Macy's holiday show three-peat irks visitors

I was sipping coffee in the basement of the downtown Minneapolis Macy's recently when a Mom leaned over and began complaining about the holiday display. She and her daughter had just gone through the eighth-floor auditorium show, "A Day in the Life of an Elf."

Macy's has long faced an uphill battle with Minnesota's diehard Dayton's fans (though the retailer's sales performance of late shows it's winning the war with the masses). The Cincinnati-based retailer declined to say whether the repeat show was a cost-cutting move, and even hinted that "Elf" might be here to stay. In one of the more impressive bits of corporate spin I've seen, Macy's spokeswoman Heather Hannan explained it this way:

Indeed, the newspaper ads invite customers to "join us as we revive this magical holiday tale." A revival? A new holiday tradition? A gift? Are you kidding? The downtown Minneapolis Christmas auditorium display goes back to 1962, and offered the promise of a new theme each year. A Macy's employee, who started decades ago with Dayton's, said complaints are coming in fast and furious. She's telling people to contact Macy's CEO Terry Lundgren. One longtime visitor summed up her frustration about the three-peat in a post on Ask.com: