Fun Facts!

Breaking the Illusion

When the Old Man is setting up the Leg Lamp and walks outside to see what it looks like from their street, a man walks by asking him what it is. Not only is this man the director of the film, Bob Clark, he's also wearing a Miami Dolphins beanie, which wouldn't exist during the movies' setting in the 1940's.

The Film had a Tight Budget

Even though Bob Clark was a successful director by the time A Christmas Story was released, the film still had an incredibly small budget. The film was given around a $3,300,000 budget, which wasn’t even made back in its opening weekend.

Melinda Dillon's reaction in the restaurant scene is real.

Melinda Dillon, who plays Ralphie's mother, was completely caught off guard seeing the duck served with its head. In fact, she was intentionally given the wrong script so that her reaction — including every laugh and shriek that ended up being left in the film — is completely genuine.

The Old Man was almost played by Jack Nicholson

Ralphie's dad was actually supposed to be played by Jack Nicholson, but after Nicholson starred in Stanley Kubrick'sThe Shining in 1980, they most likely wouldn't have been able to afford to hire him on such a small budget. Even if they were able to, they didn't want a family movie to be heavily associated with such a scary film.

You can thank Ralphie for Kevin Arnold.

Once you see the similarities, you can't unsee them. A Christmas Story inspired the creation of The Wonder Years, which premiered a few years later in 1988. The premise, a coming-of-age tale set alongside an adult narrator, was so heavily influenced by the film that Peter Billingsley appeared as a roommate of Kevin Arnold's in the final episodes.

The Leg Lamp Was Inspired By A Soda Ad

Of all the images that A Christmas Story provided to fans, the Leg Lamp is arguably the most iconic symbol from the movie. The lamp was won by the “Old Man” in the original movie, but the design for the lamp was inspired by an illuminated Nehi Soda advertisement.

The lamp was first described in detail for the short story “My Old Man and the Lascivious Special Award That Heralded the Birth of Pop Art,” written by Jean Shepherd. Describing the lamp is one task, but actually creating a physical prop was a whole other story.

Ralphie Says He Wants A Red Ryder BB Gun 28 Times

Everybody who has seen A Christmas Story knows exactly what Ralphie wants for Christmas. Ralphie wanted an official Red Ryder, carbine action, two-hundred shot range model air rifle, but everybody tells him that he’ll injure himself.

It’s pretty hard to forget what Ralphie wants for Christmas, since the BB gun is such an important part of the story, and the fact that Ralphie says he wants it for a total of 28 times! Ralphie, of course, gets his wish granted on Christmas, but he also does injure himself in the process. Thankfully, those big glasses saved his eyesight.

The actor who played Randy temporarily lived in the Parker house.

In 2010, Ian Petrella moved into the house from the movie in Cleveland. After quitting acting to pursue graphic design, he befriended the owner of the home and asked if he could reside there for a few months. He ended up moving into the third floor and gave tours and hosted meet-and-greets with visitors.

The Movie’s Writer Would Often Try To Direct

Directors usually aren’t the only person on set to put their ideas into the film. Many times, directors will have pushback by other crew members who don’t think something is going right. For A Christmas Story, Bob Clark no doubt did an incredible job directing the film, but writer Jean Shepherd also tried to direct the actors many times.

In an interview with Variety, Billingsley explained that both Shepherd and Clark had a specific vision for the film and that Shepherd would often try to direct him after Clark had walked away.

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