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National Christmas Tree Has Died Near White House

The National Park Service says the Colorado blue spruce died of “transplant shock.”

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The Fake-Snow Business Is Hotter Than Ever

A “snow”-filled party can cost as much as $20,000.

Jared T. Miller

How to Protect Your iPhone: 12 Cases for Every Personality

Are you one of the lucky recipients who found an iPhone under the tree this Christmas? After you download Angry Birds and Words With Friends, the next thing you’ll want to do is protect that baby. We’ve rounded up the best cases for cinephiles, minimalists and everyone in between.

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Let the After-Christmas Sales Begin! December 26 Expected to Be Huge Day for Retailers

For a variety of reasons, including that December 26 falls on a Monday this year, retailers anticipate a banner day for sales.

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“We always count on the holiday season to give us a big boost at the end of the year, and it just didn’t happen.”

⎯ PAUL DERGARABEDIAN, Hollywood.com analyst, on a bad 2011 — and Christmas — for U.S. cinema attendance. The year was down 5.3% from 2010; the lowest head count since 1995. Tom Cruise’s Mission: Impossible, Ghost Protocol beat The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo to the holiday weekend No. 1 spot with a solid $26.5 million [...]

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Holiday Identity Crisis? Kids Celebrating Hanukkah in a Santa-Crazed World

As Dec. 25 comes closer, it seems that no cashier, receptionist or librarian can resist asking my kids what they’ve requested from Santa.

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Mariah Carey Fatigue: All I Want For Christmas Is Some New Holiday Music

It’s been 17 years since a new Christmas song entered the canon. How long do we have to wait for a new holiday hit?

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Devils and Homespun Saints: The Top 5 Alternative European Santas

While the image of the jolly, bearded man in the red suit is a classic image across the world, some cultures have taken the Santa Claus idea a step beyond the gift-giving.  According to a centuries-old myth, bad children in France should prepare for a flogging. Or in Alpine Europe, they may be stuffed into [...]

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When Christmas Doesn’t Fall on Dec. 25

Here’s one Christmas surprise you didn’t expect: Christmas is actually on January 7.

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100-Year-Old Letter to Santa Found Stuck in Chimney

Santa’s error makes for a charming Christmas tale one hundred years later.