Synopses & Reviews
Who made the first snowman? Who first came up with the idea of placing snowballs on top of each other, and who decided they would use a carrot for a nose? Most puzzling of all: How can this mystery ever be solved, with all the evidence long since melted?
The snowman appears everywhere on practically everything -- from knickknacks to greeting cards to seasonal sweaters we plan to return. Whenever we see big snowballs our first impulse is to deck them out with a top hat. Humorist and writer Bob Eckstein has long been fascinated by this ubiquitous symbol of wintertime fun -- and finally, for the first time, one of the world's most popular icons gets his due.
A thoroughly entertaining exploration, The History of the Snowman travels back in time to shed light on the snowman's enigmatic past -- from the present day, in which the snowman reigns as the King of Kitsch, to the Dark Ages, with the creation of the very first snowman. Eckstein's curiosity began playfully enough, but soon snowballed into a (mostly) earnest quest of chasing Frosty around the world, into museums and libraries, and seeking out the advice of leading historians and scholars. The result is a riveting history that reaches back through centuries and across cultures -- sweeping from fifteenth-century Italian snowballs to eighteenth-century Russian ice sculptures to the regrettable "white-trash years" (1975-2000).
The snowman is not just part of our childhood memories, but is an integral part of our world culture, appearing -- much like a frozen Forrest Gump -- alongside dignitaries and celebrities during momentous events. Again and again, the snowman pops up in rare prints, paintings, early movies, advertising and, over the past century, in every art form imaginable. And the jolly snowman -- ostensibly as pure as the driven snow -- also harbors a dark past full of political intrigue, sex, and violence.
With more than two hundred illustrations and a special section of the best snowman cartoons, The History of the Snowman is a truly original winter classic -- smart, surprisingly enlightening, and quite simply the coolest book ever.
Review
"In these Brangelina- and Tomkat-saturated times, it's hard to believe a celebrity on the order of the snowman has gone centuries without a proper biography. Thankfully Bob Eckstein has righted this wrong with his charming and elbow-the-guy-on-the-bus-next-to-you fascinating tale of the world's first true arbiter of cool."
Time Out New YorkReview
"Thoroughly researched, lavishly illustrated. There's more to the snowman than meets the eye." David Smith, New York Public Library
Synopsis
A quirky wintertime book about the history of snowmen--perfect for gift-giving
Who made the first snowman? Who first came up with the idea of placing snowballs on top of each other, and who decided they would use a carrot for a nose? Most puzzling of all: How can this mystery ever be solved, with all the evidence long since melted?
The snowman appears everywhere on practically everything--from knickknacks to greeting cards to seasonal sweaters we plan to return. Whenever we see big snowballs our first impulse is to deck them out with a top hat. Humorist and writer Bob Eckstein has long been fascinated by this ubiquitous symbol of wintertime fun--and finally, for the first time, one of the world's most popular icons gets his due.
A thoroughly entertaining exploration, The History of the Snowman travels back in time to shed light on the snowman's enigmatic past -- from the present day, in which the snowman reigns as the King of Kitsch, to the Dark Ages, with the creation of the very first snowman. Eckstein's curiosity began playfully enough, but soon snowballed into a (mostly) earnest quest of chasing Frosty around the world, into museums and libraries, and seeking out the advice of leading historians and scholars. The result is a riveting history that reaches back through centuries and across cultures--sweeping from fifteenth-century Italian snowballs to eighteenth-century Russian ice sculptures to the regrettable "white-trash years" (1975-2000).
The snowman is not just part of our childhood memories, but is an integral part of our world culture, appearing--much like a frozen Forrest Gump--alongside dignitaries and celebrities during momentous events. Again and again, the snowman pops up in rare prints, paintings, early movies, advertising and, over the past century, in every art form imaginable. And the jolly snowman--ostensibly as pure as the driven snow--also harbors a dark past full of political intrigue, sex, and violence.
With more than two hundred illustrations and a special section of the best snowman cartoons, The History of the Snowman is a truly original winter classic--smart, surprisingly enlightening, and quite simply the coolest book ever.
About the Author
andlt;bandgt;Bob Ecksteinandlt;/bandgt; has been a humor writer for more than twenty years, and is most recognized for his popular weekly columns in Newsday, the andlt;Iandgt;Village Voiceandlt;/iandgt;, and now, andlt;Iandgt;TimeOutandlt;/iandgt;. His cartoons and artwork have also appeared in publications like andlt;Iandgt;The New Yorkerandlt;/iandgt;, the andlt;Iandgt;New York Timesandlt;/iandgt;, andlt;Iandgt;Spyandlt;/iandgt; magazine, and andlt;Iandgt;Detailsandlt;/iandgt;. He splits his time between his studios in Manhattan and Pennsylvania.
Table of Contents
Contents
Introduction
The Search for the First Snowman
Part 1
THE MODERN SNOWMAN
Chapter One
The Age of Expansion: The Twenty-first Century
Chapter Two
The White Trash Years: 1975-2000
Chapter Three
The Hollywood Years: There's No Business Like Snow Business
Chapter Four
The Golden Age of Advertising Since the Early Twentieth Century: Snow Sells
Chapter Five
The Dean Martin Years: Drunken Debauchery and Other Misgivings
Chapter Six
Snowman Deconstructionism: Literary Circles
Chapter Seven
The Birth of a Media Star: 1870s-1910s
Chapter Eight
Snowman Photography since the Mid-Nineteenth Century: Mr. Sound Bite
Intermission
A Comic Interlude of the Best Snowmen Cartoons
Part 2
THE RENAISSANCE SNOWMAN
Chapter Nine
The Revolution of 1870: The Snowman's French Roll
Chapter Ten
Made in America: The Snow Angel of 1856
Chapter Eleven
Eighteenth-Century Snow and Ice Sculpture: From Russia with Love Handles
Chapter Twelve
Early American Snowmen in the Seventeenth Century: New World, Fresh Snow
Chapter Thirteen
Snowman Exploration in the Late Sixteenth Century
Chapter Fourteen
Belgian Expressionism: The Miracle of 1511
Chapter Fifteen
Early Classism in Snow Sculpture: Politically Incorrect Fun
Chapter Sixteen
Italian Snowballs from the Fifteenth Century: The Two-Ball Theory
Chapter Seventeen
The First Snowman
Chapter Eighteen
The Ice