Strollerderby : A Christmas Story

Kid Gets Tongue Stuck on a Metal Pole

JeanneSager — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 23:13:00 GMT

Somewhere in Indiana, a family is rethinking the annual viewing of A Christmas Story.

A fourth grader at an elementary school in Indiana told emergency workers a friend dared him to stick his tongue to the metal pole. Surprise, suprise, in the middle of January, it was ten degrees in Indiana, and you can guess where this is going.

Just like Ralphie's friend Flick's tongue, it stuck. Of course, since this wasn't a Christmas movie from the eighties, the kid simply yanked hard enough that it came off. Emergency workers reportedly instructed his mom on how to stop the bleeding and went on their ways (probably trying to rein in the laughter). She admitted to the AP that her son was testing the reality of television.

What does this prove - other than the fact that this family might be the only one in America to miss the marathon airings of A Christmas Story in future Decembers? The same doofy pranks we pulled? Our kids are going to pull them too.

Technology might be better, but what they'll do for the sake of a bet is just as simple as ever.

Image: Gothamist

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Holiday Rich or Rehab: Whatever Happened to Randy From 'A Christmas Story'?

Jen Chaney — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 16:02:00 GMT

We already know what became of Peter Billingsley, the actor who played Ralphie in "A Christmas Story." (And by the way, you can see yet another of his frequent cameo appearances in "Four Christmases," the No. 1 movie in America and a comedy he also produced.) But what about Ralphie's little brother Randy, the kid who snorted all over a plate of meatloaf and mashed potatoes in his role as "Mommy's Little Piggy"? Whatever happened to him?

That young actor's name was Ian Petrella, and he was only 9-years-old when the Red Ryder BB gun tale released in theaters. It was his first role, but not his last. Petrella went on to appear in several TV shows, including "Diff'rent Strokes," "Who's the Boss" and "Beverly Hills, 90210," in which he played the much sought-after role of "Kid." (At least that's how imdb tells it.)

After that, the California native left acting behind. Details on his early adult life are vague, but my friend the Internet, who's in really tight with Wikipedia, tells me that Petrella currently works as an animator and puppeteer. Some of his creations can be seen on the Web site Mas Kapital, where a short bio pays homage to his alter ego Randy, the little boy who can never put his arms down while wearing a snowsuit.

Petrella included his e-mail address on the page, so technically I suppose you could shoot him a note if you've always to correspond with Randy Parker. (And who hasn't?) Actually, you may want to wish him a happy birthday since next week, he turns 34.

Sure, he may not roll with Vince Vaughn and Jon Favreau like his onscreen older brother. But it sounds like Ralphie's baby bro is doing just fine.

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XBox Writes Santa Letter for Your Kids

JeanneSager — Fri, 28 Nov 2008 14:06:00 GMT

Vista may not be Microsoft's biggest flub of the year. Hard to believe, I know, but a form letter generator for kids begging for their XBox this holiday might just beat the blue screen of death bombing operating system for the Worst Attempt At Being Useful Award.

To help convince doubting Thomases and Thomasinas that life without an XBox is a fate worse than having Mom pick them up from school in her PJs and curlers, Microsoft is letting kids choose their words from multiple choice drop-down menus. The XBox site lets them pick a recipient, a holiday (Festivus is on there for you Seinfeld fans), a means of celebration and list of four Microsoft products (talk about a monopoly). It even lets them clue you in on why they really deserve your major cash investment - ie. they've been "oder-free" all year long.

Ralphie's ode to his Red Rider BB gun this isn't. The results of my husband taking a spin to convince me he really needs an XBox (sadly, he's only half joking!) were amusing in that Mad Libs kind of way. But if one of these came from a kid, I'd be tempted to send them back to the drawing board to write a proper Santa letter one hundred times. Sorry kiddo, if you can't summon the passion to write your own letter, Mommy can't summon the $200-something it would take to bring home one of those babies.

On second thought, let 'em "write" it. A half-assed attempt on their part should earn them a half-assed attempt at holiday shopping, right? Coal it is.

Image: XBox (the husband's attempt at humor)

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