There's something creepy about sitting on Santa's lap -- we've all got the photographic proof, too, in our childhood photo album. Now one man has amassed all those creepy photos into the season's funniest book.

Last December, Will Zweigart came across an online picture of a terrified child crying on the lap of a man dressed as Santa Claus and had a thought: This Santa deserves his own website. And thus, "Sketchy Santas" was born. Within a day Zweigart had purchased the domain and set up the site, and just three days later, "Sketchy Santas" had over half a million hits. By the time Ashton Kutcher tweeted about it to his legions of fans, Will realized that he had created something big.

Thousands of people submitted awkward, sad or just plain creepy pictures of themselves with Santa. What were once private relics of harrowing childhood experiences quickly became hilarious web fodder for the masses

"Sketchy Santas: A Lighter Look at the Darker Side of St. Nick" is available now at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Urban Outfitters and other retailers.
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Sketchy Santas

Will Zweigart didn't set out to create what is arguably the most popular holiday-themed user-submitted blog on the internet -- he was just goofing around. "I'm always creating different Tumblr sites or blog posts that I think are funny," Zweigart explained, "and I cover all kinds of memes for Aol's Urlesque, but you never really know what's gonna take off."

Sketchy Santas

Amazingly, Sketchy Santas hit the five million pageview mark within its first month, becoming the go-to humor site of the holiday season. And this year, the site's thousands of fans know just what to ask Santa to get them for Christmas. Yep, you guessed it: Sketchy Santas is now a book!

Sketchy Santas

"The book serves as your field guide for identifying sketchy Santas in the wild," says Zweigart. "It is by and for the fans, made up almost entirely of their horrifying childhood memories."

Sketchy Santas

To help people recognize a sketchy Santa, Will Zweigart offers a comprehensive look at nine different characteristics that may indicate that your Santa is sketchy.

Sketchy Santas

Clues such as inebriation, wardrobe malfunctions and inappropriate hand placement are all telltale signs of sketchiness. You can find the whole list in "Sketchy Santas: A Lighter Look at the Darker Side of St. Nick."

Sketchy Santas

Readers can look forward to a stocking-full of new material in the book, including new photos, captions, and a detailed historical overview of how Santa grew from anonymous Turkish saint to global pop culture hero.

Sketchy Santas

Zweigart also examines how the increased demand for Santas, particularly at suburban malls, eventually created the downward quality spiral that helped inspire the successful website.

Sketchy Santas

Interested in being part of the "Sketchy Santas" social media promotion? Check into Foursquare on your cell phone from any Santa's lap to receive a free horsey ride.

Sketchy Santas

New York City residents and tourists can also look out for several unannounced "pop-up events" which will consist of unsavory characters dressed as Santa consuming the controversial alcoholic energy drink Four Loko on a bench. If you see this happening, run and jump into one of their laps and you will win a special prize. Admittedly, we're a little nervous to discover just what that prize may be.

Sketchy Santas



Think a scary Santa is the worst thing that can happen to a kid at Christmas? How about seeing Rudolph killed by a traffic light? Yeah, that's worse.