FAQ

Well it depends, the theatrical cut is absolutely not a family film as it contains 9 uses of the word "fuck", 2 nude scenes, drug content and multiple adult jokes. However this film has been edited for television and shown on the Family Channel frequently and in that case it is a movie that the whole family could enjoy (although it's not nearly as funny).

The car dealer pulled a "bait and switch" routine on Clark. Chances are since the Family Truckster was such a piece of garbage (not to mention ugly), the car dealer was having a very hard time selling them, so instead of getting Clark the car he wanted he intentionally brought him the Family Truckster and pretended that it was a mistake. Then before Clark even realized what was going on he had Clark's old car flattened which now leaves Clark with 3 options: 1) Wait 6 months for the car he ordered, 2) Go to another dealer (seeing how he now didn't have his old car this could end up being a very expensive option) or 3) Go home with the Family Truckster. Considering how desperate he was to get the family to Walley World, Clark went with option 3. Furthermore Clark likely had to pay the same price he would have paid for the Antarctic Blue Sports Wagon which would be considerably more than the Family Truckster was worth but seeing how he now had to go home with it so his vacation plans wouldn't be ruined the car dealer was in a great position to sell it for a ridiculously high price.

Instead of flying, Chicago food additive specialist Clark "Sparky" Griswold (Chevy Chase) loads his wife Ellen (Beverly D'Angelo), son Rusty (Anthony Michael Hall), and daughter Audrey (Dana Barron) into their new metallic pea green Wagon Queen Family Truckster and heads for Walley World in Los Angeles, California. Clark has the route all mapped out, a list of interesting sites to see along the way, and good intentions for a funfilled family vacation. Unfortunately, in the Griswold world, things don't always (in fact, never) go as planned.

Vacation is based on a short story, "Vacation '58", by American screenwriter John Hughes that appeared in National Lampoon Magazine. Hughes supposedly based it on a fictionalized account of his own family's ill-fated trip to Disneyland when Hughes was a boy. Due to the success of the movie, it was followed by National Lampoon's European Vacation (1985), National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (1989), Vegas Vacation (1997), and the 14-minute video short Hotel Hell Vacation (2010). A sixth Christmas Vacation 2: Cousin Eddie's Island Adventure (2003) aired on NBC but only features Randy Quaid as Cousin Eddie.

When the Griswolds finally get to Walley World, they discover that it is closed for repairs. Angry that all their efforts to get to Wally World were for nothing, Clark buys a gun at a nearby sporting goods store, kidnaps Park Security Officer Russ Lasky (John Candy) at gunpoint, and forces him to take them on all the rides, until a SWAT team shows up to arrest them. As the SWAT officers make them stand against a wall while being frisked, Roy Walley (Eddie Bracken) himself arrives. Clark explains to Roy, who has seven children of his own, how they just spent two weeks of living hell driving there and how disappointed they were to find Walley World closed. Roy decides not to press charges. In the final scene, the roller coaster is running again and loaded with people, Roy and Clark together in the front seat.