And still not have enough brains to keep track of your kids
A politician!
He used to earn 10% commission
Every time this comes up it needs to be pointed out that he did not pay for 9 peoples vacation, his boss did.
It was 15 or 17 people and Kevin’s uncle paid for it.
Yes, it was the uncle, so it’s a money family, money comes from the previous generation. They don’t ever mention their jobs in the film, but in the novelization the mom was a fashion designer, but that’s something the author made up on account of all the mannequins. He made the dad a businessman because it was a safe bet.
Where is that mentioned?
It’s at the beginning, when Joe Pesci is casing the house, disguised as a cop. From the script, via screencraft.org:
KATE (to the cop as she pays the boy) I’m sorry. We’re going out of town tomorrow and it’s just crazy around here. My husband’s brother transferred to Paris during the summer and his daughter goes to college here and his son is finishing high school and staying with my brother-in-law.
Kate gives the last of the cash to the Pizza Boy.
PIZZA BOY Thank you. Nice tip. Merry Christmas.
He exits.
KATE You, too.
Kate continues explaining to the cop.
KATE so ••• as a Christmas present ••• My husband’s brother gave us all a trip to Paris ••• So we can all be together for the holidays. My brother-in-law drove in from Ohio today ••• we all leave for Paris in the morning. We have a house full of people here and ••• (referring to Kevin) ••• this one’s a little out of sorts. Give me a minute and I’ll be right with you.
It was a throwaway line early in the film. The uncle paid for plane tickets for all the family members to come see him in Paris, and IIRC the adults were flown first class while the kids were flown coach.
It was the 1980s. Capitalism hadn’t reached its end-stage yet.
Oh it must certainly had. Tech just hadn’t caused that bullshit to infect every corner of society yet. Rome wasn’t sacked in a day.
edited because of *$#& autocorrect.
The US was still blissfully ignorant of how we were profiting at the expense of many lesser developed countries (that we had a hand in keeping less developed).
was still blissfully ignorant
Most westerners still are lol
The house costs around $2.5m in today’s money, or around $1.1m in 1990. Household income would have to be north of $300k/yr in 1990 dollars or over $600k in today money.
Kevin’s uncle paid for the vacation for 15 or 17 people, which would have cost over $40k in 1990. The uncle also had a penthouse in Paris(where he transferred to, creating the desire to bring the family together for xmas.), Kevin’s family stayed in a suite.
Given the neighborhood and proximity to Chicago, the father likely worked in finance.
That home in my city would cost easily 6 million
I don’t think you can can you apply the insertion figures to calculate house prices because real estate has increased so much faster than everything else in the last two decades. To put it into perspective, I recall as a kid in the 90s, a friend living in a two story house with a pool next to the beach, and that house cost 400k - which seemed like a lot because we lived in a 3bed house on a suburban half acre block which cost under 200k.
In '89 it sold for 900k.
Oh ok. So it’s about a 4M house now, maybe more.
Last sold for $2.3m a few years ago, so about $2.5m now.
I wonder if it sold for that amount purely on its own merits as a piece of real estate, or if the price was inflated at all because it’s the famous Home Alone house.
That comes down to the buyer. Most of the houses on that block are north of $1.5M, with a bunch over $2m. That area is very desirable and expensive. At best the price could inflate if a motivated buyer was determined to have the house, but I don’t see that reflected in the price.
I think the only house that would be worse to have is the Fast and The Furious house. Instead of people dressed as the characters and taking photos for a few months, you have riced-out straight-piped cars cruising by and parking to take photos constantly.
Yeah, I lived in a 2 bedroom apartment 1 mile from the beach in the late 90’s that was $850. Now the same apartment is going for $3500. Housing prices have reached insane highs. Housing is so expensive now that it’s driving people out of the cities, and people are commuting hours every day to work.
His dad is Richie Rich
He had to have been a professional Scrooge.
Mob lawyer, it’s Chicago after all…
That explains his favorite film… Ya filthy animal.
That was Uncle Frank’s movie choice, I think.
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Shoe salesman probably.
“Thanks Peg.”
They implied that most of the extended family was only visiting, but looking at the house I’m not convinced they didn’t all live in it like a commune.
The official novelisation of the movie says he is a “prominent business man” and the mom is a fashion designer.
So both probably makes quite a bit.
Lobbyist?
There is a theory that he’s a spy or government agent and that’s also why Kevin is so good at making boobytraps
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Because genetics?
Either that or his dad taught him to.
Thanks for the link. For us plebs:
The dad’s brother paid for the Paris trip. He had been watching his niece (the older one that counts everyone) while he worked in Paris, and in exchange the brother paid for them to go to Paris for Christmas (and also no doubt so he could see his kids). The brother is loaded, as we also see in the second move, he is remodeling a New York brownstone in midtown.
That says, they do pretty well. It may even be the mom with money. There is evidence to suggest she is a fashion designer with all the mannequins in the house. But the following year when they pay their own way, they go to Florida and not Europe, so they are probably not as loaded as his brother.
excellent analysis
learning the lore from Home Alone was not my first idea this morning
I cannot stop now
Rich people go to Florida too. Also I have known a few fashion designers and they generally fell into the pretend job category. I’m sure there are hard working career focused designers out there, but there are a lot of dilettantes half-assing it as well .
Good word
She paid $122 for pizza. Just out of pocket. In 1990.
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That’s $286.61 in today’s money. Source
$122.50 and she’s apparently a crappy tipper, which leads me to believe that she’s more likely to be the main breadwinner than he is. I delivered pizza for years, and noticed some trends based on income levels/ wealth levels.
