WISH UPON THE STARS
Celebs look back on their most treasured holiday gifts—and inspire this year’s must-have list.
“When I was 6, I got a Wendy house—it’s a little house that you build.” —Catriona Balfe, 39, Outlander
MUST-HAVE: Fixer Upper’s Chip and Joanna Gaines know a bit about building homes. Their Hearth & Hand by Magnolia Wooden Dollhouse has an uncanny similarity to their own handcrafted farmhouse in Waco, Texas. $130, target.com
“A Mattel two holster and pistol set of a Fanner 50, which was a cap gun.” —Tom Selleck, 73, Blue Bloods
MUST-HAVE: Trade caps for points with Blast! Retro Gaming Systems, equipped with a USBpowered HDMI dongle that plugs into your TV. Available for old favorites like Pong, Centipede and Pac-Man. $20–$40, walmart.com
“I really wanted a Cabbage Patch Kids Cornsilk doll as a kid, and when I got one, I proceeded to immediately shave her bald. I just got so excited that she had real hair and I trimmed it. I gave it a bob and then I gave it a crewcut and then I just buzzed it. The whole point was that this Cabbage Patch had long silky hair, but I got carried away with the scissors. What can you do?” —Kristen Bell, 38, The Good Place
MUST-HAVE: Cabbage Patch is releasing the Cabbage Patch Kids 35th
Anniversary Edition Kids. Just like the originals, each plush doll, complete with yarn hair and a retro outwt, comes with a name, adoption papers and a birth certiwcate. (Scissors not included.) $40, Target
MUST-HAVES: Cuddly plush pals never go out of style, especially if they also support the World Wildlife Fund (WWF). Fill a signature WWF Wooden Bucket with three species from among 61 (from zebras and twotoed sloths to spotted eagle rays) for a donation of $75. gifts.worldwildlife.org
“I was about 9 or 10 and I got a remotecontrolled race car. It was orange, and it was around 1961, so we’re not talking about great technology. I’ll never forget that car.”
—Tony Danza, 67, The Good Cop
MUST-HAVE: Take tech skills to
track where Anki Overdrive race battle for the checkered yag on a customizable magnetic track—all trolled via a compatible phone app. $150, anki.com
It’s no secret NBA giant LeBron James, 33, got his career start from a plastic Little Tikes basketball hoop. The Los Angeles
Laker reveals it was his favorite gift too.
MUST HAVES: Set mini all-stars on the same path
with the Little Tikes LeBron James Family Foundation Mini Hoop Basketball Set ($35, littletikes.com), which donates a portion of the proceeds to at-risk youth in LeBron’s Ohio hometown. Or shoot hoops in King James style, thanks to the Nike LeBron Playground Basketball. $25, academy.com
“I was given a kid’s version of a dogsled when I was young. I loved that.” —Bill Pullman, 64, The Sinner
MUST-HAVE: Shred the snow-covered slopes of your backyard winter wonderland perched atop the Snowboogie Snow Slider, a durable foam sled with handle.
For ages 6+. $50, wham-o.com
“When I was a kid I really loved Rajah, the stuffed tiger from Aladdin.” —Constance Wu, 36,
Crazy Rich Asians
“My aunt got me a giant stuffed ape (bigger than me!) called Isabella. She was so big she had to ride home in the front seat for eight hours.” —Iain Armitage, 10, Young Sheldon and Big Little Lies
“My favorite gift? A Tony the Tiger drum set. I still have the bass drum; it’s in my music room.” —John Stamos, 55, Fuller House and sometime player with the Beach Boys
MUST-HAVE: Blast the tunes like Uncle
Jesse. The Victrola 2-Speed Record Player With Bluetooth Speakers will keep the music moving in 21st-century style. Have mercy! $90, bedbathandbeyond.com
“I got a bright blue Toot-a-Loop radio (that you could wear as a bracelet). They were very popular in the ’70s. They were big and clunky and really fun.”
—Laura Linney, 54, Ozark
MUST-HAVES: Blast your tunes from your wrist (or purse or backpack) with the compact JBL Clip 3 Bluetooth speaker. Waterproof, on a carabiner and in colors to die for. $60,
jbl.com. Or, have charge will travel (your phone battery need never die again!) with the pretty metallic Mark & Graham Charging Bracelet. $149, markandgraham.com
“Walt Disney used to send these huge, monster boxes every Christmas, filled with every Disney toy. You’d go into a kind of coma because it was just such a joyous thing to open all of the stuff.”
—Candice Bergen, 72, Murphy Brown
MUST-HAVE: Kick it with Mickey in the happiest shoes on Earth. New Disney x Vans Sneakers were created to celebrate the mighty mouse’s 90th birthday on Nov. 18. $70, vans.com
“My bicycle. If you had a bike, you had some freedom.”
—Nancy McKeon, 52, Dancing With the Stars
MUST-HAVE: Spin class devotees and exercise fanatics will love the convenient—albeit pricey—Flywheel
Fly On Demand stationary bicycle, which was created by a co-founder of SoulCycle, Ruth Zukerman, to bring favorite workout classes into your home via streaming. $1,699 plus $39/ month subscription, ƃywheelsports.com
Visit Parade.com/gifts for our favorite royal family–inspired gifts.
“We had the most beautiful, shiny puppy growing up—Brandy, our yellow Lab—and she was a Christmas surprise.”
—Jonathan Scott, 40, Property Brothers MUST-HAVES: Already have a beloved canine? Make sure he looks the part this holiday season with a Merry & Bright Holiday Plaid Tie Collar
Slide. $5, petsmart.com. Not ready for the real deal? Zoomer Playful Pup walks, shakes and performs tricks—all to the tune of your (or your kid’s) familiar voice. $100, barnesandnoble.com
“My brother and I got a budgie for Christmas and he was the coolest little bird. You put your finger up in the air, he’d come and land on it. If you were reading a book, he’d land on your book. He was amazing.” —Nathan Fillion, 47, The Rookie MUST-HAVE: Turn your favorite pet—budgie, dog, cat, you name it—into custom jewelry from NicoMadeMe. $50–$65, etsy.com
“The Barbie Dream Pool was a dream gift for me. And Exercise Barbie—I loved Barbies.”
—Ellie Kemper, 38, The Office, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
MUST-HAVE: Barbie’s celebrating the big 6-0 next year with a collaboration available now: Barbie x Unique
Vintage, a new apparel line turning iconic 1960s Barbie outwts into real women’s clothing. $14–$198, uniquevintage.com
“I got exactly what I wanted: a space station. It was a moon base, and the top opened up and a missile fired out. Perfect. A razor-sharp, hard plastic missile that, of course, could put kids’ eyes out.”
—Tim Allen, 65, Last Man Standing
MUST-HAVES: Lead the Rebel attack with the LEGO Star Wars XWing StarƂghter, new this year. $80, lego.com. Or blast off in the Mars Mission Space Playhouse, a fabric (no razor-sharp missiles here) hideaway perfect for make-believe excursions complete with foam “landing gear” and a chalkboard to map out-of-this-world plans. $200, crateandbarrel.com
“For Christmas, there was 12 of us kids. We didn’t have money for Christmas presents and that type of thing, but Mom and Daddy always got us a box of hard candy.” —Dolly Parton, 72, Dumplin’ and Dolly Parton’s Christmas of Many Colors
MUST-HAVE: Fill stockings with Edible Gold Lollipops, candy treats that shine like country music’s sweetest songs. $36 for 6, uncommongoods.com
“When Nintendo came out, every kid wanted it. And when it was under the tree on Christmas morning, my brothers and sister and I lost our minds.” —Jay Hernandez, 40, Magnum P.I.
MUST-HAVE: The iconic ’80s and ’90s gaming system is even bigger and— dare we say—better. Nintendo Switch’s Labo Vehicle Kit re-creates the driving experience for eager speedsters with a cool combo of low-tech (DIY cardboard steering wheel and gas pedal) and high-tech (it’s compatible with on-screen games). $69, walmart.com
“The thing I remember loving the most when I was a little girl was my twirly skirt. It was a big, full skirt that my mother made for me. I would watch that skirt go around in circles for hours on end.”
—Vicki Lawrence, 69, The Cool Kids
MUST-HAVE: Make your own bold (unisex) fashion statement with NBA star Dwyane Wade’s newest line of fancy footwear, the PKW; Back to Cool Sock Collection, colorful mix-and-match
socks. $30 for 3, pkwy.com (use discount code Parade10 for 10 percent off)