TRAVELING IN OUR FABULOUS GAY WORLD: A Christmas Story House and Museum

A Christmas Story house A Christmas Story MuseumFor those of you who enjoyed the movie, A CHRISTMAS STORY then a trip to Cleveland to view the A CHRISTMAS STORY HOUSE and MUSEUM is a real must! The movie actually first came out in 1983 and although it was not an immediate box office hit, it has now become a solid CLASSIC MOVIE! Since 1997, a marathon of the movie has aired annually on TNT or TBS comprising twelve consecutive airings of the film on both Christmas Eve and Christmas Day each year. We think that it is more popular than It’s A Wonderful Life! The house was built in 1895 and a very intelligent businessman purchased the house and restored it to look exactly as it did in the movie. It opened as a museum in 2006 and since then, thousands of people have toured the house. It is really a great house museum as you can actually touch and feel everything in the house. A Christmas Story MuseumWhen we were there, several of the visitors got under the kitchen sink and had their photos take. Other chose to put on the pink rabbit pajamas to be photographed. It brought out the ‘kid’ in all of us. Hold the Red Ryder BB rifle, stand in front of the Christmas tree and don’t forget to touch and feel and photograph the “leg lamp”. We had an absolutely wonderful tour guide, Kristen who was extremely knowledgeable about the history of the house and movie. She was VERY charming and the entire group really appreciated her. You could tell that she really enjoyed what she was doing. A Christmas Story MuseumAfter taking the tour of the house, then go across the street to their museum and the tour continues there. It features original props, costumes and memorabilia from the film as well as hundreds of rare behind-the-scenes photos,. Among the props an costumes are the toys from the Higbee’s department store display window. Randy’s snowsuit, the chalkboard from Miss Shield’s classroom and the family car. We drove downtown Cleveland to visit the Higbee’s department store but sadly it was sold and is now a Casino! We did go in and got to see many of the wonderful architectural items remaining on the walls and ceilings. After viewing the Museum then walk into the Gift Shop which is next door. They have a large selection of wonderful memorabilia to purchase and their prices are VERY reasonable. Whether you wish to purchase a life size leg lamp or a Christmas ornament or a night light, they have everything right there for you. You can check out A CHRISTMAS STORY HOUSE by going to: www.achristmasstoryhouse.com They are located at 3159 West 11th Street just south of downtown. Their phone is: 216. 298. 4919. They are open Monday thru Saturday from 10 AM to 5 PM and on Sunday they are open noon to 5 PM. One word about parking. There are tons of on street parking in the area. There are a couple of houses on each side of the house that has parking in their front yards, but forget that. Park right on the street for free parking. We highly recommend this museum for everyone to visit. This is a must-see museum house and one that you will never forget! When we toured the house there were other from coast to coast and everyone talked with each other about their memories of seeing the movie. On a scale of 1 to 10, we give this a 10! A special thanks to Angela Dickerson at A CHRISTMAS STORY HOUSE who is doing a very professional job there. Don and RayAlways remember to have fun when traveling, meet new people and talk to everyone! TRAVELING IN OUR FABULOUS GAY WORLD is written by Donald Pile and Ray Williams, Award-winning, Celebrity travel columnists who write for gay publications from coast to coast (And now legally married). Proud members of the IGLTA. You can email them at gaytravelers@aol.com and visit their website at http://gaytravelersataol.blogspot.com/

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