SHORT TAKES : ‘Christmas Vacation’ Boxes Out ‘War’ for Ticket Sales Crown

Warner Bros.’ holiday spoof “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation” grossed $7.2 million to edge Fox’s black comedy “The War of the Roses” ($7 million) and win the battle of the box office on a cold holiday weekend--down in business about 25% from last weekend--that found more people shopping or staying warm than seeing movies. Most affected by the box-office freeze-out were three male-oriented studio films featuring all-star casts that opened abysmally, according to figures compiled by Entertainment Data, Inc.

Tri-Star’s comedy caper “Family Business” (finishing No. 6)--starring Sean Connery, Dustin Hoffman and Matthew Broderick--opened on 1,201 screens with $2.1 million. Buddy-buddies Robert DeNiro and Sean Penn, two ex-cons disguised as priests in Paramount’s “We’re No Angels” (No. 8), grossed $2 million on 1,239 screens. And Paul Newman, after dropping a bomb in theaters recently with “Fat Man and Little Boy,” did not do much better as Louisiana Gov. Earl K. Long in “Blaze.” The Touchstone film about his relationship with stripper Blaze Starr finished No. 9 with $1.7 million on 909 screens.

Together, the three films averaged only $1,779 per screen.

In other business, Universal’s “Back to the Future Part II” held on at No. 3 with $4.4 million. So far, the time-travel fantasy with Michael J. Fox and Christopher Lloyd has grossed $75.5 million. With the help of strong word of mouth, Disney’s musical fairy tale “The Little Mermaid” jumped from No. 7 last week to No. 4 this week, with $2.5 million. The kid-oriented video-game movie “The Wizard,” starring “The Wonder Year’s” 13-year-old whiz kid Fred Savage, grossed $2.1 million to claim the No. 5 spot.

Meanwhile, Tri-Star’s “Steel Magnolias” ($2 million) slipped two notches to No. 7, and Paramount’s “Harlem Nights” fell 41% to $1.7 million to finish No. 10.