A LOOK BACK:

“Once again the lights of Christmas and peace glow over the world reflecting in heart and home the spirit of goodwill to all mankind.

Twinkling little candles on Christmas trees flicker their story of friendship this yuletide season. They shine a blessing on the young soldier folding his khaki for the last time, glows warmly on a family reunited.

This Christmas sees a world at peace again.

May we in our community be guided in our task of making Huntington Beach a happier place in which to live.”

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Huntington Beach Mayor Thomas Talbert and the City Council could just as easily say these sentiments today as they did in 1945.

This week we are going back to a war-free Christmas and see how our residents celebrated the holiday after four long years of conflict.

To celebrate not only the war’s end, but also the yuletide holiday, the community went all out to apply its artistic talent and industrial wealth to make Christmas the most elaborate the town had ever seen.

Workers began a week before Christmas to transform a block along Pacific Coast Highway from a dirty oil field into a beautiful winter fairyland. Rocker arms of oil pumpers became reindeer, the derrick became a snow-covered Christmas tree and Christmas decorations were placed all around the site.

This and much more became a part of Orange County Coast Assn.’s “40 Miles of Smiles” that transformed our coastline from the north to the south into a Yuletide scene that people could see all the way to Catalina Island and Long Beach.

The front of the Pavilion Ballroom and 120 feet alongside became a tableau depicting Santa Claus and his reindeer sitting atop oil well pumpers. A small log cabin with pictures of children singing Christmas carols via phonograph records over a loudspeaker was erected next to it.

The Lacy Tool Co. and the Southwest Exploration Co. moved in five oil well pumpers, and on one of these pumper rocker arms a huge replica of Santa in his sleigh full of toys was erected, while on the other four rocker arms four teams of reindeer all connected by reins to Santa were constructed.

As the rocker arms bobbed up and down it simulated Santa’s mythical midnight journey around the world.

In the patio area next to the Pavilion a huge 40-foot Christmas tree was erected and decorated with hundreds of colored lights and tinsel by Standard Oil. Around this tree was erected a small forest of smaller pine trees all under the direction of R.G. “Scotty” Hudson.

Hudson requested from our City Council that a special officer be hired to guard the tableau from vandals and the council agreed to Hudson’s request by unanimous approval.

Huntington Beach would go on to win first prize for its reindeer and Santa exhibit in the Coast Assn.’s 40 Miles of Smiles and our elementary school received honorable mention for its angel display.

To mark the start of the two-week Christmas vacation, children from our elementary school put on a Christmas pageant, “The Birthday of a King.” Some 200 young children participated in this holiday event inside the school’s auditorium Dec. 21.

Elementary school music teacher Frances Lyons had spent many long nights teaching the students their songs. The choir also performed at our Woman’s Club on 10th Street and for the school’s PTA. While over at Memorial Hall the city and the chamber of commerce presented its seventh annual Christmas Musicade, “Peace on Earth,” Dec. 16. Decorating the hall was given over to Scotty Hudson. The musicade program included the Huntington Beach Girls’ Chorus singing the sacred cantata “Child Jesus” under the direction of Ralph Hawes and Edna Conrade.

The Huntington Beach mixed chorus, composed of some 50 voices, performed four special numbers: “Glory to God,” “Silent Night,” “America the Beautiful” and the Hallelujah chorus from Handel’s “Messiah” under the direction of Mary Vidal taking the place of Ruth Harlow, who was ill that evening.

Since 1938, Hawes had been training new singers for this annual Christmas event.

Eber Flaws and members of the First Baptist Church contributed to the holiday with a musical cantata “The Music of Christmas.” Joseph Perry, Stuart Price, and Lee Sowers sang “The Magi,” and Stuart Price performed solo with a number “In Our Hearts.”

On Christmas Eve the First Christian Church put on, “The Little Shepherd,” that featured Bob and Shirley Kuchenbecker, Doris Wells, Deana Murdy and Darlene LeBard.

The Methodist Church had a special Christmas vespers program Dec. 23 that featured the voices of Rev. Robert Blume, Mrs. E.E. Weed, Jack Houston, Cleo Waugh and Patricia Boquist performing Handel’s “Messiah.”

The Huntington Beach Lions Club had its eighth annual Christmas party at Lake Park clubhouse that featured a vaudeville show and a turkey roast.

The clubhouse was decorated by Dale Smith and Scotty Hudson, and included a 10-foot silver-tipped Christmas tree. Everett Crosby on tenor sax and Billy Hengoed on guitar provided the musical entertainment for the evening along with the voice of Douglas Hough singing Christmas carols.

Santa flew into Huntington Beach for the Elks’ Kids Christmas party Dec. 22. He landed his airplane, courtesy of Bert Harding and the Garrish Brothers, operators of the Huntington Beach Skyport, on the beach near our pier and children lined the rail for a chance to see the man in the red suit. Bob Jurkovich escorted Santa from the plane to Roy Oliver’s waiting Cadillac for a ride to the Surf Theatre to hand out candy to the kids. The event included a small parade and a free Christmas movie.

These are just a sample of the events that celebrated the holiday and the ending of World War II and the beginning of peace in 1945. I sincerely hope that by next year we will see again a world at peace.

JERRY PERSON is the city’s historian and a longtime Huntington Beach resident. If you have ideas for future columns, write him at P.O. Box 7182, Huntington Beach, CA 92615.