"In a certain time, in a certain land, once there lived and once there was...."
How do you do? I'm the one called Dooley. I'm part of an unusual group of magical beings known as the Vendequm --- but up here at the Top of the World, we would prefer that you refer to us as Elves. Now, we're not just any kind of Elves, mind you. It so happens that we work for the most magical person in the Multiverse. I believe you Humans refer to him as Santa Claus.
For you first-time visitors to this website, let me briefly explain my duties. Basically, as Santa's Senior Second-in-Command, I look after the community of Elves who live here; I deal with all the letters we receive from you, the good children of the world [no matter how old you are!]; and, most famously of all, I'm the Elf in charge of that celebrated list of who is naughty and who is nice. I won't say who's on either list; that's privileged information!
At any rate, my job right now is to welcome you to KringleQuest.com, v.5 (that means KringleQuest.com, Fifth Edition), Unofficial Online Home of the Alexander and Ilya Salkind Production "Santa Claus: The Movie,"™ starring Dudley Moore, John Lithgow, David Huddleston (as Santa, of course!), Judy Cornwell, Burgess Meredith, Jeffrey Kramer; and introducing Christian Fitzpatrick and Carrie Kei Heim. (I should briefly refer, by the way, to the contributions of the late John Barrard, who was one of Britain's finer veteran character actors. He it was who had the dubious honor of portraying me! Quite a noble calling, don't you think?)
Anyway, allow me to explain why KQ5 is here on the web, as well as our specific purpose for being here. Since 1998, when he first initiated the project, Richard Washington has assembled an impressive collection of Santa Claus-related stuff: films, books, photographs, clippings, articles and entire sections from various newspapers and magazines, Christmas catalogues, Mr. Washington's own original drawings, video footage --- and, believe it or not, no fewer than four Santa suits!
And always at the heart of it all has been director Jeannot Szwarc's incredible holiday odyssey, in which we are introduced to the wily, imaginative visionary elf Patch (played by the aforementioned Dudley Moore). The tale told in "Santa Claus: The Movie"™ follows Patch on a journey of discovery, as he becomes the first of Santa's Elves to experience first-hand the full spectrum of the human condition in all its forms.
Our website's mission is to bring you, from here within the realms of Cyberspace, some of the major fragments from Richard Washington's Christmas collection, along with the most up-to-date news and information about Santa Claus: The Movie™ and the world of Alexander and Ilya Salkind. As you can see above, we have renamed the site KringleQuest.com, v.5 (Version Five, for those of you who consider yourselves techno-savvy), because there's still much more to check out in our Kringleverse than Santa Claus: The Movie™ as a whole; with this name change, we hope to reflect that basic concept, as we continue to cover every Santa-related bit of news we can locate. So here's what you'll see as we celebrate the magic of every Christmas season:
And needless to say, KQ5 is your only source for the complete saga of the making of "Santa Claus: The Movie™"! You'll visit the incredible sets constructed for the film at England's Pinewood/Shepperton Studios, now known as simply The Pinewood Group, meet the Cast and Crew Principals, explore The Complete Credits, journey through Santa's Century at the Movies, sing along with The Lyrics to all seven original songs, relive The Unofficial Transcript of the Santa Claus: The Movie™ making-of documentary --- and, of course, shake hands with the unstoppable members of Team Salkind, whose combined efforts made the whole thing possible! In addition, our Official Guestbook is operational as well --- so, whether you wish to sign it or view it, you can venture into our exclusive forum where Santa Claus: The Movie™ fans can leave messages for Santa or myself, talk about their favorite scenes or characters from the film, and maybe reveal their own holiday traditions! Plus, take a look at some of the first few Guestbook Classic Comments, along with a very special interview with the aforementioned (and now grown-up) Carrie Kei Heim, and a few other very Special Features, one of which looks at Life After Santa Claus: The Movie™. There's even an Official KringleQuest Blog, where Richard shares with fans of the film his personal odysseys concerning his most recent Santa-related journeys!
And in case you lose your way, simply click on the KQ5 Sitemap to find whatever you want! What's more, you can now find out How to Link to KQ5 as well. You can even hire Richard here or here in case you'd like him to liven up your special event or promotion!
Of course, as you all know, Alexander Salkind, the man whose vision, persistence and awesome diligence helped to make this uniquely magical movie a reality, passed away on March 8th, 1997, at the age of 76. Needless to say, we have included herein our own little shrine to his memory. Alexander, you see, was more than just a good friend to us here at North Pole Headquarters. Why, considering the various ways whereby he helped our next-door neighbor up here at the Top of the World --- some of you might know this particular fellow as Superman --- well, let us simply say that we Vendequm owe Alexander and his son Ilya a debt of gratitude that we will never be able to repay.
And in May 2002, we lost our one and only Patch --- Dudley Moore --- to the incurable brain disorder called Progressive Supranuclear Palsy. Check out our tribute, Remembering Dudley.
You're always welcome to contact us via email, and to do that, simply address either Richard@ElfWithoutJingles.com through blackbeardpirate81@yahoo.com; or, at Santa@ElfWithoutJingles.com. And remember: I may be a very patient Elf, but I still have a responsibility to uphold the Rules and Regulations as set forth in our Elf Rule Book, and those Rules must be enforced, no matter what! I do hope I've made things clear to you.
So, now that you know what we're up to around here, welcome to what we hope will continue to be THE ultimate online Santa site --- where you may discover almost everything you've ever wanted to know about the Distinguished Mr. Claus .....and a little bit more! Have fun exploring, but just remember: behave yourselves --- and no peeking!