A con artist saves Christmas.

Brian Earl with the Christmas Past podcast shares a Christmas story you’ve probably never heard before.  In the early 1900s, children’s letters to Santa Claus never made it to the North Pole. They landed in the dead letter office and were eventually destroyed.

But along came John Gluck, a hustler who took these letters to Santa and turned it into an opportunity to get rich and famous.

It’s the strange and true story of government agents, spies, an art thief, U.S. presidents, and gun-toting boy scouts.

Check out “My Dear Santa” with Brian Earl from the Christmas Past podcast