Burgermeister Meisterburgeredit
From Christmas Specials Wiki
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| Performer: | Paul Frees |
| Appeared in: | Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town |
Burgermeister Meisterburger (German: town mayor, master citizen) is is the central villain in the special Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town. He is the grouchy, fun-loathing mayor and essential dictator of Sombertown. He hates toys and, after he trips on one, passes a law declaring toys illegal within the town. When Burgermeister finds out that Kris Kringle is still delivering toys to Sombertown, he stops at nothing to capture Kris and stop him from bringing fun and play into his town. Burgermeister arrests Kris along with the Kringles and the Winter Warlock, but Jessica Claus sets them free with the help of the reindeer. Burgermeister Meisterburger vows to hunt Kris down throughout the land, and labels Kris an outlaw. However, Kris was able to evade the Burgermeister and went on to start his life as Santa Claus. By the end of the special, it is revealed that Burgermeister Meisterburger and the rest of his heirs eventually died off and lost power over Sombertown. It wasn't long before the people of Sombertown realized how silly the Burgermeister's laws were, and in time the Meisterburger reign sank into obscurity as more and more people came to admire Santa Claus. It was after the Burgermeisters died out that Santa was no longer seen as an outlaw.
The character of Burgermeister Meisterburger is likely a caricature of militaristic German society, and has some basis in real German leaders, such as Adolf Hitler or Wilhelm_II,_German_Emperor the Kaiser.
