A Christmas Story Comes Home…and it’s FREE!
This holiday season, The Indiana Welcome Center in Hammond will feature six animated displays featuring scenes from A Christmas Story. The displays include; Higbee’s Department Store Window, Flick’s Tongue and the Triple Dog Dare, It’s a Major Award, Santa’s Mountain at Higbee’s, The Bumpus Hounds, and the Parker Living Room.
A Christmas Story Comes Home exhibit will be on display from now until January 10, 2010 in the W.F. Wellman Exhibit Hall. The Welcome Center is located at the intersections of I-80/94 and Kennedy Avenue South; only 30 minutes from downtown Chicago and 2 hours north of Indianapolis.
Special Events
Don’t miss Festival Weekend, December 5th and 6th! Guests will have the opportunity to meet Flick, Randy Parker, Scut Farkus, Grover Dill and Miss Shields from the movie, A Christmas Story. Autograph signings will be held at the Indiana Welcome Center on Saturday and Sunday from noon to 5 and noon to 4, respectively (fees apply). A pancake breakfast with the cast at the Jean Shepherd Center, the Chicagoland premier of the documentary Clark WORLD and photos with Santa are also available this weekend! The “Oh Fuuudge!” tire changing relay will be held on December 12, 2009. Both events are held at the Welcome Center in Hammond, Indiana. More information is available at www.aChristmasStoryComesHome.com.
Relive the “You’ll shoot your eye out” scene atop Santa’s Mountain
Have your picture taken with Santa on top of Santa’s Mountain, a replica of the one featured in the movie. In the famous scene, Ralphie Parker asks Santa for an Official Red Rider BB Gun, and the Santa responds, “You’ll shoot your eye out, kid.”
Photos with Santa on Santa’s Mountain are available between Thanksgiving and Christmas, every Friday from 5pm to 7:30pm and Saturday and Sunday between 11am and 3pm at the Indiana Welcome Center. Children have the opportunity to slide down a big red slide into a pillow of snow. Photos are $5 a piece/person.
A History of A Christmas Story
The 1983 holiday classic, A Christmas Story, will be celebrated throughout Hammond, Indiana. The film was written by Jean Shepherd, Leigh Brown and Bob Clark and was based on Shepherd’s 1966 book, In God We Trust, All Others Pay Cash. The book is a compilation of short stories based on Shepherd’s experiences in Hammond. A number of the short stories appeared in “Playboy” magazine and originated from his unscripted radio broadcasts in the 1950’s, 60’s and 70’s.
Shepherd narrated the entire movie and also had a cameo in the Higbee’s Department Store scene. The movie was set in the fictional town of Hohman, Indiana which was a disguise for Shepherd’s hometown: Hammond. Hohman is one of Hammond’s busiest downtown streets.
More Information
Visit www.aChristmasStoryComesHome.com for a complete list of special events, contests, hours of operation and directions. The Welcome Center gift shop offers an array of movie memorabilia including the infamous leg lamp!
The Indiana Welcome Center is located at the intersections of I-80/94 & Kennedy Avenue South in Hammond, Indiana. The Welcome Center can be reached at 1-800-ALL-LAKE.
