HAMMOND | With eyes wide in astonishment at the prospect of talking to the famed man in the red-and-white suit, Alex Thompson announced what he wanted for Christmas.

"I've been a really good boy this year," the 3-year-old said after some prodding from his grandmother.

Unfazed by the "mean elves" who surrounded him, Thompson told Santa he wanted a Transformers truck, then hopped off the man's lap and slid his hand into his grandmother's as he prepared to enjoy the rest of Hammond's Holiday Kickoff Celebration, which focused on the beloved holiday classic "A Christmas Story."

In addition to a chat with Santa, those who attended the all-day event could participate in a Ralphie look-alike contest or an Oh Fuuudge recipe contest. Families also could watch the film at the Towle Community Theater, sing holiday karaoke at the nearby Paul Henry's Gallery or pose for a portrait with the film's infamous leg lamp.

Earlier in the day, Hammond Mayor Thomas McDermott Jr. began the festivities by unveiling a time capsule that the city sealed as part of its 125th anniversary celebration. The capsule will be on display in City Hall until 2059.

"We're trying to step up foot traffic in downtown Hammond and get people to recognize it's a good meeting place," McDermott said.

He said within the next few months he'll detail plans to move City Hall into the vacant part of 5205 Hohman Ave., to share the building with its current occupant First Midwest Bank. He said voters will have a say in the issue, but he likes the idea of having all of the city's departments under one roof. At that location, City Hall would draw traffic downtown, McDermott said.

For at least one family, the Holiday Kickoff Celebration, sponsored by the Downtown Hammond Council, achieved its goal of introducing residents to the downtown. Tom Kazmierczak, a 32-year resident, brought his grandsons to the event. The boys, 5 and 9 years old, each took a turn at Cabella's Shoot Your Eye Out contest in which they used guns to shoot foam balls at giant blowups of Ralphie's face, aiming at holes in the cardboard.

"They didn't know there was a downtown Hammond," he said as the boys finished their turn at the contest, who did not succeed in shooting out anyone's eyes. "They're going to watch the movie after this."