Why is Santa so sad?

Ron Gompertz wrote: Hi Rachel, My first thoughts on the illustrations below.... first reactions are always important because they are so pure. I still need to show them to Michelle when she's feeling better and get some other reactions from my crew at the office. I like the old fashioned look and expressive eyes of the white Santa with red yarmulka. The white pais curls are subtle, and I like understatement in this context. He looks very sad though. Like he's about to cry. Maybe that's OK? My first reaction to the brown haired version was that the dark hair may make the Santa appear Hasidic and too ethnic. He looks less like a Santa. What if he had grey hair? I LOVE the style of Rudolph! Very Disney. He does look a bit like he's balancing the Menorah on his head. Any way to make it more organic. Perhaps the menorah can be growing out from under his shock of hair? I also really like the cartoony colorful look of the Candy Cane menorah. Love the lime green and I think the spiky halo glow is an nice alternative to a more literal flame coming out of each candy cane. I do think the text style needs to have more humor. I kinda like Merry Menorah.. but it reads deadpan delivery with the font as is. Maybe all it needs is an exclamation point! Nice work. I can't wait to see the Matzoh ball snow man! Ron hi ron thanks for the gut reactions... yes, santa's eyes are a bit sad, huh? well, the jews are tortured souls, you know. in-denial & twinkley like the pure christian santa. that said, people might respond better to a happy santa. i'll work on that. i will make brown haired santa grey. in my story of rudolph the menorah headed reindeer, rudolph realized that his damn nose wasn't going to be enough to guide the whole gang through the forest & sky. SO he thought attaching the menorah to his head HIMSELF. he really did! it didn't just grow out of his head! did it? & that 's what makes him really, really special? a nose that glows & a menorah for antlers? see, his mama was jewish & his papa was christian! anyhow, of course whatever we think is best is totally doable. i think it will be interesting to see a less disney like rudolph as well. more soon. talk soon. see soon. merry menorah! rachel