Just got word that PIX11 is pleased to announce the station will continue its annual Thanksgiving tradition and air MARCH OF THE WOODEN SOLDIERS (Babes in Toyland, the 1934 Laurel and Hardy classic) THANKSGIVING DAY, THURSDAY, 11/26 9 TO 11 A.M.
AND AGAIN AT 3 PM
For
those who don't know, MARCH OF THE WOODEN SOLDIERS A.K.A. BABES IN
TOYLAND is a Laurel and Hardy musical Christmas film released on
November 30, 1934. The film is also known by the alternative titles
Laurel and Hardy in Toyland, Revenge Is Sweet (the 1948 European reissue
title), and March of the Wooden Soldiers (in the United States). You can read more about it here.
Our friends at European Film star Postcards have a wonderful post on Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy; check it out here.
The actor who played the miserly Silas Barnaby--(a character based on the English nursery rhyme "There Was A Crooked Man" contrary to other curious assertions you may have seen elsewhere) was Henry Brandon. Read more about him here.
The film is also available on AMAZON...BLU-RAY https://amzn.to/3lEd0da
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Maria, A few years back I did a lot of research on Victor Herbert's original play "Babes in Toyland," hoping to get a local theater group to stage it as an alternative to the Nutcracker, which sucks the life out of all local theater and arts groups every Christmas season (until now). Turns out half the original songs have nothing to do with the plot; they're just stuck in randomly because the authors wanted them in there. And the plot is mostly nonexistent. So while people may claim that the Laurel and Hardy version or the later Disney version do a "disservice" to the original, the truth is, at least they were coherent. The only one worse than the original is the 1986 version with Drew Barrymore. In the meantime, the March of the Toys is still one of my favorite "Christmas" tunes. Thanks for the reminder!
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