It was 40 years ago this year that “A Christmas Story” was released.
Based on Jean Shepherd’s semi-fictional anecdotes in his 1966 book In God We Trust: All Others Pay Cash, with some elements from his 1971 book Wanda Hickey’s Night of Golden Memories and Other Disasters.
The movie follows the holiday happening of the Parker family. The holiday classic starred Melinda Dillon, Darren McGavin, and Peter Billingsley and gets more popular every year as new generations are introduced to the film.
Case in point: A Christmas Story House & Museum in Cleveland, Ohio.
Tucked in the Tremont neighborhood, movie makers filmed exterior scenes and some interior shots of the house.
Brian Jones purchased and refurbished this 19th-century Victorian house in 2004, restoring and renovating it to appear as it did in the film, both inside and outside.
Fans line up every day to tour the house and the museum across the street.
After an interesting introduction by a knowledgeable tour guide in the house’s front room, guests can tour the home independently, wandering from the living room and kitchen to the bedrooms on the second floor.
After touring the home, guests gather at the museum, where several props and costumes from the movie are displayed.
A visit for tourists would only be complete with a visit to the gift shop where anything and everything related to the movie is for sale.
No matter what time of year you visit, if you are a fan of the movie, you’ll be swept away to the holidays in 1940 when nine-year-old Ralphie’s only desire for Christmas is a Red Ryder Carbine Action 200-shot Range Model air rifle.
Go, enjoy, and relive this movie classic.
For more information about visiting the house and museum, click here.
For more information about other Cleveland attractions, click here.
Thanks for this post! Christmas Story is one of my all-time favorite Holiday films. I had no idea the house had been preserved in this way. Need to see it sometime.