An official Red Ryder carbine-action two-hundred-shot range model air rifle. What more could a kid ask for? Especially if it’s the 1940s and your idea of a swell time is listening to Little Orphan Annie – interspersed with Ovaltine commercials – on the grand ol’ radio.

Of course, if A Christmas Story would have been set in the decade in which I grew up (the illustrious 1980s), Ralphie wouldn’t have been pining over a Red Ryder brand BB gun. He would have spent his days dreaming of a bright orange Nintendo Entertainment System-branded Zapper light gun so he could take out animated ducks and practice virtual target shooting. Sure, he wouldn’t have felt the wind in his hair, but he wouldn’t have run the risk of shooting his eye out, either. It’s a toss-up, really.

And chances are, instead of drinking Ovaltine, Ralphie would have been sipping the sweet chocolate, strawberry and vanilla nectars of Nestle Quik (Nesquik, to you youngsters out there). After all, listening to boring Ovaltine commercials on the radio is nothing compared to watching flashy Nickelodeon on a console TV and seeing a cartoon rabbit touting the thick, chocolatey taste of Nestle Quik. Who needs Ovaltine when a bunny that obviously knows his chocolate-flavored drinks is telling you Nestle Quik should be your thirst quencher of choice?

Nearly 30 years later, A Christmas Story is still going strong – even if its meager box office earnings didn't suggest future success. But thanks to a strong, cult-like following and TNT's “24 Hours of A Christmas Story,” the movie has become a behemoth of a holiday franchise.

Would it have been as successful set in another decade? Would Ralphie finding an NES Zapper hidden in the corner been as memorable? I’m guessing not as much. Plus, we wouldn’t have heard the magical line, “Those icicles have been known to kill people!” — because, as aforementioned, with the Zapper, Ralphie wouldn’t have been in danger of shooting his eye out.

This holiday season, enjoy your time with family and friends gathered near – and be sure to watch out for those icicles. They’ve been known to kill people, you know.

- Shae C.