Krampus in popular culture

Sign on a pole in University City, late 2014.^{[note 1]}

Krampus, the "Christmas Devil" of Austrian and Bavarian folklore, has entered the popular culture of North America;^[1] Christian Jacobs notes that "thanks to the Internet and YouTube^{[note 2]} [Krampus] is now very much on America's Christmas radar".^[2] Tanya Basu interprets this as part of a "growing movement of anti-Christmas celebrations": a "bah, humbug" rejection of – or novel alternative to – mainstream festivities.^[1] Brian Joines of Image Comics suspects that the reason Krampus (specifically, as well as dark aspects of Christmas in general) has not been historically popularized in America is a social artifact resulting from "the nature of how we view Christmas in this country, both as a big day for kids and as the birth of a big religious figurehead".^[3] In some North American depictions, Krampus is an antihero who seeks to prevent children from becoming spoiled by rampant consumerism flowing from the economics of Christmas.

Krampus is often mentioned in media related to Christmas,^{[note 3]} but the following lists instances where the character is featured significantly.

Krampus celebrations

Washington DC Krampusnacht walk, 2016.

Krampus-related events are held in cities across north America. Each may have a theme or cause, be it a simple bar crawl, toy drive, or a charity fundraiser. Below are a few:

• Krampusnacht Washington DC.^[4]
• Toronto Krampus Ball.^[5]
• Chicago Krampus Fest.^[6]
• LA Krampusfest.^[7]
• San Francisco Krampus Krawl.^[8]
• Dallas Krampus Society.^[9]
• Krampuslauf Philadelphia.^[10]

Costumes

Costumed characters are a central part of all Krampus celebrations. These characters include: Krampus, Saint Nikolaus, the woodsman, angels, and the old woman. As Krampus is half-goat and half-demon, the costume normally shares certain primary elements such as: a fur suit, horns, demon mask, and hooves. Props commonly used are; bells, a birch switch, basket worn on the back, chains, walking staff, and a horse hair or hemp flogger. The most traditional Krampus costumes are made from goat/sheep skins, animal horns, and hand carved masks. More often they are made with modern and less costly materials, such as: fake fur and latex masks. Several Krampus costume instructional YouTube videos are available.^{[11][12][13][14][15]}

Film

• Krampus: The Christmas Devil: a direct-to-video horror film (2013).^[16]
• Krampus: The Reckoning: a direct-to-video horror film (2015).^[16]
• A Christmas Horror Story: an anthology horror film (2015).
• Krampus: a horror comedy (2015) from Universal Pictures. Produced for $15 million USD, as of 14 December 2015 it is estimated to have grossed $61 million worldwide.^[17] Its director, Michael Dougherty, commented: "The dark ancient origins of our holidays have always fascinated me."^[18]
• Krampus: The Devil Returns: a direct-to-video horror sequel to Krampus: The Christmas Devil (2016).^[16]
• Krampus Unleashed: a direct-to-video horror film (2016).^[16]
• Mother Krampus: a direct-to-video horror film (2017).^[16]

Television

• G4 commercial (2003).^[21] Christmas carolers outside a house sing a dirge about Krampus, who has entered to punish the naughty children inside.
• The Colbert Report segment "The Blitzkrieg on Grinchitude - Hallmark & Krampus" (2009), regarding the so-called 'War on Christmas'.^[22]
• American Housewife episide "Krampus Katie" (2016), regarding the so-called 'War on Christmas'.^[23]
• "The Devil of Christmas" (2016), an episode of Inside No. 9 features the figure.^[24]

Print media

• Chickenhare graphic novel (2006), had a Krampus named Banjo as one of the main characters.^[27]
• Krampus: The Yule Lord novel (2012), by Gerald Brom set in Boone County, West Virginia.^{[28][note 4]}
• Klaus (graphic novel) by Grant Morrison.
• Krampus: Shadow of Saint Nicholas, a 2015 graphic novel released by Legendary Entertainment as a tie-in with the 2015 Krampus film.

Others

• CarnEvil arcade game (1998), has a "freakishly evil St. Nick" boss named Krampus.^[29][30]
• Random Spirit Lover album (2007), by the Canadian indie band Sunset Rubdown, features a picture of Krampus on the back cover. Spencer Krug stated that it was placed there because "he represents the sort of duality that's a theme on the record, the two sides of every thing."^[31]
• The Binding of Isaac video game (2011), features Krampus as a possible surprise boss encounter in rooms where the player would normally expect the chance to make a pact with the Devil. Upon being defeated, he leaves behind a lump of coal, or his own head that can be used as a weapon.^[32]
• In the video game Don't Starve (2013), Krampus is a monster that appears after the player kills a certain number of innocent creatures. Carrying a sack, he steals nearby items on the floor as well as in storage containers.
• The single "Naughty Christmas" (2016) by Italian band Lacuna Coil mentions Krampus repeatedly throughout the song.^[33]
• Bicycle company Surly offers a trail bike model named the Krampus.
• In the video game Killing Floor 2, Krampus and his lair have been added as a content update in December 2017.
• Krampus: A Yuletide Tale, a musical by Carrie Gilchrist (book, lyrics) and Nils-Petter Ankarblom (book, music, lyrics).^[34] It was first produced at Short North Stage in Columbus, Ohio in December 2015.^[35][36][37]

See also

• Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale (2010), a Finnish thriller film about finding the source of the original Santa Claus myth; a supernatural being who, rather than rewarding good children, punishes the naughty.

Jack Frost in Harper's Weekly (1861)

Apart from evil versions of normally good Christmas characters (i.e. Santa, Frosty, etc.), or Jack Frost who is usually depicted as just mischievous, malevolent monsters associated with Christmas in North American popular culture other than Krampus include, in chronological order:

• Bogeymen from Babes in Toyland (1934)
• The Grinch (1957)
• "Bumble", the Abominable Snow Monster from Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964)
• Gremlins (1984)
• Oogie Boogie from The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993).
• Santa Claus (1959) from Mexico features a demon who ineptly attempts to ruin Christmas.

Notes

References