In La Mirada, a man has created the Griswold house from the movie National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation. And each year he draws a big crowd to his house for this special light display.

It’s a Christmas classic… and almost every family can relate to The Griswold’s.

“In the way we’re all quirky and goofy and it’s really loud during Christmas with us. You can probably hear them in the background,” said Kelsey Bosman, while visiting the Griswold home.

“My sister passed away but she was the Cousin Eddie of the family. Would come unannounced leave when she wanted and we really connected with the movie,” said Griswold homeowner Jeff Norton.

So much so, that 30 years later, Jeff Norton has recreated National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation in his front lawn – the 15000 block of Golva Drive in La Mirada.

It naturally draws quite a crowd…Ronnie Bopick came all the way from Pennsylvania.


“It’s awesome. You can’t beat it. They’ve got everything,” Bopick said.

Norton has spent about $50,000 collecting Christmas Vacation memorabilia since he was a kid.

“I’ve got the boss being kidnapped, Eddie kicking him, the neighbors Todd and Margot talking to Clark with the chainsaw, the tree, cop car scene, the RV, pretty much everything.”

He found the ’72 motorhome without a motor in Tijuana. He hired someone to build Cousin Eddie, got the chainsaw from the actual movie, the squirrel from a taxidermist, and adopted the cop car from a neighbor and got local high school students to paint it.

Norton has eight snow machines on his property and he makes the snow himself using bubble bath, water and alcohol.

Winner of the La Mirada Christmas lights contest, this is Norton and his friends 3rd year doing this. Norton says his health hasn’t been good lately…but he hopes to continue this Christmas tradition.

“The house is actually a Google landmark now and with that I am going to paint the house the same color as in the movie and put the second story on the house. You are obsessed. Yeah pretty bad,” he added.

And even after watching Christmas Vacation so many times, over three decades…it still brings so much joy to the holidays.

“He says that’s a nice looking vehicle isn’t it? He goes don’t go falling in love with that with you…he spits out the eggnog and the whole deal, I love that part,” Norton exclaimed.

