In November 1990, one of the most popular Christmas movies of all time hit cinema screens around the world. Home Alone would become a box office smash that year, making a star of 8-year-old Macaulay Culkin. The Home Alone House, much like The Goonies House before it, also became a star in its own right.
The Home Alone House used in the movie.
Accidentally left behind by his family at Christmas, Kevin McCallister is forced to defend his home from two burglars terrorizing the neighborhood. Thankfully Kevin, played by Macaulay Culkin, has a large home and plenty of tricks up his sleeve as he defends his home.
The movie turned Macaulay Culkin into one of the biggest child movie stars of all time. While the McCallister house became a character in its own right. Three decades later, we take a look at this beautiful home today.
THE HOME ALONE HOUSE
In the movie, the house was located in Chicago, however, the house was really located in Winnetka, Illinois on 671 Lincoln Ave. Before you rush off to look for it on Google Maps….you won’t find it, well you will…but it’s blurred out to protect the privacy of the owners.
The house is no longer available to view on Google Maps. You can, however, see ‘Old Man Marley’s’ house next door (the house to the left).
Built in 1920, the red-brick, Georgian-style home sits on a half-acre with around 4,200 square feet of living space. The property boasts five bedrooms, including a four-room master suite, which spans the entire west wing of the home, and three-and-a-half bathrooms.
The owners of the home at the time of filming the movie were John and Cynthia Abendshien. The couple hadn’t owned it for very long when the production company approached them. Their home would soon be transformed into a film set for the movie.
This is how the house looks today, still instantly recognizable.
Director Chris Columbus later stated that finding a house to fit his vision was no easy task:
“We needed to cast a house that would work for the stunts and also a house that was visually appealing and, if this makes sense, warm and menacing at the same time. It’s the kind of house if you were a kid it would be fun to be left home alone… I wanted it to feel timeless.”
THE HOME ALONE HOUSE THEN AND NOW
Despite the house being a major part of the movie, few of the interior scenes were actually shot inside the real house. Director Christopher Columbus talks in the DVD commentary about recreating much of the interior on a sound stage in a high school gymnasium.
Macaulay Culkin on the set of Home Alone.
Unfortunately, Colombus didn’t state which rooms were sets and which were real, therefore it’s difficult to know. The kitchen was a major part of the movie, however, the kitchen today looks nothing like the kitchen back then.
Therefore, either major renovation work has taken place or this was a set at the school gymnasium.
The kitchen in Home Alone is where many popular scenes take place.
Notice the staircase on the back wall.
The kitchen today looks nothing like what it did in the movie. It appears somewhat smaller, and not a staircase to be seen. The house plans show that the only staircase leading upstairs in the main staircase.
The staircase in the movie is the location for many great scenes.
The staircase today has changed in decor but still looks somewhat similar. The window on the landing, for instance, is still the same.
The French doors lead to a cozy room with a couch.
The doors may be gone, but a piano occupies the exact same spot.
The home office that is now located through where the French doors once were.
Looking from the living room, through the foyer and into the dining room in the movie.
The dining room today features hand-painted walls by artist Sydney Barton.
The master bedroom in the movie.
The master bedroom in the house today looks very different, the fire-place isn’t there and the door is in a different place, it seems that the bedroom was possibly a set, or redesigned since the movie was made.
This is the floor-plan for the ground floor. Unfortunately, we don’t have one for upstairs.
The Home Alone House sold in 2012 for $1.585 million. The original asking price for the house was $2.4 million, however, after some time without a sale, the price was lowered.
