When it began here in 1994, it was a knock-off of an event produced by the Danish street theatre group, Solvagnen, in which  its actors gifted toys to shoppers from a local department store—
 

Only to be arrested for their generosity at the store's expense.

 

As for San Francisco's SantaCon, the incentive is a day-long pub crawl punctuated by dress-up silliness. Besides the numerous iterations of Elves on the Streets as opposed to the shelves, there are Santas of all shapes, sizes, and get-ups, including Surfing Santas, Shorts & Shirtless Santas, and Sexy Santas (both guys and gals). Those who haven't had time to pick up Santa gear settle for long-johns. 

 

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