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Here's what Christmas meant to Lucille Ball, Mike Connors and more in 1973
Here's what Christmas meant to these six celebrities, guaranteed to get you in the holiday spirit!
The Everett Collection
For celebrities such as Lucille Ball, Mike Connors and Mary Tyler Moore, Christmas has many meanings. From spending time with family to holiday shopping and giving back to the community, there is a little Christmas spirit in each of them.
Let's take a look at what these six celebrities said in an 1973 interview with a Kingsport Times and a 1981 interview with The Modesto Bee when asked "What does Christmas mean to you?"
1. Mary Tyler Moore
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The Mary Tyler Moore Show
"Christmas to me means family - family and presents and wrapping paper and ribbon; a tree and lights and holly and all sorts of decorations, indoors and out. (It means) tripping over the dogs and keeping them away from the cookies; Christmas cards on the piano and the mantel and new names hastily added to old lists; and a big, big family dinner - that's what Christmas means at our house."
2. Lucille Ball
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I Love Lucy, The Lucy Show
"Christmas means getting to gather with the kids and all the family, at home or in Snowmass, Colo., where I have a condominium. Ironically, I broke my leg skiing right after I bough this place, but the mishap hasn't kept me off skis. I get everyone together and we go cross-country skiing. I just love it. I pack picnic baskets and away we go! This year... we'll gather at home in Beverly Hills and have an old-fashioned Christmas dinner with turkey, cranberry sauce and persimmon cake."
3. Mike Connors
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Mannix
"To me, Christmas means a time when love of family and friends is more openly expressed. The tragedy of the American family is that the emotion of love is usually buried and only surfaces during the Christmas season. Let's hope the philosophy of the present Love Generation rectifies all that!"
4. Dennis Weaver
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Gunsmoke
"I attend the Church of Self Realization, and I have come to understand that an individual's peace is carried within him. The object of our senses doesn't have the power to make us happy. For example, you see a hat and you buy it. Then you're happy, you say. But when you get it, almost immediately the pleasure begins to fade away. If it had the power within itself to make happiness, then it would do so for everybody. But it doesn't. So you see, it's what's within you that creates peace and breeds gentleness. And that's the way I feel about Christmas - it's a time to get in touch with the feelings within you."
5. Lynda Carter
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Wonder Woman
"Games are a good bet for gifts, because they encourage families to interact - something that isn't done enough today. My favorite gifts to buy are the ones for needy children. I usually buy about 200 toys. But my real reward is hearing from them afterward, and knowing how much the gifts mean to them."
6. Erik Estrada
Image credit: The Everett Collection
CHiPs
"I'm really into health and fitness - and I'm always trying to win over new recruits - so I do a lot of my Christmas shopping at a good sporting goods store. Try it, you'll like it."
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29 Comments
And in my personal opinion I think the Lynda Carter quote wasn’t quite explained correctly. Granted I don’t know the woman personally so I can’t say but to me it read more like she was trying to say she likes hearing from the children who she gave gifts to so she knows they actually enjoyed the gifts versus just getting the children’s praises for her ego. That the important thing was making the kids happy with whatever present it was versus herself ❤️
When you get hyper-fixated on only the actual birth (wrong time of year anyways) and completely forget about the rest of the feelings of Goodwill and charity to others it seems a bit short sighted.
An interesting insight into all of them. Thanks MeTV Staff for a creative and timely Story. You've been spoiling us lately with lots to read!!
But I didn't know that he and Tim Conway were such close friends, who (by his Facebook) posting mentions they had dinner every week.
