History of Santa

Professor Bob has two part podcast on the history of Santa

Part one
Part two

and trivia of the day: The Russians have a nuclear sub named for St. Nick...who is a patron saint of sailors

Saint Nicholas (270 - 6 December 346) is according to Wikipedia the patron saint of sailors. He is often portrayed on Eastern Orthodox icons shown standing in a boat or rescuing a drowning sailor. Because of the many miracles attributed to his intercession, he is also known as Nicholas the Wonderworker. He had a reputation for secret gift-giving, such as putting coins in the shoes of those who left them out for him, and thus became the model for Santa Claus.