Rhode Island Santa Claus Michael Rielly to Appear in the Documentary They Wore The Red Suit

Rhode Island native and professional Santa Claus Michael Rielly, will appear in the upcoming documentary They Wore The Red Suit. The film highlights the rare individuals who have devoted their lives to keeping the magic of Santa Claus alive in the world by actually being Santa Claus.

They Wore The Red Suit examines Santa Claus from three perspectives: The legend of Santa Claus, the vocation of being Santa Claus, and the Santa Claus industry. The movie will explore the history and evolution of Santa Claus from St. Nicholas of Myra through the early 20th century with a focus on the impact of legendary Santas such as Jim Yellig and Charles Howard, and through the men who currently portray Santa Claus today.

“I have discovered angels living among us. They have no wings and they wear red suitsâ€, commented Director, Larry Peter, “There exist a handful of men who have devoted their lives to living the legend of Santa and making him real for all of us. These aren’t just people out there putting on a red suit. There is a connection to a legacy. Something has been passed on.â€

In the film Michael Rielly talks about his journey in becoming Santa Claus. He discusses the influence his late grandfather, Rhode Island’s famed Santa Claus, James D. Rielly, had on him, and the inspiration to found the Santa Claus community, ClausNet.com.

“I am deeply honored to be a part of this filmâ€, said Michael Rielly. “For me donning the red suit is more than a tradition. I believe it is a calling.â€

Filming and fundraising for They Wore The Red Suit will be continuing throughout 2011 and is schedule to premier early 2012.

About Michael Rielly
A third generation Santa Claus, Michael Rielly has worn the red suit for over 20 years and has been featured in newspapers, radio, and television. Mr. Rielly is a graduate of the Charles W. Howard Santa Claus School and the International University of Santa Claus. He serves on the Santa Claus Oath committee and is the founder of the Santa Claus community, ClausNet — the largest community and resource for men and women dedicated to the faithful portrayal of Santa Claus and Mrs. Claus. When not appearing in the red suit, Michael Rielly works in high-tech sales and marketing serving in various leadership roles.

About They Wore The Red Suit
The soon to be released documentary film, They Wore The Red Suit is about the unique men who commit their lives to becoming Santa Claus. The documentary will run the gamut of human emotions; from the whimsical coverage of Santa conventions and schools to the historical origins of Santa to the poignant and heartbreaking stories of the most difficult requests Santas receive from children. To learn more about the documentary They Wore The Red Suit, visit: http://www.thesantamovie.com.

Santa Standards Gives Parents Safe Outlets for Santa Online

SantaStandards.com has launched today in advance of the 2011 holiday season to give parents a guide for providing a safe experience for children with Santa Claus online. The site links and ranks Santa websites against established child safety standards and grades their performance. The purpose of Santa Standards.com is to advocate child safety practices on Santa venues online and to promote the education of the historical Santa with this generation’s children.

All sites are judged by five separate criteria. First is Child Safety. The Children Online Privacy Protection Act, or COPPA, is a minimal standard for Santa websites. Those standards ensure parental consent in acquiring and using child information such as email. SantaStandards.com does not believe any Santa website needs to require, use or maintain ANY child’s personal information when seek Santa online. Wishlists, questions for Santa or other features can easily be designed in such a way that email information need not be disclosed. The highest rated sites at SantaStandards.com comply with that requirement.

Internet crimes against children is the fastest growing method of child exploitation and victimization today. SantaStandards.com’s mission is to ensure that NO Santa venue is used in this fashion.

Some Santa sites have issues with advertising images that are not family friendly. These are generally ads of a contextual variety that use information culled from the site content or information already stored in a computer browser to serve up ads that are seen. Many Santa websites using these ad revenue programs do not filter them for family friendly viewing so that a child could see an ad for a dating site or even a risque image for sexual enhancement products. SantaStandards.com condemns any site unable to keep family friendly control over their site pages.

A post privacy policy on any website is now a common practice in the Internet industry and many Santa websites do not have them. Information is the currency of the Internet and even passively collected information can be profitable for a website that gathers it. Every site needs to disclose all methods of information gathering and what that information is used for. That is the purpose of a privacy policy. Every Santa site should have one.

Some Santa-related venues are charging for access to Santa Claus. This is also against standards set forth by SantaStandards.com. Every child should have free and unfettered access to Santa Claus.

And finally, the historical character of St. Nicholas and even the charming basis of the modern Santa has taken a beating in Hollywood productions, music, and on the Internet and an effort must be made to restore the honor, dignity and respect of Santa Claus. SantaStandards.com works to ensure that continual education and restoration of the character of Santa Claus as a role model is promoted through the sites reviewed and catalogued at SantaStandards.com.

Shauna Burns Releases “A Winter Gathering” CD

One of the most dynamic and critically acclaimed multi-talents on today’s indie music scene, singer songwriter Shauna Burns continues on a spiritually driven musical adventure that blossomed on her breakthrough 2008 recording The Moon and The Fire Circle and continued on 2009’s Anamnesis EP.

Inviting longtime fans and newcomers alike to celebrate the holiday season, Burns describes her latest musical venture, the Celtic flavored A Winter Gathering, as a new journey for her—a collection of newfangled carols and original songs performed by her with her husband, drummer James Clark (who also co-produces) and guest performers Caroline Kemper (Celtic harp), Rick Kemper (Uilleann pipes & pennywhistle), Lindsey Springer (cello), Ryan Whyte Maloney (guitar, backing vocals) and a five piece vocal choir.

Bringing unique new elements and sounds to her trademark style, Burns offers new twists to classic songs like “Carol of the Bells,†“God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen†and “Silent Night†and includes three short original “breath point†pieces she calls “Songscapes.†She includes “White Christmas†as a tribute to her mother Joyce (who always played and sang it at holiday times when Burns was growing up) and also a compelling rendition of Clark’s favorite song “What A Wonderful World.â€

The singer describes the concept this way: “Winter Star,†the first “songscape,†is the star in the East that the shepherds see in “The First Noelâ€; Burns sings Gaelic words that speak about this bright new presence. The star travels through the other songs starting with “Carol of the Bells,†descends to earth in “White Christmas†through fire and “O Come, O Come Emmanuel†through desert. “Luma,†the second songscape, is loosely based on “Ave Maria†and represents the “light†breath. Silent Night†holds the grounding axis of the album with its everlasting melody and frequency. “God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen†holds the place of the strong anchor.

“The Gathering,†the third songscape, “gathers†the songs, family and friends near and leads the listener into “What a Wonderful World,†the resolution. Speaking whimsically, Burns considers the instrumental versions of “Carol of the Bells†and “God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen†as the end as “little cherries on top.â€

The Las Vegas based singer’s blend of ethereal vocals and sweeping piano and percussion driven atmospheres launched her early singles “Pink Girl†and “Petunia†to major success in the Triple AAA radio format. “Pink Girl†was also chosen as the #1 indie single from the MAACP Radio show. Burns’ debut album Every Thought, which Smother.net declared “a newfangled fusion that will ignite a spark that will be hard to replicate,†was also selected as one of the Top CDs of 2005 by Collected Sounds, a popular taste making website celebrating independent musicians. It was chosen for “Best of the Batch†from the Music Industry News Network and featured on TowerPod.com, Indie-Music.com, Billboard, VH1, Artist Direct, AOL Music and Fox TV, among other outlets.

The Moon and the Fire Circle, a richly thematic and ultimately healing work that offered an emotional bridge between darkness and light, met with similar success. Its first single “Around You†reached #7 on the FMQB AC Chart, was one of WCH Radio’s “Top Songs for 2008†and hit #1 on “Song Vault Radio.†The collection was selected “Best of 2008†by Collected Sounds and The Promise Live. Radio Crystal Blue also chose Burns as one of the “Top Recording Artists of the Year 2008.†Conceived as an extension of the music on The Moon and the Fire Circle, Burns’ follow-up five track EP Anamnesis included songs that relate in some way to each of the five senses (including “Smellâ€).

Over the past few years, Burns has enchanted audiences at clubs and Borders Stores across the U.S. and in the U.K. (where she toured early in 2007) with songs from her debut and its follow-up five song EP Desert Tune, which featured songs that overflowed from the first album’s sessions. Her first tour in support of her debut was 40 dates and she embarked on a subsequent jaunt of 20 dates from coast to coast during the summer and fall of 2007. The success of The Moon and the Fire Circle—and its vibe of folk rock with Celtic influences–opened up exciting new opportunities on the festival circuit. She has performed at Renaissance Fairs in Utah and Texas; the Phoenix Faerie Festival; Green Girl Music and Arts Festival in Las Vegas; Celtic Festival in Texas; and Medieval Mayhem in Show Low, Arizona.

Shauna Burns on the web:
Official Artist Website: http://www.shaunaburns.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/shaunaburnsmusic
Twitter: http://twitter.com/shaunaburns
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/shaunaburns

For more information on Shauna Burns, contact:
Chip Schutzman – Miles High Productions:
chip@mileshighproductions.com
323-806-0400.