The Santa Claus of legend runs a busy workshop with elves, slides down your chimney, keeps his list, rides a sleigh and, hopefully, eats your cookies.

But mall Santas are a little different.

They sweat all day sitting in a throne of green velvet, forget your name, know that Rapunzel Barbie and the Xbox are hot items, make no promises and give you a cookie.

It's a job "Santa Jack" loves.

"I do this because I love kids," said Jack during a break recently at The Mall in Columbia, where for the past few weeks he has been sitting center stage near Lord & Taylor dealing with hordes of kids and their distracted parents.

As Santas go, Jack is impressive. He weighs 260 pounds, has a real flowing white beard and knows just about every trick in the Santa book.

Some of his tips include: Always ask if the kid wants more than one thing (to give the parents a fighting chance), don't try to stop the tears, don't let the parents walk away, and never promise anything.

Jack, who is 66 and lives in Glen Burnie, has seen thousands of kids come and go since working the mall Santa circuit in New Jersey malls and Columbia the past 14 years.

Whether the mall is crowded or empty, he follows the same patient pace with each visitor. "As long as a kid is talking, they sit," he said. And when they're finished, "I tell them, 'Go get a cookie.'"

Other mall Santa Clauses take the job for various reasons but, like Jack, they all seem to love the kids.

"Santa Elmer" at Owings Mills Mall, a rookie from Baltimore, signed up primarily for the pay, which can in rare cases reach $20,000 for the season.

Elmer, 55, who is also in the upholstery business in Parkville, has grown his beard since returning from service in Vietnam in 1968. Seeing the children who were injured in the war or placed in orphanages had a lasting effect on Elmer.

"I want to lift kids' spirits and see the smiles on their face," he said.

For "Santa Dave," it was his friends that lured him to get into the Claus business."

My friend kept harassing me to get my photo taken," said Santa Dave of Baltimore, a 280-pound, second-year Santa at Towson Town Center who started growing his beard three years ago. "They hired me on the spot," he said.

"Santa Bob," Jack's understudy who runs the early shift from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. in Columbia, is a 62-year-old retired Navy pilot with five kids.

Bob wears stomach padding and is learning the ropes as a sub-200 pound Santa. "I actually try to stay in shape," said the College Park resident who started growing his beard this year.

Bob said that he has learned something valuable while working in Santa's mall workshop.

"You make friends with the parents, then the child," he said. When the lines are long, he admits, "sometimes you have to rush them through."

Santa Dave has an easier road at the less-crowded Towson mall. "I don't need to rush them through," he said. "I have the time here."

Strange requests come with the territory when playing Santa Claus.

"This one girl asked for voodoo dolls of her mother, father, brother and sister," Elmer said. He asked why. "She said, 'So I can stick pins in 'em.' She was about 4 or 5 years old," Elmer recalled.

Fending off the impossible request is the toughest part of the job, a number of Santas agreed.

"I tell them, when I get to your house, I'll look on my sled," Jack said. "If I have it, then I'll give it. This gives parents an out. If I can't give it to you now, you'll get it if you get a good report card or on your birthday."

Elmer has a different strategy. "I try to tell every kid that I have a workshop full of toys, and if they're good their name goes on one list," he said.

Dave prefers to ad lib through the tough questions. "If they want animals, you make up some excuse, like there's no water on the sleigh," he said.

Don't be deceived. Playing Santa is tough work. While Elmer is convinced he'll come back for a second act, Dave is not so sure.

"It's hot in this suit," he said. "There's not a lot of air in here."