Temporary Structures, Tiny Tim’s Tinny Screeching, The Heroism of Live Theater, And An Ill-Considered Llama

The winter after I turned four, the Scientologists set up their first Christmas display on Hollywood Boulevard, a beautifully campy confection with the nondenominational theme “L. Ron Hubbard’s Winter Wonderland.” Santa, the patron saint of Nondenominational Winter, sat on a red velvet throne in front of a backdrop of ice-covered mountains. Over the years the set was upgraded to include a gingerbread break room for Santa and behind it, a two-story painted backdrop of the…