{"type":"rich","version":"1.0","provider_name":"Transistor","provider_url":"https://transistor.fm","author_name":"In The NoCo","title":"What makes a great shopping mall Santa? This Colorado school has trained thousands of them ","html":"","width":"100%","height":180,"duration":525,"description":"\nEvery December, Santa Claus literally does the impossible: He delivers presents all over the world with a team of flying reindeer. So when someone becomes a stand-in for Santa at your local mall, or work party, those are big boots to fill.  \n\nBut as it turns out, being Santa is a teachable skill. \n\nSusen Mesco founded Professional Santa Claus School in Denver in 1983. She says more than 5,000 Santas have attended over the years. And that means she has four decades of expertise in getting your local Santa acting and looking his best.  \n\nSusan got her start back in 1982 when her event planning business got an offer to train and manage some Santas at local malls. And she saw a lot of room for improvement. \"I went around spying on my competitor, and what I actually found was everything not to do,” she said. “Mommies were miserable. Children were being forced at Santa. Santa was cranky and slouchy, and his beard was falling off. So I went to work writing kind of a manual.”  \n\nHost Erin O’Toole talked with Mesco about what makes a great Santa, the extensive training her school offers, and how she trains Santas to answer particularly tough questions from kids. \n* * * * *\nSign up for the In The NoCo newsletter: Visit KUNC.org\nQuestions? Feedback? Story ideas? Email us: NOCO@KUNC.org\nLike what you're hearing? Help more people discover In The NoCo by rating the show on your favorite podcast app. Thanks!\nHost and Producer: Erin O'Toole\nProducer: Ariel Lavery\nExecutive Producer: Brad Turner\nTheme music by Robbie Reverb\nAdditional music by Blue Dot Sessions\nIn The NoCo is a production of KUNC News and Community Radio for Northern Colorado.","thumbnail_url":"https://img.transistorcdn.com/deJ82RY9r1q1D4I5ARzsuuMZw17RvtIT7PwnQQPLPzk/rs:fill:0:0:1/w:400/h:400/q:60/mb:500000/aHR0cHM6Ly9pbWct/dXBsb2FkLXByb2R1/Y3Rpb24udHJhbnNp/c3Rvci5mbS9zaG93/LzI5MDcyLzE2OTUw/NzA5NjEtYXJ0d29y/ay5qcGc.webp","thumbnail_width":300,"thumbnail_height":300}