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0 / 30 Fotos
What is Festivus?
- Festivus was born as a parody, non-commercial alternative to Christmas.
© Shutterstock
1 / 30 Fotos
Origins
- Reader's Digest’s editor and writer Daniel O'Keefe first celebrated it in 1966.
© Getty Images
2 / 30 Fotos
Origins
- It is believed that O'Keefe found a reference to the offbeat celebration while doing research for a book.
© Getty Images
3 / 30 Fotos
The origins of the word
- When you read Festivus, you probably think about the word “festive.” Indeed, this is the Latin origin of the word, which means festive, jovial, and joyous, among other adjectives.
© Getty Images
4 / 30 Fotos
When is it celebrated?
- Festivus was first celebrated by O’Keefe on December 23, because the date coincided with the anniversary of his first date with his wife.
© Shutterstock
5 / 30 Fotos
Popularity
- But it was not until an episode of ‘Seinfeld’ called ‘The Strike,’ which aired on December 18, 1997, that Festivus really became a thing.
© Getty Images
6 / 30 Fotos
Popularity
- The idea was introduced into the show by ‘Seinfeld’ writer Dan O'Keefe (the son of Daniel O'Keefe), and his family’s offbeat holiday celebration became a hit.
© Getty Images
7 / 30 Fotos
Who celebrates Festivus in the show?
- George Costanza (Jason Alexander) is the character who celebrates Festivus. The holiday was a family affair originally created by his father, Frank Costanza (Jerry Stiller). George celebrated Festivus throughout his childhood, and in the episode we learn all about how the holiday is celebrated.
© Getty Images
8 / 30 Fotos
The main elements of Festivus
- For Christmas we have the tree, traditional food, and presents, to name a few of the elements. In Festivus, however, there are just four elements. Let’s go through them.
© Getty Images
9 / 30 Fotos
The Festivus pole
- Forget the traditional Christmas tree. With Festivus, it’s all about the aluminum pole. The aluminum pole has no decoration. Frank Constanza finds tinsel distracting, so that’s that.
© Getty Images
10 / 30 Fotos
The Festivus pole
- The aluminum pole, however, is not mentioned in the original Festivus as described by Daniel O'Keefe.
© Shutterstock
11 / 30 Fotos
The Festivus pole
- Believe it or not, you can actually buy a Festivus pole. Alternatively, you can make yours. And don’t forget: it’s Festivus, so you can create a makeshift pole!
© Getty Images
12 / 30 Fotos
Festivus dinner
- Forget about turkey and any other traditional Christmas foods. The main dish served for Festivus is meatloaf!
© Shutterstock
13 / 30 Fotos
Festivus dinner
- Make sure you serve it on a bed of lettuce, and have peas and mashed potatoes as side dishes.
© Shutterstock
14 / 30 Fotos
Festivus dinner
- Though the original Festivus dinner as per Daniel O'Keefe consisted of turkey, ham, beef stew, or lamb chops. The dessert was usually pecan pie.
© Shutterstock
15 / 30 Fotos
Festivus dinner
- Over the years, people celebrating Festivus have included other foods popularized by ‘Seinfeld,’ such as muffins, pastrami, and pretzels.
© Getty Images
16 / 30 Fotos
The airing of grievances
- This is all about getting the record straight with those present. Quoting Frank Constanza, “At the Festivus dinner, you gather your family around, and tell them all the ways they have disappointed you over the past year!”
© Getty Images
17 / 30 Fotos
The airing of grievances
- But don’t think this is a democratic process. Only the head of the household will have the chance to do this!
© Getty Images
18 / 30 Fotos
The airing of grievances
- If you’re following this Festivus tradition, keep it lighthearted and funny. Surely you’ll have some grievances you want to vent about.
© Getty Images
19 / 30 Fotos
The feats of strength
- The fourth, and last, element of Festivus is all about the head of the household testing his or her strength against another guest.
© Getty Images
20 / 30 Fotos
The feats of strength
- How do you do it? It’s simple: just take your bulky winter top off and shout "let's rumble." Then proceed to wrestle the chosen guest (though the actual wrestling part is not shown in the episode).
© Shutterstock
21 / 30 Fotos
The feats of strength
- It should be noted that guests can refuse to engage in the feat of strength, and can even offer a suitable alternative, i.e. name another guest!
© Shutterstock
22 / 30 Fotos
How to incorporate feats of strength in your Festivus celebration
- If you want to add this element to your Festivus, there are a few alternatives you can consider, namely arm wrestling, thumb wrestling, or even a tickle fight!
© Shutterstock
23 / 30 Fotos
How to incorporate feats of strength in your Festivus celebration
- Of course, you don’t have to become physical. A board game will do just fine to show your strength. Your mental strength, that is. The important thing is to have fun.
© v
24 / 30 Fotos
The original Festivus traditions
- While the elements mentioned previously were adopted by ‘Seinfeld,’ Festivus, as originally celebrated by Daniel O'Keefe’s family also had its peculiar elements.
© Shutterstock
25 / 30 Fotos
The original Festivus traditions
- One of the symbols was a clock in a bag, the meaning of which was never really explained by O’Keefe.
© Getty Images
26 / 30 Fotos
The original Festivus traditions
- Christmas hats were, of course, out of the question. The family much preferred Viking helmets or dunce caps.
© Getty Images
27 / 30 Fotos
The original Festivus traditions
- The family also had themes for every Festivus celebration. One example was "Is there a light at the end of the tunnel?"
© Getty Images
28 / 30 Fotos
Festivus miracle
- Clearly a parody of the notion of a "Christmas miracle," you can use the words in response to anything amazing or unexpected. “Wow, it’s a Festivus miracle!” Sources: (New York Post) (Festivus!) (National Today) See also: Celebrations around the world other than Christmas
© Shutterstock
29 / 30 Fotos
© Getty Images
0 / 30 Fotos
What is Festivus?
- Festivus was born as a parody, non-commercial alternative to Christmas.
© Shutterstock
1 / 30 Fotos
Origins
- Reader's Digest’s editor and writer Daniel O'Keefe first celebrated it in 1966.
© Getty Images
2 / 30 Fotos
Origins
- It is believed that O'Keefe found a reference to the offbeat celebration while doing research for a book.
© Getty Images
3 / 30 Fotos
The origins of the word
- When you read Festivus, you probably think about the word “festive.” Indeed, this is the Latin origin of the word, which means festive, jovial, and joyous, among other adjectives.
© Getty Images
4 / 30 Fotos
When is it celebrated?
- Festivus was first celebrated by O’Keefe on December 23, because the date coincided with the anniversary of his first date with his wife.
© Shutterstock
5 / 30 Fotos
Popularity
- But it was not until an episode of ‘Seinfeld’ called ‘The Strike,’ which aired on December 18, 1997, that Festivus really became a thing.
© Getty Images
6 / 30 Fotos
Popularity
- The idea was introduced into the show by ‘Seinfeld’ writer Dan O'Keefe (the son of Daniel O'Keefe), and his family’s offbeat holiday celebration became a hit.
© Getty Images
7 / 30 Fotos
Who celebrates Festivus in the show?
- George Costanza (Jason Alexander) is the character who celebrates Festivus. The holiday was a family affair originally created by his father, Frank Costanza (Jerry Stiller). George celebrated Festivus throughout his childhood, and in the episode we learn all about how the holiday is celebrated.
© Getty Images
8 / 30 Fotos
The main elements of Festivus
- For Christmas we have the tree, traditional food, and presents, to name a few of the elements. In Festivus, however, there are just four elements. Let’s go through them.
© Getty Images
9 / 30 Fotos
The Festivus pole
- Forget the traditional Christmas tree. With Festivus, it’s all about the aluminum pole. The aluminum pole has no decoration. Frank Constanza finds tinsel distracting, so that’s that.
© Getty Images
10 / 30 Fotos
The Festivus pole
- The aluminum pole, however, is not mentioned in the original Festivus as described by Daniel O'Keefe.
© Shutterstock
11 / 30 Fotos
The Festivus pole
- Believe it or not, you can actually buy a Festivus pole. Alternatively, you can make yours. And don’t forget: it’s Festivus, so you can create a makeshift pole!
© Getty Images
12 / 30 Fotos
Festivus dinner
- Forget about turkey and any other traditional Christmas foods. The main dish served for Festivus is meatloaf!
© Shutterstock
13 / 30 Fotos
Festivus dinner
- Make sure you serve it on a bed of lettuce, and have peas and mashed potatoes as side dishes.
© Shutterstock
14 / 30 Fotos
Festivus dinner
- Though the original Festivus dinner as per Daniel O'Keefe consisted of turkey, ham, beef stew, or lamb chops. The dessert was usually pecan pie.
© Shutterstock
15 / 30 Fotos
Festivus dinner
- Over the years, people celebrating Festivus have included other foods popularized by ‘Seinfeld,’ such as muffins, pastrami, and pretzels.
© Getty Images
16 / 30 Fotos
The airing of grievances
- This is all about getting the record straight with those present. Quoting Frank Constanza, “At the Festivus dinner, you gather your family around, and tell them all the ways they have disappointed you over the past year!”
© Getty Images
17 / 30 Fotos
The airing of grievances
- But don’t think this is a democratic process. Only the head of the household will have the chance to do this!
© Getty Images
18 / 30 Fotos
The airing of grievances
- If you’re following this Festivus tradition, keep it lighthearted and funny. Surely you’ll have some grievances you want to vent about.
© Getty Images
19 / 30 Fotos
The feats of strength
- The fourth, and last, element of Festivus is all about the head of the household testing his or her strength against another guest.
© Getty Images
20 / 30 Fotos
The feats of strength
- How do you do it? It’s simple: just take your bulky winter top off and shout "let's rumble." Then proceed to wrestle the chosen guest (though the actual wrestling part is not shown in the episode).
© Shutterstock
21 / 30 Fotos
The feats of strength
- It should be noted that guests can refuse to engage in the feat of strength, and can even offer a suitable alternative, i.e. name another guest!
© Shutterstock
22 / 30 Fotos
How to incorporate feats of strength in your Festivus celebration
- If you want to add this element to your Festivus, there are a few alternatives you can consider, namely arm wrestling, thumb wrestling, or even a tickle fight!
© Shutterstock
23 / 30 Fotos
How to incorporate feats of strength in your Festivus celebration
- Of course, you don’t have to become physical. A board game will do just fine to show your strength. Your mental strength, that is. The important thing is to have fun.
© v
24 / 30 Fotos
The original Festivus traditions
- While the elements mentioned previously were adopted by ‘Seinfeld,’ Festivus, as originally celebrated by Daniel O'Keefe’s family also had its peculiar elements.
© Shutterstock
25 / 30 Fotos
The original Festivus traditions
- One of the symbols was a clock in a bag, the meaning of which was never really explained by O’Keefe.
© Getty Images
26 / 30 Fotos
The original Festivus traditions
- Christmas hats were, of course, out of the question. The family much preferred Viking helmets or dunce caps.
© Getty Images
27 / 30 Fotos
The original Festivus traditions
- The family also had themes for every Festivus celebration. One example was "Is there a light at the end of the tunnel?"
© Getty Images
28 / 30 Fotos
Festivus miracle
- Clearly a parody of the notion of a "Christmas miracle," you can use the words in response to anything amazing or unexpected. “Wow, it’s a Festivus miracle!” Sources: (New York Post) (Festivus!) (National Today) See also: Celebrations around the world other than Christmas
© Shutterstock
29 / 30 Fotos
Festivus: Celebrate the 'Seinfeld' holiday
December 23 is Festivus Day
© Getty Images
Are you looking for a non-commercial alternative to Christmas? Then this gallery is for you! Have you ever heard about Festivus? The holiday originates from the 1960s, but gained popularity thanks to a 'Seinfeld' episode. You'll be surprised by the four elements of Festivus, including food and other traditions.
Curious to know what it's all about? Click through the gallery then!
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