Parson Brown is a holiday character who’s ‘catching on’

Parson Brown didn’t exactly arrive on the Christmas music scene with a lot of fanfare. Rather, lyricist Richard Bernhard Smith just slipped him into his playful 1934 song “Winter Wonderland.”

 In the meadow, we can build a snowman.

We’ll pretend that he is Parson Brown.

He’ll say, “are you married?”

“We’ll say, no man,

But you can do the job when you’re in town.”

The song has become a Christmas classic with references such as “sleigh bells ring, are you listening?” and “in the lane, snow is glistening.”

Smith pictured the scene – a winter wonderland memory from his hometown of Honesdale, Pa., a pretty little place on the Lackawaxen River in the Pocono Mountains.

His family lived directly across from the town’s Central Park, where community members gathered to go ice skating and engage in Christmas caroling.

 

Smith had been diagnosed with tuberculosis in 1931, and he was undergoing treatment at West Mountain Sanitarium in nearby Scranton, Pa., when he wrote “Winter Wonderland” as a poem. 

He shared it with a friend, Felix Bernard, a professional pianist and composer, who set it to music.

 

“Winter Wonderland” was originally performed by Richard Himber and His Ritz Carlton Orchestra with vocals by Joey Nash.

 

Parson Brown was most likely a fictional Protestant pastor whose name happened to rhyme with “town.”

Parson Brown was brought to life, however, as a key character in the 1976 animated Christmas television special “Frosty’s Winter Wonderland,” produced by Rankin/Bass Productions and animated by Topcraft.

In the show, Frosty the Snowman is antagonized by Jack Frost, who’s not playing nice. Jack Frost tries to steal Frosty’s magic hat. 

The children of the village decide Frosty needs a companion to cheer him up, so they build a snowwoman named Crystal. She comes to life when Frosty presents her with a bouquet of “frost flowers.”

 

It’s a quick courtship. Parson Brown, the local preacher, assists the children in building a snow parson whom he brings to life with his Bible. When Jack Frost tries to spoil the wedding with a blizzard, Frosty and Crystal kindly ask for him to be the best man at the wedding. Jack Frost agrees, and Frosty and Crystal are married.

 

In 2001, The Parson Brown Singers formed in Gulph Mills, Pa., near Philadelphia, to perform live holiday musical shows, and the group has developed quite a following. The members include professional jazz and classical music singers as well as musical theater artists.

Harmony is the group’s hallmark and one music critic said: “Whether delivering beloved Christmas holiday favorites, heart-stopping jazz and pop arrangements or stunning classical performances, The Parson Brown Singers leave audiences enchanted with their vibrant energy, striking costumes and unforgettable sound.”

To learn more about the group, visit theparsonbrownsingers.com.

In 2024, the country music duo Dan + Shay recorded “Parson Brown” for “It’s Officially Christmas: The Double Album.” Songwriters are Shay Mooney, Dan Smyers and Jordan Reynolds.

 

Dan Smyers and Shay Mooney

“Parson Brown” is a Christmas love song about a couple that is ready and eager to tie the knot, and they know just the guy who can get them hitched. But, dang it all, they can’t find Parson Brown.

He’s five foot seven wears a scarf and a hat,

But now I need to know where he’s at.

Has anybody seen Parson Brown?

Cuz I’ve been searching all over town.

 

Later in the song, we learn that there’s been a reported sighting of Parson Brown. He’s in Florida, “sitting beach side.”

Dan + Shay said: “We had a blast making this song with lots of different instruments (including a flugelhorn). “Hope you love it as much as we do!”