93 minutes – Comedy
Release date: November 18, 1983
Distributor: MGM/UA Entertainment

A Christmas Story, based on the short stories and semi-fictional anecdotes of author and broadcaster Jean Shepherd, is set in Hohman, Indiana, a fictionalized version of Shepherd`s hometown of Hammond, Indiana. Nine-year-old Ralph “Ralphie” Parker (Peter Billingsley) wants only one thing for Christmas: a Red Ryder BB Gun with a compass set into the wooden stock. While using various schemes to convince his parents to get him this gift, he continually bumps into objections from others saying, “You’ll shoot your eye out.” Made for about 4-million dollars, A Christmas Story grossed over 19-million and has become a perennial holiday favorite. Essentially a grouping of vignettes about family life in small-town America in the mid-1940s, this Norman Rockwell-like portrait of Middle America narrated in places by Shepherd himself, has become a staple of holiday television viewing – rivaling It’s a Wonderful Life for repeated showings. It is remarkably true to the spirit of its original source material without being cloyingly sentimental or phony. A US-Canada co-production, the film was nominated in 1984 for nine Genie Awards, winning for Best Director and Best Screenplay.

Also see: A Christmas Story, 25 Years and Still Going Strong

The poster and lobby card above (one of eight) were scanned from originals in the Northernstars Collection.