I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas

A child turns down dolls and Tinkertoys and asks Santa for one thing only: a hippopotamus. The 1953 novelty song runs on that single stubborn wish, and the strangest part is what happened off the record. The ten-year-old who sang it really did end up with a baby hippo.

Origins

John Rox wrote the song in 1953. It was recorded by Gayla Peevey, a ten-year-old singer from Oklahoma, and released as a single in October of that year.

Peevey performed the song on The Ed Sullivan Show on November 15, 1953. The national exposure turned the novelty song into a major hit, and the single peaked at number twenty-four on the Billboard charts.

The Oklahoma Hippo Fund

Following the song's release, the Oklahoma City Zoo and the Daily Oklahoman newspaper launched a fundraising campaign named after Gayla Peevey. Local children were invited to donate nickels and dimes to help buy a real hippopotamus.

The fund successfully raised three thousand dollars. On Christmas Eve of 1953, the zoo presented Peevey with a baby hippopotamus named Matilda. Peevey immediately donated Matilda back to the zoo. Matilda became a popular attraction at the zoo, living there for nearly fifty years until her death in 1998.

Meaning & Interpretation

The song is a humorous take on the exaggerated demands children make during the holidays. Its lasting appeal comes from the contrast between the massive, dangerous nature of a hippopotamus and the child's sweet, innocent belief that the animal can fit inside their house and play with them.

Who sang the original I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas?

The original song was sung by ten-year-old child star Gayla Peevey in 1953. Her recording is the most famous version of the song and has become a classic holiday track.

What is the story behind the hippo fund?

Following the song's success, a local campaign in Oklahoma raised three thousand dollars from children's donations to buy a real hippopotamus for the Oklahoma City Zoo. The baby hippo, Matilda, was presented to Gayla Peevey on Christmas Eve 1953, who then gifted her to the zoo.