BOISE, Idaho — Imagine the perfect Christmas eve, fluffy snow floating through the sky, a nice fireplace with a symphony of crackling wood, maybe a little Christmas eve snack. Over on the TV – the 24-hour marathon of “A Christmas Story.”
“A Christmas Story” sets the perfect tone for the winter season, kids just being kids with the story of determination surrounding a successful holiday season. Ralphie Parker’s campaign for a Red Ryder BB gun stands the test of time 40 years after the original release.
To celebrate the anniversary, KTVB spoke with Idahoan Peter Billingsley, who many may know as Ralphie. Billingsley moved to Idaho about two years ago, looking for a better life for his family.
Billingsley said of course, people still recognize him.
“It’s just a movie that is so embedded in the culture,” Billingsley said. “You are approached, generally daily about it, or people are surprised that you are now in Idaho, 'what you are doing here?'”
Billingsley is no Ebenezer Scrooge – the excitement for the holiday season is authentic.
“It's a movie that brings so much joy to people and that joy is genuine, that it's hard to tire of seeing that in people," Billingsley said. "It's just something that families consume constantly, and as I said, just brings a lot of joy."
40 years later, the excitement continues for fans of the film nationwide and in the Treasure Valley. An encore screening for "A Christmas Story" will take place at the Egyptian Theatre in Boise on Tuesday, Dec. 19, at 6:30 p.m.
The movie takes place in the fictional town of Hohman, Indiana. Certainly not Idaho, but Billingsley believes the spirit of the story registers perfectly in the Gem State.
“Certainly the relatability of going to school in the cold in the Midwest, where this takes place, is familiar to a lot of Idaho as well,” Billingsley said.
So, lesson to be learned, do NOT lick a frozen pole. Even if someone triple-dog-dares you.
For Billingsley, there is something from "A Christmas Story" that has stuck with him through the years – beauty in everyday life.
“One of the things I like about the movie is its sort of a commitment to the mundane. Things in life are treated as super high stakes, like just the idea of trying to get a tree or cook a turkey or walk to school," Billingsley said. "These are the things that are kind of eventized in the movie. It's not, the world's going to end. It's just, you're trying to get through your day. And I think that's familiar to so many families."
The holiday movie is certainly nostalgic for families across the country, but what about the family of one of the stars of the show?
“I don't sit down and watch it, but it does wind up on in the house. It's almost now like karmically," Billingsley said. "I'm like, okay, you have to put it off for just a moment and then just hear the voiceover, hear some of the music, and then it feels like Christmas."
We all have favorite moments from the film – hard not to cheer when Ralphie gets his rifle, or gasp as a bb smacks him in the face. Billingsley’s favorite centers around Ralphie’s old man.
“I think my favorite moment is the fragile moment when the old man gets the lamp. I just I love that character and the guy who was sort of a small-town guy, but this is his one chance to be somebody in that moment,” Billingsley said.
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