Was It Karma?

In 1953 Eartha Kitt recorded her classic Christmas hit "Santa Baby." Nearly 60 years later the song sits in the Pantheon of seasonal classics along with the likes of "The Little Drummer Boy," "Hark, The Herald Angels Sing," and "O, Come All Ye Faithful." The only difference is that none of those songs sexualize Santa Claus.

Though Kitt is never explicit in the song, her tone is graphic enough to the point that when she sings "come and trim my Christmas tree..." I'm not imagining an evergreen if you know what I'm saying. You may ask, why would Santa Claus be adorning her pubic region with some decorations bought at Tiffany. I don't know, but why else why would she be singing the song like that?

Until this writing I had always put Jimmy Boyd's "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus" in this same category of "sexual Santa carol" until just moments ago it occurred to me that in that song Mommy was kissing Daddy who was dressed up like Santa. It may be the values voter in me to point this out, but engaging in sexual activity with the use of costumes is fetishism, be it suggested or clear cut. Still, "I Saw Mommy" comes off as more innocent even as a child aged in the single digits witnesses the intro to this romp under the mistletoe.

"Santa Baby" sees "I Saw Mommy"'s fetishism and raises it one prostitution. Right? She is purring out her pricey Christmas list as we are led to believe she is going to screw Santa in return. A convertible? A sable? A platinum mine? If you're daughter got that stuff from Santa you'd smack her in the head and ship her off to a South Pole nunnery.

"Santa Baby" is a song at the line of sacrilege. Right on the other side of that line would be a song called "Jesus Baby." I do not know what the words to that one would be and frankly I don't want to know, but Kitt knew the limit and she took us all there. We loved her for it and it was a blessing for her for the rest of her life... or was it? It was a big day when Eartha Kitt died. It was a Thursday in 2008 on which many of us gathered together, but not to mourn the loss of a singing icon. We gathered together to open presents and eat a big dinner while possibly listening to Santa Baby in the background. Eartha Kitt died on the very day she sang about (presumably) in her biggest hit. What is up with that?

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