Spears and Aguilera made the cut, but Simpson "froze" in the finals.

a) Britney Spears
b) Christina Aguilera
c) Jessica Simpson
d) Mandy Moore

• A1) Eggnog. Randy Brooks wrote the song but sold the rights to Elmo and Patsy Shropshire for $500 in 1979 when his own band wouldn't let him record it.
• A2) Chevy Chase. The comedic actor first played the role in Vacation in 1983, repeated it in European Vacation in 1985, and finished off with Vegas Vacation in 1997.
• A3) Mariah Carey. Along with classics such as "Silent Night" and "Joy to the World", she also covered "Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town".
• A4) Rod Carew. The infamous rhyming couplet is, "O.J. Simpson: not a Jew! But guess who is... Hall of Famer Rod Carew."
• A5) An old, silk hat. In the 1969 television special, a magician's top hat did the trick.
• A6) Thomas Nast. The cartoonist created the image in 1863 for Harper's Weekly magazine.
• A7) Kwanzaa. Dr. Ron "Maulana" Karenga scheduled the African American celebration to run from the day after Christmas through New Year's Day.
• A8) Vince Guaraldi. Producer Lee Mendelson discovered the jazz pianist's music on the radio while driving across the Golden Gate Bridge one day.
• A9) The Nutcracker. The first scene begins with a Christmas party at the Stahlbaums' house.
• A10) Irving Berlin. He almost immediately claimed that it was the "best song that anybody's ever written", and Bing Crosby's rendition proved him right, having sold a record 50 million copies.
• A11) Nine. They're right between the eight maids-a-milking and the ten lords-a-leaping.
• A12) Scrooged. Not only did Bill Murray star as executive Frank Cross, his three brothers John, Brian, and Joel also made appearances.

Holiday Quiz Questions

• Q1) According to the song, what was Grandma drinking when she got run over by a reindeer?
• Q2) What actor starred as Clark W. Griswold, Jr. in National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation in 1989?
• Q3) What singer's 1994 Merry Christmas album includes the hit "All I Want for Christmas Is You"?
• Q4) What Jewish baseball player does Adam Sandler mention in "The Hanukkah Song"?
• Q5) What object brought Frosty the Snowman to life in the original song?
• Q6) What artist first drew a jolly, red-suited Santa Claus?
• Q7) What winter holiday did a Long Beach State University professor create in 1966?
• Q8) What composer and pianist created the music for the Peanuts special A Charlie Brown Christmas?
• Q9) What holiday ballet did Peter Tchaikovsky compose in 1892?
• Q10) Who composed the all-time most popular Christmas song "White Christmas"?
• Q11) How many ladies are dancing in the song "The Twelve Days of Christmas"?
• Q12) What 1988 A Christmas Carol movie variant starred Bill Murray?