Festivus is an annual secular
family celebration in December:

Festivus is "for the Rest of Us!"

Sponsored link.

History and rituals of Festivus:

The Roman comic poet Plautus from the 3rd century BCE originally used the term Festivus to refer to "wild celebrations attended by average citizens cutting lose on religious holidays." ₂

Festivus is now a recently invented secular day of celebration for the entire family and friends. It is held annually on DEC-23 -- about half-way between the Winter Solstice and Christmas. It was apparently created in 1966-FEB by Daniel O'Keefe, of Chappaqua, NY. (b ~1928). O'Keefe, a former writer for Reader's Digest, says that the idea just popped into his head. It happened before any of this children were born, and was originally a celebration of the first date that he had with his wife Deborah. He developed it during the 1970s while he researched his book "Stolen Lightning" ₆ which the New York Times describes as "a work of sociology that explores the ways people used cults, astrology and the paranormal as a defense against social pressures." He recalled:

"In the background was Durkenheim's 'Elementary Forms of Religious Life' saying that religion is the unconscious projection of the group. And then the American philosopher Josiah Royce [concluded that] religion is the worship of the beloved community."

He now wonders "Have we accidentally invented a cult?"

According to his son, Daniel, who was a writer on the TV comedy "Seinfeld," the 1966 version of  Festivus involved:

The proper greeting for the day is "Happy Festivus."

Seinfeld's version of Festivus:

The third reincarnation of Festivus occurred in an episode of Seinfeld that was broadcast on 1997-DEC-18 during episode #158 "The Strike." On the show, Frank Costanza -- played by Jerry Stiller -- said that he saw the need for a new holiday when he was in a department store near Christmas time. He engaged in a tug of war with another shopper over the last remaining doll which he wanted to purchase for one of his young children. Neither customer got the doll; it was destroyed during the battle. Costanza explained: "I realized there had to be a better way." So, he developed Festivus, a celebration for the rest of us.

Frank's son, the ever cheap George Costanza, dreamed up a scam to save money. Rather than give his co-workers Christmas gifts, he gave them all phony cards indicating he had made a donation in their name to a fictitious charity: The Human Fund.  George's boss decided to give a $20,000 donation to the charity and gives George a check. The scam is revealed when the accounting department finds that there is no such charity. George explains:

" I gave out the fake card, because, um, I don't really celebrate Christmas. I, um, I celebrate Festivus. ... And, uh, I was afraid that I would be persecuted for my beliefs. They drove my family out of Bayside, Sir!" ₈

According to TV Acres:

"Calling his bluff, George's boss came home with George to see Festivus in action. The get-together was a fiasco and ended with George being pummeled by his father who wrestled him to the floor as George screamed ..." ₃

The show's writers changed the wrestling competition so that the head of the family selected a family member or friend to wrestle. According to Wikipedia: "A participant is allowed to decline to attempt to pin the head of the family only if they have something better to do instead." The writers also added some additional features to O'Keefe's original celebration:

As a side-plot, Kramer asked for Festivus off as a vacation day from the bagel shop where he worked. They refused to grant his request. So he went on strike, carrying the sign: "Festivus Yes! Bagels No!"

The evolution of Festivus:

Years after the Seinfeld episode, Festivus began taking on a life of its own:

"Festivus celebrants can now go online and purchase specialty items like wine (Grape Ranch Festivus Red, made in Oklahoma), greeting cards, and aluminum poles ... From holiday songs ("Gather 'Round the Pole," "Oh Festivus") to Festivus recipes (Ham With Junior Mint and Snapple Glaze, reprinted in Salkin's book), the trappings and trimmings associated with bona fide holidays have become readily available in a kitschy sort of way." ₁₂

About the Festivus pole:

Festivus is in a constant state of flux. The original Festivus was a bare-bones affair. Not even tinsel was allowed. Recent celebrants have added some new rituals and specifications to the celebration. One relates to how the pole is  mounted. The pole was shown on the Seinfeld program, but its mounting was not.

Although the plain pole was created as a reaction to elaborately decorated Christmas trees, an enterprising company in Milwaukee, WI, manufactures ready to assemble Festivus poles in a six foot model and a 32" table top model. ₁₁

Why is Festivus catching on?

By 2004-DEC, Google reported an amazing 126,000 hits on the Internet for the word "Festivus." This grew to 1.46 million by 2006-DEC. Nobody really knows why it has become so popular. Some speculations are:

"... that Festivus is the perfect secular theme for an all-inclusive December gathering (even better than Chrismukkah, popularized by the television show 'The O.C.')."

"Behind its popularity, devotees say, are its absence of presents, accent on idiocy, and refreshing lack of familial psychodrama. Festivus may have its own quirky rituals, they note, but none involving theology, batteries, reindeer, political correctness, or parental guilt." ₁₂

(Mostly) books on Festivus available at Amazon.com:

If you see a generic Amazon.com ad below, please click on your browser's refresh key.

References used:

The following information sources were used to prepare and update the above essay. The hyperlinks are not necessarily still active today.

Copyright © 2004 to 2006 by Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance
Originally posted: 2004-DEC-21: T'was the day before Festivus eve.
Latest update: 2006-DEC-18
Author: B.A. Robinson

Go to the previous page, or Christmas menu, or choose:

Web ReligiousTolerance.org

Page Translator: This page translator works on Firefox, Opera, Chrome, and Safari browsers only After translating, click on the "show original" button at the top of this page to restore page to English.