NatNews

For more than 20 years, individuals in the Dallas metroplex have had the opportunity to take part in the Jingle Bell Run, a holiday-themed family-friendly and pet-friendly event that includes a nighttime 5K race and 1-mile fun run.

For some runners, including Dallas-area resident James Allen, the festive evening has become an annual tradition.

“We’ve been running this race since 2011 and wouldn’t miss it for the world,” he said.

The races start and end at the Hilton Anatole in Dallas and typically draw in a large crowd of both runners and spectators. For many individuals, the event is about much more than running, though.

“This is the first Jingle Bell Run in two or three years since covid,” Dallas-area resident Josh Odegard, who has participated in the festivities 9 or 10 times already, said. “I really hope the after-party is as amazing as I remember it is. I know that it won’t have Emerald City Band this year, so it probably won’t be as amazing, but it usually has a lot of food and a lot of drinks and a lot of fun things for kids. It’s a good family-friendly event.”

But for those who are more focused on the running aspect, Odegard said the Jingle Bell Run offers a desirable course for those hoping to run fast during an ideal time of year.

“It’s also one of the few winter 5Ks, and a lot of great runners will come out hoping to PR because the weather is usually perfect for that,” he said. “The course changed a few years ago, so the first half mile is uphill, but the second mile downhill almost evens that out. A lot of people will PR on this course, even if they’re not expecting to.”

Regardless of whether individuals are seeking personal best times or simply enjoyable holiday-themed entertainment, the Jingle Bell Run offers something for everyone.

“The Christmas spirit is in full swing,” Allen said. “Everyone seems to be happy and very friendly. Also, since it’s a night run, festive lights and costumes are a huge plus!”

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Released in 1988, Die Hard has created divisive viewpoints regarding whether or not it is considered a Christmas movie. Though released in the month of July, the plot takes place during the holidays, as main character police detective John McClane tries to save hostages, including his wife, from a terrorist takeover that occurs on Christmas Eve.

Many individuals argue that it meets the criteria of being a Christmas movie simply because of when it takes place.

“It is a Christmas movie because it is set on Christmas Eve, of all things, and there are a few Christmas songs that play during the movie,” former Dallas resident Jerod Honrath, who recently moved to the Austin area, said.

But does the time of year alone put it in the holiday genre? Dallas-area resident Ryan Miller said the movie is similar to another beloved film that many individuals still love to watch each December.

“Die Hard is as much a Christmas movie as Home Alone,” she said. “It is literally the adult version. Lone man (child) tries to thwart the bad guys by setting traps and doing things he shouldn’t be able to do over the holidays.”

For Dallas resident Alexis Derrow, it’s merely a matter of meeting the requirements of what one should expect in a film that falls into the Christmas movie genre.

“It’s definitely a Christmas movie,” she said. “Things needed for it to be a Christmas movie: set at Christmas, good guys clearly winning, redemption arc of a flawed protagonist. Check, check, check.”

Kyle Burnett, who lives in the Dallas area and supports those who believe Die Hard is a holiday film, thinks the explanation is quite simple.

“It’s a story of a man who wants to be with his family at all costs for the holidays—including killing terrorists with no Christmas cheer,” he said.

Former Dallas-area resident and current Austin resident Lyndsey Kohn, however, is not shy about the fact that she is on team Die Hard Is Not a Christmas Movie.

“Die Hard takes place around Christmas and around Christmas events—that’s it,” Kohn said. “That does not make it a Christmas movie whatsoever. If you can’t watch a movie with a 4-year-old in the room, then it is not a Christmas movie.”

Karen Brinkmann, a Dallas-area resident who believes Die Hard can be listed under the Christmas movie category, said that people’s general belief of this movie as a holiday film might not actually be a legitimate belief at all.

“I think it’s heavily debated because it is the least Christmas movie of all Christmas movies,” she said. “I think the people who argue for it as a Christmas movie secretly don’t really think it is thematically Christmas but enjoy getting people riled up about whether or not it is a Christmas movie.”

WEEKLY PHOTO OP

NatNews and some faithful readers enjoy a holiday movie not called Die Hard

Tuesday, December 20: Jingle Bell Run
Wednesday, December 21: Winter Solstice (first day of winter)
Friday, December 23: Festivus
Saturday, December 24: WRRC Saturday run at Taco Joint