President Franklin Pierce placed the first Christmas Tree in
the White House in 1856. Pierce was elected the 14th U.S.
President, serving from 1853 – 1857.

Franklin Pierce
(November 23, 1804 – October 8, 1869)

Although many credit our modern day Santa to Thomas Nast,
Santa’s jolly look all started in 1931 with legendary illustrator
Haddon Sundblom for a Coca-Cola holiday ad campaign. His
Santa has become one of the most beloved cultural icons and
an anticipated part of the Christmas holiday tradition. 
 

Haddon Hubbard "Sunny" Sundblom (June 22, 1899 – March 10, 1976)

TIM MAGUIRE

I Love Lucy is television sitcom that originally aired on CBS from October 15, 1951, to May 6, 1957, with a total of 180 half-hour
episodes spanning six seasons (including the “lost” original
pilot and Christmas episode). The show starred Lucille Ball,
(left) her then real-life husband Desi Arnaz (right), with Vivian
Vance and William Frawley.

George Maharis (left) (turned 92 last month) Martin Milner
(December 28, 1931 – September 6, 2015)

On October 7, 1960, the first episode of the one-hour television
drama “Route 66” airs on CBS. The program had a simple premise:
It followed two young men, Buz Murdock (George Maharis) and
Tod Stiles (Martin Milner), as they drove across the country in
an inherited Corvette (Chevrolet was one of the show’s sponsors),
doing odd jobs and looking for adventure. According to the show’s
creator and writer, Stirling Silliphant (best known for his acclaimed
“Naked City,” an earlier TV series), Buz and Tod were really on a
journey in search of themselves.

“Route 66″was different from every other show on television. For
one thing, it was shot on location all over the U.S. instead of in a
studio. By the time its run was up in 1964, the show’s cast and
crew had traveled from Maine to Florida and from Los Angeles
to Toronto: In all, they taped 116 episodes in 25 states.

George Maharis 

Presidential candidates Sen. John Kennedy, left, and Vice President Richard Nixon face each other in a Chicago television studio as they debated. In center is Howard K. Smith, moderator. Four members of
the panel are in foreground.

For the first time in U.S. history, a debate between major party presidential candidates is shown on television. The presidential hopefuls, John F.
Kennedy, a Democratic senator of Massachusetts, and Richard M. Nixon,
the vice president of the United States, met in a Chicago studio to discuss
U.S. domestic matters. Kennedy emerged the apparent winner from this
first of four televised debates.