But jolly Saint Nick finds work at nearby at twice the pay
A man who had been working as Santa at a Macy's department store in San Francisco for 20 years was allegedly fired after a couple took offence to one of his jokes.
John Toomey, a 68-year-old retired caretaker for the elder, was at his usual December post at Macy's in Union Square last weekend when an adult couple sat on his lap. He asked them if they had been good this year and when they replied, "Yes," he said, "Well, that's too bad."
Toomey then told them jokingly that Santa is so jolly because he knows where all the naughty boys and girls live. However, the couple was offended and Toomey was dismissed.
Toomey has been telling the same joke to his adult visitors for the past 20 years. But there are no jokes for the kids. Instead, Toomey asks them if they have been brushing their teeth and helping around the house.
But Santa John, as Toomey is known to regulars, quickly found another job at Lefty O'Doul's, a sports bar and restaurant close to Macy's.
Santa John will have a chair twice the size as the one he had at the department store, will be paid twice as much and able to tell as many jokes as he wants, Nick Bovic, co-owner of Lefty O'Doul's told the Toronto Star.
