th star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and will be for the category of Television.
The NPC Commerce Association invites you to join them next week on the 14th for the Singles Dinner and Speed Dating at the NPC Hotel. They are expecting everyone who does not have a significant elf in their life to stop out as they are sponsoring a singles dinner and speed dating event with Cupid himself in attendance! Door prizes are being offered by NPC Commerce Association members. It should be quite a fun event and you may even get to meet your significant elf too so make plans to attend!
The first week of the 2023 North Pole Snowball Games is in the books. Taking the lead after the first three games is Noel's Cozy Corner earning 36 points, followed closely by Love at First Snowflake with 34 points, the Candy Cane Lounge with 33 points, and The Cocoa House with 32 points.
For a complete listing of scores for each event, see the Peppermint Post.
This week, teams will compete in the: Snowball Knockout, The Snowflake Race, and Break the Snowcap. Games will once again be held on Tuesday and Thursday night. Be sure to come out to the hot cocoa pubs and cheer your team along and have some amazing hot cocoa too.
On Feb 6th it is Oatmeal Monday, celebrating the tradition of the Scottish Elves. Various locations will be available around NPC to gather and make and eat oatmeal together.
Feb 7th is Rose Day so the NPC Greenhouse will be handing out roses. Stop by and pick one up.
Feb. 8th is National Kite-Flying Day and there will be a kite making workshop in the NPC Hotel lobby and kite flying fun in City Center. Come show off your creative kite and flying skills.
Feb 9 is one felicious day as it is Pizza Day and Chocolate Day. Visit the NPC Hotel for wide varieties of Pizzas and Chocolate treats alll day. Included will be a special pizza made personally by Mrs. Claus. She will be presenting Chocolate Pizzas.
Feb. 10 is Teddy Bear Day and to celebrate, Theodore E. Bear will be visiting the North Pole! Visit him in the Ballroom of the NPC Hotel for breakfast or dinner. He will also visit Santa's Workshop to visit withe the elves who make Santa's Teddy Bears.
For Global Movie Day on the 11th be sure to check out the movies being played in city center on the main lawns throughout the day.
Feb 12 is Lost Penny Day. Mrs. Claus will be handing out pennies from different countries and encouraging all to either go on a penny date or plan a penny date for next week on valentine's day. She will be passing out pennies at various locations throughout town from 10 am to 4 pm. Come out and see if you can find her!
WELF-NPC would like to wish a very happy 500th birthday to Robert "Miami" Scarbough. Robert works in the NPC Greenhouses and always makes sure the greenhouse temperatures are perfect for growing all different kinds of plants, including those you might only find in the tropics. He is one of the few elves at the North Pole that do not mind the heat so everyone calls him "Miami" and they let him take care of nearly all the tropical plants. We wish him many more happy years.
This is Walter "Mistletoe" Livingstone and Becky "Marshmallow" Livingstone with the reminder: Age is a question of mind over matter. If you don’t mind, it doesn’t matter. - Satchel Paige.
Have a good evening, and be sure to tune in next week for another WELF-NPC North Pole Radio News Update.
