A moment of glory followed by complete disappointment.
Fifty stands of lights, 100 individual bulbs per strand, for a grand total of 25,000 imported Italian twinkle lights.
But I'd be lying if I said that I didn't find looking back at the original Vacation, and at least one of the sequels, more entertaining.
And that's exactly what I did when I compiled this collection of the 16 Best Scenes from the National Lampoon's Vacation franchise.
It has a bit of a sloppy script as far as story progression is concerned, but there are some very big laughs, a few great running gags, solid references to the original movie, and a fantastic performance from Ed Helms, who channels Chevy Chase and his charming naivete the whole way through.
It just doesn't get any better than this.