Jimmy Boyd (born January 9, 1939 in McComb, Mississippi; died March 7, 2009) was an American singer, musician, and actor.
Death of Jimmy Boyd
On March 7, 2009, he passed away from cancer.
Jimmy Boyd was 70 years old at the time of his death
Jimmy recorded the song "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus" for Columbia Records, when he was 12 years and 11 months old. Even in those days of limited media, it became a record industry phenomenon, selling over two and a half million records in its first week’s release. Jimmy’s name became an international household word, and he skyrocketed to the status of a major star. Columbia Records execs were baffled at the song’s popularity. They had already presented Jimmy with two gold records. (In the days before the Grammy Award existed, gold records were effectively the Grammys, and they were actually real gold). Jimmy’s record went to number one on the charts again the following year at Christmas, and went on to sell again and again every Christmas. Today on the internet it sells worldwide to new generations, and has reportedly sold over 60,000,000 records since its initial release.
Jimmy Boyd – I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus
Playing on original 78 rpm record