A lot of white-haired bearded guys look like Santa Claus. Some of them play up that resemblance during the Christmas season, whether it’s by getting hired to be a Santa for an event, or by just spreading goodwill and holiday cheer. However, one unofficial Santa says he was booted from a Six Flags amusement park because he looked too much like the big-bellied bearded gift-giver.
The man tells CBS11 in Dallas-Fort Worth that he has spent two decades reveling in his resemblance to Mr. Claus, wearing Christmas-themed clothing and handing out candy to children.
It appears to be this last part that may have gotten him into trouble when he and his wife recently visited Six Flags Over Texas.
The couple say they are frequent visitors to the park, owning season passes, and that he has been playing unofficial Santa during his walks around Six Flags for years.
But he claims that during his most recent visit, park officials told him he needed to leave after he was spotted posing for photos with some kids (at the request of their mom).
“Knelt down, put my arms around them, and afterward I reached in my wife’s walker, pulled out two candy canes, handed it to them,” he tells CBS11.
That’s when he was asked to leave.
“I said, ‘For what reason?’ He said, ‘You look too much like Santa Claus.’ And I’m like, ‘Are you kidding me?’” the man recalls. “I do not approach kids. The parents come to me.”
A statement from Six Flags HQ about the incident explains the park’s side of things.
“We cannot knowingly allow individuals who are not approved by the park to interact with small children in this capacity,” contends Six Flags, claiming that the man’s dressing up as Santa and handing out candy is a “violation of our No Costume policy. When asked to change he refused and at that point was asked to leave.”
The not-Santa counters that he did offer to take off his Santa hat and refrain from distributing candy, but that a park official told him he’d actually need to shave off his beard.
That’s a dealbreaker, and now the former fan of Six Flags wants a refund on his and his wife’s season passes; the park has yet to say whether it will give them their money back.
by Chris Morran via Consumerist