I Finally Figured Out What The Heck That Thing Was Kevin Used In "Home Alone" To Heat Up The Door Knob

You probably haven't even thought about what it was until now.

Like many of you, I'm a big fan of Home Alone. And for the last 30 years, I've watched this iconic film many, many times.

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However, for the first time, during my 100th (thereabouts) rewatch, I found myself thinking, "Wait. What the heck is that thing?" During this scene:

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I'm specifically talking about the hot metal thing Kevin uses to heat up the front door knob.

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I guess, as a kid, I just assumed it was some kinda weird tool for heating up a cold house? IDK!

TBH, I'd never spent much time wondering what this thing really was — all I knew was that it heated up the fancy door knob enough to burn an "M" into Harry's hand. And that was that.

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But, I guess after so many rewatches of a movie, one gets curiously distracted by mundane details like this. So, I was determined to figure it out!

I asked a couple of friends and coworkers of varying ages if they knew what it was, and the response was the same. No one knew what it was:

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TBH, it didn't take me long to find an answer. After a quick Google search, I found out what it was through trusty ol' Reddit (shout out specifically to u/wedderspoon). So, without further ado, here's what that weird thing is:

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Apparently, an electric charcoal starter is designed to quickly heat coals for a barbecue without kindling. All you have to do is plug it in and turn it on! And if you wanna see how this thing is ~actually~ supposed to be used (as opposed to, you know, being used for burning people's hands), check out this video.

And now you know.

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