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American Morning

It Is Beginning To Look Like Christmas In New York City

Aired November 28, 2001 - 09:55   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: And here in New York, the holidays may be especially poignant this year, as the city tries to return to normal. All around the Big Apple, it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas, and our own Jeanne Moos looks at some of the traditions, some new additions, to Christmas here in New York.

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JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer and Rudolph Giuliani have something in common. Hero status. So it's only fitting the mayor got his own set of antlers in the Christmas windows at Barney's department store.

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SIMON DOONAN, CREATIVE DIRECTOR, BARNEY'S: We were go to do a red nose on Rudolph, and then I thought it's going to make him look like he's a heavy drinker or something like that, and he's not.

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MOOS: Then how New Yorkers loved him. Even in antlers.

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We like him in anything right now.

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MOOS: For weeks after September 11th, the windows of Sak's Fifth Avenue were filled with sadness, but now most of the big stores have returned to traditional holiday windows. References to the tragedy might depress shoppers, and the mechanized displays are created months in advance, so only Barney's went out on a limb with Rudolph the Write-On Reindeer.

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DOONAN: This is a quote from him on his antlers, "We never been braver, we've never been stronger."

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MOOS: The mayor stopped by Barney's the other day to urge folks to spend. As for Rudy the Reindeer --

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RUDOLPH Giuliani, MAYOR OF NEW YORK CITY: I love that likeness that you have of Babe Ruth. That was great. Was that me?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That was you.

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MOOS: Even the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree was wearing the stars and stripes, at least until the scaffolding came down. The tree lighting ceremony has been a tradition since 1933.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Merry Christmas!

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MOOS: The lights go on. But how do they get on?

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MOOS (on camera): I mean, this is just like doing your tree at home.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You get tired of doing your tree at home after doing this.

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MOOS (voice-over): For 8 days, nearly 30 workers string more than 30,000 lights, working from scaffolding.

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(on camera): What floor is this, that we are on?

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(voice-over): It feels like being up in a tree house, in the middle of Manhattan, listening to music from the skating rink below. Can't blame birds for landing here.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Found a bat once here.

MOOS: (on camera): You found a bat?

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MOOS (voice-over): And that's not all. Bill Abadi (ph) has decorated the tree for 40 years. One of his most memorable moments came as he was splicing wire. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BILL ABADI (ph): There's an owl sitting there, watching me work and said the all came down from Canada with the tree.

MOOS (on camera): With the tree.

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MOOS (voice-over): The owl ended up at the Bronx Zoo.

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MOOS (on camera): What's wrong with that limb?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's too ugly for the Rockefeller tree.

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MOOS (voice-over): This tree even has it's own fire protection.

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MOOS (on camera): So this is the sprinkler system and then it can come out these holes.

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MOOS (voice-over): What a relief to trim the tree, dress the windows in a town where the sledding has been rough.

UNIDENTIFIED SINGERS (singing): Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer, you'll go down in history.

MOOS: Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ZAHN: That window is going to get people go and shop. It's great. It's creative.

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