Entertainment

Who Is the Other Half of 'Dr. Christmas'?

by Marisa LaScala

The holidays can be a stressful time for celebrities. There are so many people to tell your assistant to buy gifts for, and so many cards for them to write and sign. With all of that going on, who could find the time to decorate? Well, it turns out that can be outsourced too. Debi Staron, one of the two hosts of TLC's Deck the Halls with Dr. Christmas, goes to clients' homes to decorate for the holidays, from roof to tree. But who is Deck the Halls with Dr. Christmas' Debi Staron, and what does her business actually do?

Staron seems to be the less publicity-focused half of Dr. Christmas, the self-proclaimed "Christmas tree stylists to the stars." The company has decorated the houses of celebrities like J.J. Abrams, Christina Aguilera, and Heidi Klum. Dr. Christmas also does set-dressing for holiday films, like Surviving Christmas and Christmas with the Kranks.

Of the two Dr. Christmas founders, Staron and her partner Bob Pranga, Pranga seems to be more likely to do appearances and interviews. Still, I was able to dig up some information on Staron. Here's what else you should know about her.

She Writes Books

Staron and Pranga have published a book on their decorating sensibilities with DK publishing. Christmas Style is a coffee table book full of over-the-top styled photo shoots of holiday decor. And, since it wouldn't be Dr. Christmas if there wasn't some kind of Hollywood twist to the whole thing, the book also has the "12 Dames of Christmas," with trees styled for stars like Joan Crawford and Marilyn Monroe. Publisher's Weekly noted that Pranga and Staron even suggest including holiday decorations in the shower. (I wouldn't mind keeping that one particular area free of festivities, as I'm half asleep whenever I'm in there anyway.)

She Has Been In Front of and Behind the Camera

Even though Pranga is usually the one doing the interviews, Staron has had her time with cameras. She's a photographer, and at one time she was also a B-movie actress "She plays 'a happy employee of Tromaville' in The Toxic Avenger II, and a video store customer in The Toxic Avenger III," as reported by The Guardian. "In the latter film, she performed a stunt: 'I threw myself over a woman who was even more scantily clad than I was.'"

She's Also a Professional De-Clutterer

According to LinkedIn, Staron is also a professional organizer and mover (to the stars, again, of course). That means that after celebrities buy a ton of Christmas decorations for the holidays, she can help them throw it all out again when their storage closets get too full.

Images: Bob Pranga/Facebook; DK/Amazon