As soon as the boys were old enough (in our eyes) this movie (The Nightmare Before Christmas) became a staple in our household. Gabriel, of course, loved the stop motion filming process. We suspect this movie may have planted the creativity seed in his very, very young mind.
Shannon distinctly remembers Gabriel constantly descending the stairs in our house on Quail Meadows Drive in Lancaster, Ohio loudly proclaiming:
"AND I - JACK! THE PUMPKIN KING!"
...from the Jack's Lament song. So his favorite character at the time was Jack.
Connor, on the other hand, really loved Lock, Shock and Barrel as well as Oogie Boogie. He would go around singing:
"Kidnap the Sandy Claws, lock him up real tight. Throw away the key and then turn off all the lights!"
George Lucas famously said "Sound is 50 percent of the movie going experience, and I've always believed audiences are moved and excited by what they hear in my movies at least as much as by what they see" and this could not be more true for this movie. The soundtrack is every bit as fantastic as the movie itself.
So now the big question that's on everyone's mind: Is this a HALLOWEEN movie or a CHRISTMAS movie?
Shannon says: CHRISTMAS (and I also quote "It's a Christmas movie just as much as Die Hard is a fucking Christmas movie."
Larry Says: HALLOWEEN (J/K)
What a great trip down memory lane tonight. As we reminisced, we marveled at the personalities they have become aligning so well with the characters they fell in love with.
Gabriel is serious, demands attention and likes to be in charge.
Connor is mischievous, likes to break into song randomly and a fun loving person.
They couldn't be more different in terms of personalities, but combined with Shannon and I, it made for a never boring family dynamic...and still does...
P.S. Shannon has spent half my life savings on Disney Snow globes and this is one of the three that I actually approved.
30th Anniversary
Ghost of a Chance 