| abstract | - Willie is a criminal who works as a mall Santa every holiday season with his midget friend Marcus, who poses as an elf. Every year on Christmas Eve, the two of them rob the mall, living off the stolen loot for the next year. Willie is an alcoholic and makes no effort to mask his contempt for children and pretty much everyone else he comes into contact with. One year, Willie is forced to stay with a kid named Thurman Merman in the Phoenix suburbs in order to evade the police and immediately plans to rob his home. Over time, Willie begins to grow fond of Thurman and even beats up a gang of skateboarders for bullying him. On Christmas Eve, during his mall heist, Willie tries to steal a purple stuffed elephant as a gift to Thurman, but is caught and gunned down by the police. He manages to survive his wounds and his cohort Marcus is arrested. Although Willie still cursing and sarcastic, he was a changed man.
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