Jonathan Meath (born September 16, 1955) is an American television producer and director.^[5][6] He was senior producer of the television game show Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?^[7] He also was a producer of The Wubbulous World of Dr. Seuss^[6][8] and the 1990s' remake of Zoom.^[9][10] In addition, he is notable for having a dual career as a professional Santa Claus. He made numerous appearances in various media as Santa, including on Good Morning America,^[11] at Radio City Music Hall with The Rockettes,^[11][12][13] on the cover of Boston Magazine, and on a Delta Air Lines' pre-flight safety demonstration.^[14] He was described by National Public Radio^[15][16] and Time as a "top Santa".^[14]

Meath attended Phillips Academy and graduated in 1974 with the school's first co–educational class.^[8] He graduated from New York University in 1979. During the 1980s Meath worked at CBS, Business Times, The Creative Establishment, MTV Networks and Greenwood Productions in various capacities.^{[citation needed]} During 1996–1998, he produced shows for the Jim Henson Company called The Wubbulous World of Dr. Seuss. He produced for PBS 295 half-hour episodes of Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?, as well as 80 episodes of Zoom.

Meath, whose beard and hair went white early in life,^[17] noticed that children sometimes called him "Santa". He is slightly overweight — he has described himself as an "organic Santa"^[11] — and his wife bought him a red suit.^[13] He attended schools to learn the craft of being a Santa.^[11][18] He appeared in parades.^[19] He is a professional vocalist.^[12] In 2012, he appeared as Santa at Radio City Music Hall for the Christmas Spectacular show in New York City.^[11][14] Meath uses his real beard but conditions it with a "shimmer-like shampoo known as Cowboy Magic, and uses hair gel for his mustache.^[20] His role as Santa was described in numerous publications.^[12][16][17] In 2009, he appeared in a thirty-second television commercial spot for the Boston Red Sox baseball team.^[14]

Meath has one child and lives in Newburyport, Massachusetts. His mother was activist and historian Mary Stewart Hewitt.^[21] He is the great great grandson of businessman and sportsman John Malcolm Forbes and the great great great grandson of railroad industrialist John Murray Forbes.^[21] Through this, Meath is distantly related to John Kerry. Meath's daughter, Amelia Randall Meath, is a member of the bands Mountain Man^[22] and Sylvan Esso.