“Home Alone” fans, it’s been 30 years since the release if you can believe it! The smashing hit became one of the must-see Christmas flicks. One of the staples of the movie is the house itself that played a major part in the Kevin McCallister mischiefs. Macaulay Culkin even drew the plan of the house during the shooting carefully marking his traps for Marv and Harry. Three decades later the house is still in the same spot, so let’s take a look at today’s edition and compare the notes!
The home is located in an upscale neighborhood of Winnetka, Illinois, about 15 miles north of Chicago. The last time house went on the market was in 2011 only to be sold in 2012 for a bit over $1.5 million. It’s a red-brick, two-story, Georgian-style home that features 4,700 square feet, 6 bedrooms, and just as many bathrooms. There are big open spaces on the first floor connecting the hall, kitchen, and living room, which made it perfect for the movie set.
Even though the majority of the scenes were filmed in the studio, all exterior and hall/kitchen/living room scenes are genuine. The Abendshien family who were living in the house at the time, and sold it in 2012, were living in the second story in an improvised apartment for months.
Today, the red carpets and floral wallpapers are long gone and replaced with neutral modern colors. As soon as you open the door, the memories of Macaulay sledding down the stairs hits. “They built a ramp for our staircase so that Mac could take his sled out the front door,” Abendshien said, recalling how that iconic scene was filmed.
The kitchen where the family eats pizza before leaving and forgetting an 8-year old Kevin at home has the same layout but with new and modern appliances and countertops.
Marissa Hopkins was the realtor who listed the house for sale and made a tour of the iconic home back in 2011.
Where are they now?
Macaulay Culkin is 40 years old, and out of the spotlight for the past couple of decades. The child actor had his share of real-life problems battling addictions and going to court against his parents. After “Home Alone” did great at the box office, Culkin shot “Home Alone 2 Lost in New York”, “My Girl” (1991), “The Nutcracker” (1993), and “Richie Rich” (1994).
Daniel Stern and Joe Pesci, who played Marv and Harry, were established actors before “Home Alone” and went on to film many other movies. Pesci is especially known for starring in “Goodfellas” and “Casino”.
Fun Facts
- The part was written for Macauley Culkin specifically.
- Robert DeNiro turned down the role of Harry.
- Joe Pesci was convinced that the movie was going to be a flop and couldn’t stop swearing on the set.
- The finger-biting scene was not faked. Pesci actually bit Culkin leaving him a mark.
- The movie Kevin is seen watching in the movie, “Angels with dirty souls”, doesn’t exist.
- Buzz’s girlfriend was actually a boy since the director Chris Columbus thought that making fun of an actual girl would be too cruel.
- The tarantula is real.
- The flooded basement scene was actually shot in the swimming pool.
- The majority of the dialogues were improvised, by Macauley Culkin and Joe Pesci mostly, since no one thought that the movie will be successful.
- The car crash scene, when the car stops inches from Culkin was far too dangerous to shoot, so the scene was filmed in reverse. And then played in reverse.
Kim Marks 
Nina Smith