CLEVELAND — A world-famous tourist attraction and piece of movie history is now for sale.
It’s a top-ranked tourist attraction in Cleveland, according to Trip Advisor, and now it’s up for grabs. You could be the proud new owner of Ralphie Parker’s home from the 1983 holiday movie classic, “A Christmas Story.”
Visiting this house makes Nancy Gordon feel like she’s home.
“It takes you back to the 50s,” she said. “You know, my generation.”
The movie “A Christmas Story” brings back a lot of memories for the Cleveland Heights resident.
“The coal furnace—we had a coal furnace,” she said. “And then the choice words that the dad said and everything like that. That was my dad. And my mom.”
She and her husband made the trek to see the house used in the festive film for one main reason.
“He wanted to see that major award, that woman’s leg with the fishnet stockings,” Gordon said. “What can I say?” Referring to the leg lamp in the front window of the house.
The Gordons are among the thousands of people who make the pilgrimage to the site each year, with more than 75,000 paying visitors annually.
It serves a heavy dose of warm memories and nostalgia, and now it’s for sale.
“It’s totally unusual,” said Chad Whitmer, real estate agent with Hoff & Leigh. “It’s obviously very iconic and very different.”
Whitmer is handling the 1.3 acre commercial campus’s listing.
In addition to the iconic yellow “A Christmas Story” house, the listing also includes the gift shop, museum, parking lots and the neighbor’s home, the Bumpus House.
Whitmer said the response to the sale announcement was unprecedented.
“It’s been beyond our belief,” he said. “I mean, in the last 24 hours, between text messages, emails, phone calls, it’s probably been north of 500 inquiries.”
One of the biggest questions is about the price tag.
“It’s gonna be in the eight-figure range, is what we’re figuring,” he said.
Whitmer said the owner lives out of state with his family and is just ready to move on, after building this complex up from what was once a run-down house he bought off eBay.
“We imagine the buyer that’s gonna come in here is going to continue to operate in the same manner and keep it open and expand it and make it even better,” he said.
A sequel to “A Christmas Story” was recently released on HBOMax and has many of the stars from the original movie, including the house.
According to sales materials, more than a million visitors have stopped by the house since it opened in 2006.
