House From A Christmas Story, OH

Much like Ralphie who only wanted an official Red Ryder carbine action, 200-shot, range model air rifle with a compass in the stock and this thing that tells time, my husband made one request for our road trip last year.  He wanted to tour the House from A Christmas Story in Cleveland, Ohio.

“A Christmas Story” movie came out in 1983 and became a Christmas classic.  Nine-year-old Ralphie Parker’s wish for the Red Ryder BB gun carries throughout the movie set in1940s Indiana.

The movie begins shortly before Christmas and follows Ralphie’s quest to secure his much coveted Christmas present. That creates some hilarious vignettes. Everyone, it seems, thinks a BB gun for Christmas is a terrible idea.  After all, you’ll shoot your eye out. 

Things look bleak for poor Ralphie when Christmas arrives and no gun is under the tree.  But the “Old Man” has been holding out on our hero.  There IS a Red Ryder BB gun in the house!

The first time I saw this movie was with my Dad.  We caught an all-day marathon on TNT.  My husband also watched it on TV.  We were both hooked.  But I didn’t know you could actually tour the Parker house!

You Deserve A Major Award

Cleveland’s Tremont neighborhood provided the perfect area to film.  Officially 3159 W. 11th Street served as Ralphie’s house.  All of the outside scenes were shot on this unassuming block in Cleveland.  All of the interior shots were filmed at a Toronto, Canada sound stage.

So how did the house go from a regular private home to a tourist mecca called the “House from A Christmas Story”?  Brian Jones, a U.S. Naval Academy graduate and veteran, bought the house site unseen when his wife emailed him in 2004 and told him it was for sale on eBay.  He immediately called the owner and offered him $150,000. Jones wasn’t even in Ohio at the time.

Jones grew up watching the movie and loved it.  In fact, his Dad inspired him to start the Red Rider Leg Lamp Company.  Yep, he made the famous leg lamp in various sizes after he got out of the Navy.

The house Jones bought needed a lot of work.  He sat down and watched the movie frame by frame making notes and then got to work.  He changed the duplex back to a single family home.  It had been a rental property and needed just about everything done, including moving walls, windows and dealing with the furnace.

Jones spent $250,000 restoring the house. But he also bought several other homes and lots in the neighborhood to create a 1.3 acre complex for visitors to explore.  I, for one, am glad Jones’ vision came to fulfillment.  He deserves a major award.

The house opened in 2006 and has since become one of the top tourist sites in Cleveland.  On average 90,000 people a year tour the Parker’s house.

He Looks Like a Deranged Easter Bunny

There’s only one way to see the house and museum across the street.  Take a tour.  So that’s what we did.

We headed to the gift shop to buy tickets.  While we waited for our tour time, we browsed the gift shop.  I’m going to say it’s like going to Buc-ee’s.  You go in for a small memento of the trip and emerge $200 later with a board game, glasses case, an ornament, a puzzle and books.

They even had a pink bunny suit for sale in a variety of sizes!  No, we didn’t buy a pink bunny suit.  Yes, Aunt Clara would’ve been disappointed in us.  We, however, were secure in the knowledge that no one—certainly not a nine year old boy—should wear a pink bunny suit.

The gift shop carries items from all the other major Christmas classics like “Elf”, “Christmas Vacation”, “Grinch” and “Peanuts” too.  It’s like wandering through every feel-good, fun Christmas movie ever.

Fra-GEE-leh!

By the time we finished browsing, it was tour time.  We headed across the street to Ralphie’s house and met our tour guide.  The air crackled with anticipation as our guide unlocked the front door.

As the door swung open, the first thing I saw was the box.  The big brown box with the lid propped up against the wall.  The leg lamp existed in real life along with
“fragile” stamped on the box!

Our guide explained that we could touch anything we wanted to in the house since everything was a replica of the movie.  The real props and costumes awaited us across the street in the museum. 

Hearing that he could touch anything unlocked sheer delight in my husband. He made a beeline to leg lamp. Later, when I looked at the pictures, I thought he was a touch too excited to pick up the lamp. The soft glow of electric sex had sucked him in just like it did the Old Man and Ralphie.

Moving farther into the house, we discovered the living room complete with a Christmas tree, gifts and the leg lamp set up on the table shining in all its glory. Jones’ attention to detail in decorating the house was amazing. It truly felt like we were on set at “A Christmas Story”.

 Our tour included lots of behind the scenes information, stories and laughter. I was shocked to discover “Life Boy” soap (what it sounded like to me in the movie) was actually “Lifebuoy” soap. Mrs. Parker made Ralphie hold it in his mouth as punishment for cussing. Jonathan had fun recreating scenes from the movie as we moved throughout the house.

In the boys room across the hall, a theme paper from Miss Shields’ class sat on the desk. She did not think his theme was sheer poetry. Of course, it contained the very soul crushing statement written by Miss Shields, “You’ll shoot your eye out.”

Our guide even took us to the backyard where Ralphie imagined he battled Black Bart and his bandits with the Red Ryder BB gun. If you’re paying attention, the shed contained some special details.

We also learned that the crew needed snow to film the outside scene.  Of course, there was no snow that week.  So our guide asked us what we thought the crew used to create fake snow.

Without missing a beat, my cousin and I piped up, “Mashed potato flakes!”

We were right. That’s what happens when you grow up with a dad and uncle in a commercial advertising studio. You know nothing is as it seems, including snow.

I Can’t Put My Arms Down!

At the end of the house tour we headed across the street to the museum.  Original pieces used in movie reside here.  They’re behind glass for preservation.

Of course, the most important display was the actual Red Ryder BB gun, highlighted by Ralphie’s famous words underneath.  I was also delighted to see Randy’s red snow suit. It reminded me of the Stay-Puft Marshmellow Man from “Ghostbusters” except bright red instead of white. It really was impossible to move in that thing, I think.

The museum included plenty of behind the scenes photos as to how the movie was actually made.  We also found out that some of the stars actually have been to the museum.

Finally, we peeked in the garage next door to see the Old Man’s Oldsmobile and the fire truck that was in the scene with Flick and the flag pole. It seemed a fitting end to our official adventures at the house.

The Bumpuses!

I almost forgot the Bumpuses.  The house next door to Ralphie’s place is called the Bumpus House.  In the movie, the Bumpuses’ dogs were constantly after the Old Man.  In fact, they ate the entire Christmas turkey creating a very memorable scene with the Old Man.