VIDALIA &8212; The city&8217;s riverfront holiday display will be markedly less bright this Christmas, but the Chamber of Commerce thinks bringing back the old IP displays will produce smiles even brighter than before.

&8220;The IP tradition is unique to our area,&8221; Vidalia Mayor Hyram Copeland told the membership Tuesday. &8220;It&8217;s a part of our history.&8221;

In charge of recreating the history of the semi-animated, wooden holiday displays is Burnley Cook, a Natchez native who has dedicated much of his free time to keeping the spirit alive.

The holiday display sponsored by International Paper was a staple of the season in the Miss-Lou from the late 1940s until the company was forced by the 1973 energy crisis to discontinue the show.

The displays were stored at various places and essentially forgotten until Trace Town Shopping Center acquired and set up several of the scenes in the early 1980s.

One of the people who came to revisit his childhood was Cook.

&8220;They were cleaned but in bad condition, and I thought it would be neat to help refurbish them,&8221; he said.

After working on several of them for Trace Town, Natchez Mall hired Cook to recreate the Christmas magic for it.

After years of refurbishing and faithfully recreating the old Santa, nature and nativity scenes, Cook approached Copeland about taking over the design of the 2006 holiday display.

&8220;I saw the Winter Wonderland of Lights the last two years and thought, &8216;This is perfect,&8217;&8221; Cook said.

Bringing back the old displays is not just good for nostalgia, though.

With the largest display anticipated to use two-thirds less electricity than last year&8217;s smallest, the city stands to save substantially on the affair.

Visitors to the festival will enjoy those savings directly, as the admission price &8212; like the old IP display &8212; will be free of charge.

Each display will be purchased by a local company, whose name will adorn it.

The city will store and maintain the displays as part of the one-time cost of the display.

Prices will vary depending on size, with Cook estimating each one will cost between $250 and $1,500.

&8220;Say it lasts 20 years and costs $1,500,&8221; Copeland said. &8220;That&8217;s pretty good market penetration.&8221;

&8220;Yes, I&8217;m trying to help sell these,&8221; Copeland said to laughter.