I’ve never seen the entire movie, although I’ve seen a few scenes now and then.
But then, I didn’t have to. as soon as I saw the poster, before the film even opened, I recognized the story elements from Jean Shepherd’s in God We Trust, All Other Pay Cash that my friend had introduced me to many years before*. Sure enough, there on the poster it gave Shepherd’s name as co-scripter and inspiration.
*like the lamp in the shape of the fishnet stockinged-leg. Which you can actually get now, and I recently had to explain to my 12 year old daughter, MilliCal.
I first remember seeing it on HBO around 1985. A friend of mine talked me into watching it. I had no interest in watching a Christmas movie, but I watched it with him and ended up laughing my ass off. I think this is a movie that was helped a lot by word of mouth.
I’m always trying to remember what the parents are arguing about when he talks about how they argue over everything.
Didn’t the quote go something like, “Are you trying to tell me that the Atlantic ocean is better than the Pacific?!” or something like that?
Over the years I have tried googling this quote, looking at websites that lists quotes. Is it possible this part isn’t very quotable and is only memorable to me??
I actually saw this movie on Black Friday, 1983 in Charlotte, NC. The women were going shopping, so my Dad & Uncle took all the nephews to the theater to see it. I was 8 years old at the time. We all loved it then, but it holds up remarkably well as you get older.
It only came out in 1983 and I would call it the only instant classic that I know of. Either HBO or Showtime did play it all the time right from the beginning and I assumed it had been around for a long time at that point but it hadn’t. That is where many people got exposed to it as a classic holiday movie.
My family’s claim to fame is that our cousin Mia was one of the people in the very beginning looking at the shop window. She was the Army lady. And Zack Ward, who played Scut Farkus was in Transformers with Kevin Dunn who was in Picture Perfect with Kevin Bacon.
Noooo! Don’t do this to me. I have been remembering that forever. As a matter of fact, my husband and me still mock this line when we are arguing over something stupid. My husband even sounds just like the dad when he does it! Are we both crazy?
Ok. I will just say this, then drop it. It happens when Ralphie is telling a story about how his parents are always arguing…Ralphie is doing the voiceover thing. You sure you don’t remember? Dammit. Nevermind. I may be thinking of Goodfellas.
I hate that line. It doesn’t make a helluva lot of sense in the movie. In the book the stories were based on, it’s more reasonable - the author is named Jean (and yes, it’s a man). They should have worked harder at making the bunny suit fit. Maybe made it blue and just said “4 years old”.