You'll Shoot Your Eye Out! (Not A School Shooting Thread)

While McGavin worked consistently - 183 credits! - he was nominated for a grand total of one Emmy, for a guest spot on "Murphy Brown" in the 1990s. So, I think the bar would be lower for a modern equivalent than Cranston or Levy. William Russ, the dad from "Boys Meets World" and, uh, "American History X?"

 

I was thinking more who would have "fit the role" best, rather than actor status. McGavin could do it all, comedy, drama. He was kind of the TV version of Jack Lemmon.

 

I think I read/heard the new one takes place in 1973. Which would put Ralphie at about 40. Not sure why they didn't set it in the 80s. Would have had a better soundtrack that way.

 

Shepherd was born in 1921. If Ralphie was his self-insert, that would have set the first film in the late 20s to early thirties. To me it always scanned late 30s to early 40s. Would the football rivalry mentioned in the first movie clear this up?

Both? None of the above? Good Lord, nobody ever looked like they were having as much fun as Darren McGavin. Going to get out my Nightstalker discs soon just to see him gleefully chew bad TV monsters, scenery, and the occasional clunkers in the scripts.
Levy and Cranston come close in that regard. Think of Cranston in Malcom in the Middle.

 

Little Orphan Annie was on radio from 1930-1942, but did not go national until 1931, sez the infallible Wikipedia. While he would have been in range for the earlier WGN-only version, I doubt the merchandising machine (aka decoder pins) got cranked up until after it went national. And there was no mention whatsoever of World War II, which would have dominated the talk of Christmas in 1941 and 42 at a minimum.

 

Also note the Wizard of Oz characters in the mall. So I'm guessing 39-40.

 

The Radio Orphan Annie decoder pin that Ralphie receives is the 1940 “Speedomatic” model, indicating that the movie takes place in December, 1940. Different decoder badges were made each year from 1935-1940. By 1941, the decoders were made of paper due to World War II metal shortages.

Origin and Fun Facts – A Christmas Story House

 

The 1940 Bears hosted the Packers on November 3 that year, meaning that Ralphie lost his glasses and beat up Farkas likely before Halloween.

I guess it could have snowed a bunch of times in October? But I’m guessing saying that the Bears were playing the Packers sounds better than them playing the Rams or Cardinals.m

In 1941, the Bears played the Packers in a Western Division playoff on December 14, so that could have been more plausible. But that was the week after Pearl Harbor, and it sounds strange seeing happy people right as war begins.

https://www.pro-football-reference.com/teams/chi/1940.htm

https://www.pro-football-reference.com/teams/chi/1941.htm