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Longtime Mall Santa Out in the Cold
Tysons Corner Favorite Being Replaced This Year
Santa just got the boot. And not just any Santa.
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Michael Graham has been Santa at Tysons Corner Center for so long that many who visited him when they were young have brought their own children to experience his magic: a real snowy beard, a twinkle in his eye, a way with children that conveyed the presence of a kind and timeless character. He drew family members from the Washington region and beyond who stood in long lines for hours and brought albums with pictures taken in his lap from Christmases past.
But after 18 years of planting children on his knee, Graham said yesterday that the Fairfax County mall is not inviting him back this year. Graham said he's not sure why, particularly because he had a contract until 2012. A spokeswoman for the company that manages the mall said Graham has done nothing wrong. It's just that the company wanted a different Santa signed on by the new photo operator who will run the event.
That leaves Graham, 51, without work this holiday season and with visions of foreclosure dancing in his head. Graham, who works as a carpenter in a small Tennessee town when he's not minding the store at the North Pole, said he was counting on the $30,000 he would earn as Santa when he bought a new house last year.
Now it's too late to book another mall, and he has already spent a good bit of money preparing for Christmas. It's not elves who make each of the three $900 custom-tailored velvet suits he goes through each year, or the boots that go for $725 a pair.
"It obviously put me in a major bind," Graham said in a telephone interview.
Those who have known him over the years reacted to the news as if they had been exiled to the Island of Broken Toys.
"What a bunch of Grinches to do that!" said Michelle Gallagher, 40, who took her 3-year-old daughter, Anna, to see him. "I'm absolutely shocked."
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Gallagher, who lives in Leesburg, said she still has last year's holiday picture, with her daughter and Santa, hanging on the refrigerator.
"He is the Santa you imagine in your mind," Gallagher said. "It's his whole demeanor, his whole presence. It's his eyes. The cheeks. The beard. It's a real beard, too -- it's huge. I mean, I won't go back there if he's not there. I won't even shop there."
People who know Graham say his ability to play Santa Claus has something to do with having three children, four grandchildren and a deep religious faith. He also takes his seasonal work seriously. He said he has never missed a day of duty. He also said he does not drink. He does not smoke. He does not curse.
His impersonation of St. Nick inspired Southern Living Magazine to write, "Yes, Virginia, there really is a Santa Claus. His name is Mike Graham."
Graham was also a prominent feature of the mall's holiday advertising for the past 18 years. He signed a 10-year contract in 1993 that was renewed in 2003 and extended in 2006 for six more years to 2012, he said. Graham acknowledged that the contract could be canceled by the mall on short notice.
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Allison Fischer, a spokeswoman for Macerich Co., which manages the mall, said Graham did not do anything improper. She said the company jointly selected a new Santa with a new photo operator, which she identified as IPI-World Wide Photography. The company arranges same-day photography for special events and malls that host Santas, according to its Web site.
A call to IPI-World Wide late yesterday was not returned. Graham said he had no idea his contract was being canceled until he wrote the mall asking whether he would be needed early this year, as he was last year.
"How sad!" said Michelle Hawe, 34, a television producer shopping at the mall yesterday with her 21-month-old daughter, Kylie. "This Santa was particularly twinkly."
David and Patti Coullahan, who grew up in Northern Virginia, said they have vivid memories of the Santa at Tysons Corner. He remembers the suspenders and the real beard and the gentle manner; she remembers being frightened. Until yesterday, both were looking forward to taking their 4-month-old daughter, Abigail, to sit on his lap and have her picture taken.
Graham, who lives in Sevierville, Tenn. (pop. 22,000), got his start when he filled in 23 years ago for a Santa who had a heart attack. His first job was at a mall outside Nashville, and it didn't take long for him to fall in love with the role. The next venue, in Tuscaloosa, Ala., featured a grand entrance with reindeer. Then he got the job at Tysons Corner. Over the years, he learned some tricks: He needed three suits (kids' accidents, wear and tear), and he has had to field some unusual requests. One boy asked for a mimosa tree.
"You take care of kids just like they're your own," Graham said. "The best thing you can do for any kids at all is give them that one-on-one time. But instead of talking over them, you look directly in their eyes. That's the secret of the whole thing."
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