On the shortlist for all-time holiday classics is A Christmas Story, the 1983 film based on the work of author Jean Shepherd and starring Peter Billingsley as Ralphie Parker, a precocious child in snowy 1940s Indiana who wants a Red Ryder BB gun for Christmas. (Ralphie’s story continues in the 2022 HBO Max film A Christmas Story Christmas.)
If you want to experience total immersion, you might want to entertain the idea of living in Ralphie’s house, which is now up for sale. According to USA Today, the property—which is actually located at 3159 West 11th Street in Cleveland, Ohio—is being offered for sale by Hoff & Leigh realtors.
The current owner, Brian Jones, purchased the home on eBay in 2004 for $150,000. After renovations, he turned the home into a tourist attraction and bed and breakfast. It’s estimated that roughly 75,000 people visit the area annually.
The listing is actually comprised of a “campus,” with several buildings—including a museum and gift shop—and parking, for a total of 1.3 acres. The offer also includes the logistics of Jones’s e-commerce business that deals in movie-related ephemera (think leg lamps). While the eventual buyer may decide to live in it, it’s clear there’s money to be made in hosting the film’s fans.
The Cleveland home doesn’t make an appearance in the recent sequel, which rebuilt the original sets in Sofia, Bulgaria, as a cost-cutting measure.
The home’s price is unlisted. On the FAQ page, the stated reason is that “there are no real comparables—there’s nothing else out there with this particular combination of assets.” You’ll have to bring your best offer.
[h/t USA Today]
Jake Rossen
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