December 15, 2022
Here are some fun Leg Lamp trivia items that you might not already know. Nutafinga!
A Christmas Story Is Based On A Short Story That Was First Published In Playboy Magazine
Before it was a movie, A Christmas Story was a series of short stories by writer and radio personality Jean Shepherd. The stories were a fictional account of his childhood in the 1940s. The short story about the Leg Lamp is titled “My Old Man and the Lascivious Special Award that Heralded the Birth of Pop Art” and was originally published in 1966. The story that inspired A Christmas Story, “Red Ryder Nails the Hammond Kid”, was published in the December 1965 issue of Playboy Magazine.
NERD NOTE: Jean Shepherd had his own radio show at WOR-AM in New York City for 22 years (1955-1977).
The Lamp Was Inspired By A Soda Advertisement
Jean Shepherd first got the idea for the leg lamp after seeing a Nehi Soda advertisement featuring a pair of legs. Nehi’s signature image in their ads during the 30s and 40s was a pair of female legs.
Nehi (pronounced “knee-high”) soda was introduced in 1924. In 1955, the company changed its name to Royal Crown Company, after its RC Cola brand.
Shepherd gave cloaked credit to Nehi by writing that the Old Man’s crossword contest was sponsored by an “orange pop” beverage company whose name “was a play on words, involving the lady’s knee.”
A Plus-Sized Model Posed For The Leg Lamp
The Leg Lamp is big, after all, it was “a major award.” Martin Malivoire, one of the prop designers who helped fabricate the lamp for the movie, used a plus-sized woman’s leg to cast the mold.
Only One Leg Lamp Survived The Filming Of A Christmas Story
Collecting movie props is a very popular, and profitable hobby. Iconic props like the Wilson volleyball from Cast Away, the Maltese Falcon, and the Batmobile have fetched small fortunes at auction. But sadly no one will ever own an original Leg Lamp. All of the original leg lamps were broken during filming or discarded afterward.
Production designer Reuben Freed designed three-leg lamps for the film using a mold fabricated by Martin Malivoire. Two Leg Lamps were broken during filming. One survived and sat in the window of Martin Malivoire’s special effects shop in Toronto for several years.
Unfortunately, this is one of the saddest Leg Lamp trivia items on this list. While cleaning up his shop, Malivoire threw the lamp into the garbage. His timing was terrible. Just a few years later, everyone started going crazy for Leg Lamps. It’s too bad, Malivoire would have owned the ultimate Christmas Story collectible.
The Christmas Story Lamp Shade Is Shaped Like A Bell
After Martin Malivoire created the glass leg, production designer Reuben Freed created the style and design of the Christmas Story movie leg lamp. The lampshade is a classic bell shape based on a lamp from Freed’s mother’s living room.
The ‘A Christmas Story Leg Lamp’ Is An Icon In Cleveland
Although Jean Shepard is a native of Indiana, A Christmas Story was primarily filmed in Cleveland, Ohio. In the years following the film’s release, the city has embraced being connected with the film.
To help celebrate the 30th anniversary of A Christmas Story in 2013, Terminal Tower in Cleveland’s Public Square was transformed into a giant leg lamp. People traveled from around the world to come to the United States for the event. Keen fans of the film might recognize Terminal Tower as Higbee‘s department store, where Ralphie and his brother have their frightening encounter with Santa.
Leg Lamp Replicas Are Very Popular Holiday Decorations And Holiday Gifts
It took several decades, but now you too can own the coveted Leg Lamp. And you don’t even have to win a contest like the Old Man to get one.
This half-scale 26″ reproduction of the Leg Lamp from the 1983 movie A Christmas Story isn’t completely accurate, but it’s probably close enough for most fans of A Christmas Story. And honestly, its smaller scale will be more apt to blend in with the average living room or make a great desk lamp.
And if you want a full-size floor lamp or a large 40″ inch Leg Lamp for the front window in your living room, then you’re in luck. They make those too. And the best part, most of these replica lamps come with an authentic box that says FRAGILE (fra-gee-lay).
In 2012, Enough Christmas Story Leg Lamps Were Sold On Amazon To Top Mt. Everest
According to an Amazon.com press release on 2012 holiday sales, the Leg Lamp was such a popular item that if they stacked them all on top of each other they would be higher than Mount Everest (29,029 ft).
The Director Of A Christmas Story Made A Cameo In The Film Delivering The Leg Lamp
Bob Clark, the director of A Christmas Story, did a cameo with the Leg Lamp. Clark played the role of Swede, the dim-witted neighbor, who marvels at the Leg Lamp from outside the house.
The Leg Lamp Has Inspired An Entire Line Of Christmas Decorations And Merchandise
For people who don’t need a new lamp but still love the Leg Lamp, smaller versions exist. In recent years Leg Lamp nightlights ($15+ via Amazon) and Leg Lamp Christmas Tree lights ($30 via Amazon) have all hit the market.
My maternal grandfather owned a service station in the rural North Carolina. He sold sodas out of a chest style soda machine. I enjoyed watching him work when we would visit. He always told me to get myself any soda I wanted from the chest. Almost always I selected an ice cold Nehi grape soda in a glass bottle. Nothing was better on a hot summer day with no air-conditioning. If offered a leg lamp or an ice cold Nehi grape soda from that soda chest at my grandfather's store, I would chose the soda every time.