When you think of Christmas music, a few names immediately spring to mind: Nat King Cole, Bing Crosby, and Mariah Carey . For many people, the Christmas season doesn’t officially begin until they hear Mariah belting out All I Want For Christmas Is You at least half-a-dozen times over.
Over the years, Mariah has worked tirelessly to make her name synonymous with the yuletide season — she even petitioned the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to bestow upon her the title of “Queen Of Christmas.” Unfortunately for Mariah, those plans were dashed away by fellow Christmas enthusiast/singer Elizabeth Chan.
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Mariah’s Bid To Become The One And Only “Queen Of Christmas” Began In March Of 2021.
The Hero singer filed an application with the aspiration to market herself as the true “Queen of Christmas.” When the petition was made public back in July 2022, a handful of Mariah’s contemporaries had a rather Grinchy response — none more so than Elizabeth Chan. Chan felt that she had ample rights to the title of “Queen of Christmas” and decided that she would file a declaration of opposition to block Mariah’s trademark claim.
On Tuesday, November 15th, Chan Revealed That The U.S. Trademark Trial And Appeal Board Decided To Rule Against Mariah.
They not only refused Mariah’s request to trademark “Queen of Christmas,” but they also shot down her attempts to trademark “Princess Christmas” and “QOC.” Chan was elated to hear the news, as was made clear in an interview with Variety :
“Christmas is a season of giving, not the season of taking,” Chan began. “And it is wrong for an individual to attempt to own and monopolize a nickname like Queen of Christmas for the purposes of abject materialism.”
At The End Of The Day, Chan Was Arguing That Christmas Can’t Be Owned, Bought, Or Monopolized
As the Grinch himself learned in Dr. Seuss’ iconic masterpiece, How The Grinch Stole Christmas , Christmas doesn’t come from a store. Christmas, perhaps, means just a little bit more — a sentiment that any true Queen of Christmas would be well aware of.
Chan made sure to point out that Mariah’s trademark attempt would’ve extended far beyond the music business and would also apply to things like clothing, alcohol sales, and other merchandise. “If you knit a ‘Queen of Christmas’ sweater, you should be able to sell it on Etsy to somebody else so they can buy it for their grandma ,” Chan asserted.
Mariah’s Failed Patent Attempt Has Also Left A Sour Taste With Other Holiday Icons
Darlene Love is best known for her work on the Christmas album A Christmas Gift for You from Phil Spector. Hers is the voice that belts out the beloved Christmas carol, Christmas (Baby, Please Come Home) .
“David Letterman officially declared me the ‘Queen of Christmas’ 29 years ago, a year before she released All I Want for Christmas Is You ,” Love argued in a Facebook post. “And at 81 years of age I’m NOT changing anything.”