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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 22, 2017)
HOLIDAY FUN | ENTERTAINMENT Holiday MOVIE LINEUP T he holiday season brings many traditions, including holiday baking, decorating and parties. But when the day is done, continue the holiday cheer by cozying up on the couch with a great holiday movie. Alone or surrounded by your favorite people, here is a sampling of holiday movies you should watch at least once. ANIMATED The Polar Express (2004): This recent classic features breathtaking animation and Tom Hanks as the voice over for several characters, following a young boy on a train ride to the North Pole. A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965): Follow the whole Peanuts gang as Charlie Brown tries to understand what Christmas is all about. The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993): A Tim Burton holiday masterpiece follows Jack, a skeleton bored with his own holiday of Halloween, who tries on Christmas for size. How the Grinch Stole Christmas (two versions) (1966 and 2000): Incomparable and fantastic in their own way, both will undoubtedly make your heart grow three sizes. The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992): If you ever doubted that Kermit the Frog and Charles Dickens could create magic, this film is here to prove otherwise. Kermit as Bob Cratchit and Michael Cain as Ebenezer Scrooge make this film a casting win. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964): This stop-motion animation is a classic. It’s time to introduce a whole new generation to Rudolf and his misfit friends. A Christmas Story (1983): We all had that one toy we wanted desperately as a child. For Ralphie Parker, this was the Red Ryder carbine action 200-shot range model air rifle with a compass in the stock and “this thing which tells time.” National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (1989): Clark Griswold has big holiday plans. But like most plans, things don’t go as expected. In other words, disaster, Griswold style. Home Alone (1990): Left at home at Christmas by mistake, Keven McCallister is left to fight off two reckless burglars with creative pranks only a child could imagine. The Family Man (2000): One Christmas night, Jack wakes to find THE HOLIDAYS • The average person spent $805 during December in 2015, according to the National Retail Federation. This is up from $681 in 2009 — the low experienced directly after the Great Recession. by the numbers Our love of the holiday season can be measured in numbers — how we spend our money and how much we spend decorating our living spaces. Here are 10 interesting details about how we celebrate the holiday season. FEEL-GOOD FAMILY MOVIES • According to the National Retail Federation, almost 50 percent of holiday shopping will happen online. • Consumers try to keep their costs low by taking advantage of free shipping. According to the National Retail Federation, 93 percent of online shoppers take advantage of free shipping on online orders, while 47 percent of consumers stated that the offer of free shipping directly dictated where they would spend their dollars. • Christmas is the most observed federal holiday, with 94 percent of Americans celebrating. • Saving on shipping is a must when gift shopping. According to the National Retail Federation, spending on gifts surpasses food spending six times over. • The United States imported approximately $1 billion worth of Christmas ornaments from China in 2014, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. • While people travel more for Thanksgiving, they are willing to travel further for Christmas. The average person travels 275 miles for Christmas. his lavish bachelor lifestyle replaced with the life he would have had, had he stayed with his college sweetheart. Think a modern twist of the “what if” plot of “It’s a Wonderful Life.” The Santa Clause (1994): Tim Allen provides a whole new (comedic) possibility to the origins of Santa Clause. Prancer (1989): A farm girl finds a wounded reindeer she believes is Prancer, hoping to nurse it back to health in time for Christmas. CLASSICS It’s a Wonderful Life (1946): George Bailey has a wonderful life, and he will leave you feeling like yours is pretty great, too. White Christmas (1954): Starring Bing Crosby and Rosemary Clooney, two of the greats remembered year after year for their renditions of Christmas classics. Miracle on 34th Street (1947 and 1994): It’s OK to believe in Santa — after all, faith is what Christmas is all about. • According to the National Christmas Tree Association, approximately 26 million live Christmas trees were purchased in 2015. Of these, 76 percent were pre-cut, while 24 percent were retrieved from people who prefer to cut their own. • We all know retailers increase their staffs during the holiday season, but none more so than toy and game stores. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, toy and game retailers increase their staffs by 38 percent during the holidays. This is more than double the increase of other retailers. • Seventy-seven percent of consumers also treated themselves in 2015 while completing their holiday gift shopping. HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS 2017 • WWW.DAILYASTORIAN.COM • 21
