There are only three movies you absolutely positively need to watch every Christmas season: It's a Wonderful Life (1946), Miracle on 34th Street (1947), and March of the Wooden Soldiers. The 1934 Laurel & Hardy classic – originally titled “Babes in Toyland,” not to be confused the corny 1961 Disney remake – finds Laurel as Stannie Dum and Hardy as Ollie Dee, two hapless workers in Santa's shop in Toyland. The foreman (a real sour bastard) finds that Stannie has screwed up the order for wooden soldiers. When Santa finds out that they made him 100 soldiers at six feet tall instead of 600 soldiers at one foot tall, he just laughs HO HO HO and the boys get fired. Later, the evil landlord Barnaby is about to throw out Mother Peep from her giant shoe unless he can marry Bo Peep. Just like life! He tries to frame Bo Peep's love Tom Tom the Piper's Son and all of Toyland exiles Barnaby to Bogeyland. He returns with an army of Bogeymen to wreak havoc and it's up to Stannie & Ollie to save the day. Brilliantly funny and underrated, it's lost none of its joyous luster over the past 75 years. $8, Old Town Music Hall, 140 Richmond St., El Segundo; Fri.-Sat., Dec. 16-17, 8:15 p.m; Sat.-Sun, Dec. 17-18, 2:30 p.m.; $8. (310) 322-2592, oldtownmusichall.org

Fri., Dec. 16, 8:15 p.m.; Sat., Dec. 17, 2:30 & 8:15 p.m.; Sun., Dec. 18, 2:30 p.m., 2011

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