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Festivus



Although it is not an official element of the holiday or its celebration, the phenomenon of the Festivus Miracle is mentioned twice in the original episode, both times occurring in the Costanza household, and both declared by Kramer.

Miracle #1;

Betting Shop Guy: Hello again, Miss Benes.
Elaine Benes: What are you doing here?
Betting Shop Guy: Damndest thing. Me and Charlie were calling to ask you out, and, uh, we got this bagel place.
Cosmo Kramer: I told them I was just about to see you. It's a Festivus Miracle!

Miracle #2;

Gwen: Jerry!
Jerry Seinfeld: Gwen! How did you know I was here?
Gwen: Kramer told me!
Cosmo Kramer: Another Festivus Miracle!!
Jerry Seinfeld: (murderous glare)

From these examples, it can be inferred that Festivus miracles tend to be minor coincidences that are inconvenient for one of the involved parties (Elaine did not want to see the Betting Shop Guy, and two-faced Gwen is in her ugly phase).

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Etymology and origin

Festivus (with long "i", festīvus) is a Latin word, but not the name of a festival: it means "festive"[8]. The holiday was named by the elder O'Keefe. The English word festive derives from festīvus, which in turn derives from festus "joyous; holiday, feast day".[9][10]

In the O'Keefe tradition the holiday would take place in response to family tension, "any time from December to May".[11] The phrase "a Festivus for the rest of us" also derived from an O'Keefe family event, the death of the elder O'Keefe's mother.[11]

The elder O'Keefe wrote a book that deals with idiosyncratic ritual and its social significance, a theme with great relevance to Festivus tradition.[12]

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Other references

  • "Festivus: A Holiday for the Rest of Us" is the name of a book by Allen Salkin about the celebration of Festivus in the real world.[13]
  • The Wagner Companies of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, began manufacturing Festivus Poles for the 2005 season.[14]
  • "Festivus" was the name of a seasonal Ben and Jerry's ice cream flavor made in 2000 and 2001 in honor of the holiday. In 2004, the flavor made its return as "Gingerbread Cookie", and has since been retired to the Ben and Jerry's Flavor Graveyard.[15]
  • "Festivus" is a term used by the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League (NFL) and their fans to denote the NFL Playoffs. During the 2000 season, Ravens head coach Brian Billick banned his players from using the word "playoffs" during the season as he wanted his players to focus on every game and not look ahead. Players substituted the term "festivus" for playoffs and "festivus maximus" for the Super Bowl. The Ravens eventually went on to win the Super Bowl that season.[16]
  • Presumably unaware of the irony, the Brisbane, Australia marketing organization has adopted the name "Festivus" to refer to its summer holidays program of events. [17]
  • An Oklahoma-based winery, Grape Ranch, began producing Festivus wine in 2003.
  • A 2004 episode of Jeopardy! had a Seinfeld-themed round, featuring a category entitled Festivus, in which contestants answered questions about holidays. Incidentally, this was the final episode in which long-time champion Ken Jennings played, until returning for the Ultimate Tournament of Champions.[18]
  • "Oh Festivus" (also known as "The Festivus Song") was first sung in Dallas, Texas, bars and taverns in the 2004-2005 holiday season. It is set to the tune of "O Canada".[19]
  • In 2005, Wisconsin Governor Jim Doyle was declared "Governor Festivus" and displayed a Festivus pole in the family room of the Executive Residence in Madison, Wisconsin during that holiday season.[20] Governor Doyle's 2005 Festivus pole is now part of the collection of the Wisconsin Historical Museum [21]
  • In 2007, a Wisconsin man requested permission to erect a Festivus pole next to Green Bay City Hall's nativity scene as a tongue-in-cheek response to public religious displays.[22][23]

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References

  1. ^ a b Festivus for the rest of us. LJWorld. Retrieved on 2006-12-25.
  2. ^ a b c d Salkin, Allen. "Fooey to the World: Festivus Is Come", The New York Times, December 19, 2004. Retrieved on 2008-01-09. 
  3. ^ "The Strike". Seinfeld. 1997-12-18. No. 10, season 9.
  4. ^ Origins of Festivus. Festivus: The Holiday for the Rest of Us. Retrieved on 2007-11-02.
  5. ^ a b The Strike. Seinfeld Scripts. Retrieved on 2006-12-25.
  6. ^ Airing of Grievances. Festivus Book. Retrieved on 2006-12-25.
  7. ^ Feats of Strength. Festivus Book. Retrieved on 2006-12-25.
  8. ^ festivus. Lewis & Short Latin Dictionary. Retrieved on 2007-12-27.
  9. ^ festus. Words. Retrieved on 2007-12-27.
  10. ^ Our day, our way. Journal Sentinel Online. Retrieved on 2006-12-25.
  11. ^ a b Allen Salkin (2005). Festivus: The Holiday for the Rest of us. ISBN 0-446-69674-9. 
  12. ^ O'Keefe (1982). Stolen Lightning: A Social Theory of Magic. ISBN 0-8264-0059-0. 
  13. ^ Festivus Website. Allen Salkin.
  14. ^ Festivus poles now are for the rest of us. MSN NBC. Retrieved on 2006-12-25.
  15. ^ Flavor Graveyard. Ben & Jerry. Retrieved on 2006-12-25.
  16. ^ Matte, Tom; Jeff Seidel (2004). Tales from the Baltimore Ravens Sideline. ISBN 1-582-61754-6. 
  17. ^ Media Release: Festivus Event Calendar (19 Nov 2003). brisbanemarketing.com.au. Retrieved on 2007-12-30.
  18. ^ Show #4657. J! Archive. Retrieved on 2006-12-25.
  19. ^ Oh Festivus. NODEWORKS Encyclopedia. Retrieved on 2006-12-25.
  20. ^ Gov. Festivus!. madison.com. Retrieved on 2006-12-25.
  21. ^ Governor Doyle's Festivus Pole. Wisconsin Historical Society. Retrieved on 2007-12-30.
  22. ^ Green Bay Festivus pole. 236.com. Retrieved on 2007-12-22.
  23. ^ Festivus Pole Proposed After Wisconsin City Displays Nativity. FOXNews.com. Retrieved on 2007-12-30.

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