Our Favorite Trivia From 'Home Alone'—Which Came Out 25 Years Ago Today

By Kate Shepherd in News on Nov 16, 2015 9:01PM

Facebook.com/HomeAloneMovie

It's hard to believe that it's been a quarter of a century since holiday-classic and Chicago-classic 'Home Alone' came out. The John Hughes movie was released 25 years ago today and went on to gross more than $285 million at the box office, according to Box Office Mojo.

Macaulay Culkin played Kevin McCallister, an 8-year-old Winnetka boy, left home alone on accident during his family's Christmas vacation to Paris. It seems like all fun and games until some idiot burglars try to break into the house on Christmas Eve.

The movie shot scenes all over the North Shore, most notably the McCallister home at 671 Lincoln Ave. in Winnetka (the house sold in 2012 for $1.585 million). Other recognizable locations are in the movie like the Hubbard Woods Metra Station, Trinity Methodist Church in Wilmette and of course, O'Hare International Airport, according to IMDB.

Former Chicagoist EIC in front of the Home Alone house. marcusisabadass

We've uncovered some interesting facts (and legends) about one of our favorite holiday movies in honor of the anniversary (via IMDB):

• There's a strange urban legend that that Elvis Presley (who died in 1977) has a cameo in this movie. Elvis-truthers (they're real) believe that the heavily bearded man standing in the background of the scene where Kevin's mom Mrs. McCallister is shouting at the desk clerk (just before she John Candy appears) is actually the King himself.

• Michael Jackson visited the set to see Culkin. They had a very close relationship and even shared a bed but Culkin insists that Jackson never molested him.
• Longtime North Shore resident John Hughes wrote the part of Kevin especially for Culkin after working with him on Uncle Buck but director Chris Columbus insisted on auditioning hundreds of other boys before determining Culkin was the perfect choice.
• Kevin is never seen in his own room.
• Actor John Candy improvised all of his lines.
• Chris Farley auditioned for the role of Santa Claus in the movie, which would have been amazing.
• The image of Kevin with his hands on his face screaming on the movie poster and VHS covers is based on "The Scream" by Edvard Munch.
• The "Uncle Frank" part was written for Kelsey Grammer.
• "Little Nero's Pizza" is a play on "Little Caesar's". Nero was a Roman Emperor who used the title of Caesar.
• The Christmas ornaments that Marv steps on are actually candy.
• Joe Pesci, who played one of the robbers, avoided Culkin on the set because he wanted him to believe that he was actually mean.