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David Sedaris: A Christmas Tale Worth Repeating

In our Christmas tradition, writer David Sedaris is back for another holiday storytelling of his life as Crumpet the Elf. The not-so-secret alter-ego of Sedaris was a Santa's little helper in a Macy's department store. Sedaris recounts the tale from his memoirs The SantaLand Diaries.

Sedaris and Crumpet the Elf: A Holiday Tradition

by David Sedaris

David Sedaris at the Frankfurt Book Fair in 2004. Credit: Ralph Orlowski-Getty Images.

David Sedaris at the Frankfurt Book Fair, the world's largest, in 2004.

Ralph Orlowski/Getty Images

The Original 1992 Segment

Due to format changes at Morning Edition, the original 1992 "Santaland" segment was slightly longer than the one used for rebroadcast in 2004 and 2005. Here is the 1992 version:

The life of David Sedaris took an unexpected, and not entirely unwelcome, turn when his "Santaland Diaries" were first broadcast on Morning Edition in 1992.

Sedaris recounted his experiences playing Crumpet the elf at Macy's in New York during the holidays. Almost overnight, he went from obscurity to sought-after talent.

Now, 13 years later, he is a best-selling author who still appears on public radio from time-to-time.

And in those intervening years, the popularity of his original NPR appearance has only grown. So, here, once again, is Sedaris reading in 1992 from his "Santaland Diaries."

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