Humbug! The Christmas season’s famous -- or infamous -- miser, Ebenezer Scrooge, remains an iconic presence, particularly on Christmas Eve.
Charles Dickens wrote his classic novella, “A Christmas Carol,” in six weeks, publishing it on Dec. 19, 1843. The well-received work has been a staple in film and television, beginning with “Scrooge; or Marley’s Ghost” which debuted as a silent screen movie in 1901.
There have been many adaptations since, adjusting to each new generation. Case in point: “A Christmas Karen,” released in 2022.
According to IMDb.com, there are more than 100 versions of “A Christmas Carol.”
The tale has been shown to audiences on the silent screen, in black-and-white talkies and on television. The story has featured not only real-life actors, but also animated characters such as Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, the Flintstones, Bugs Bunny and Mister Magoo. Even the Muppets took a crack at interpreting the classic tale.
Here then, are several memorable versions. Everyone has their own favorite, but here is a sampling. God bless them, every one.
A Christmas Carol (1951)
The gold standard of the Christmas Carol movies. Originally titled “Scrooge,” the film stars Alastair Sim as the wealthy but miserly, curmudgeonly and despicable Ebenezer Scrooge.
“Christmas, sir, is a humbug,” Sim brusquely tells two businessmen at the beginning of the film. “Good day.”
The Scottish actor was only 51 when “A Christmas Carol” was released, but he looks much older in the film -- and a whole lot meaner. He scares off carolers, speaks dismissively of the poor and treats his employee, Bob Cratchit, with contempt. Christmas, to him, is a waste of time.
That changes after the ghost of his miserly partner, Jacob Marley, returns on Christmas Eve to warn Scrooge to change his ways. He is then visited by three ghosts, the last of which finally breaks Scrooge from his hard-hearted ways.
Sim then does a remarkable job of depicting Scrooge’s change of heart, singing, dancing and even standing on his head. He terrifies his housekeeper with his unabashed, newfound Christmas spirit and shocks her by giving her a Christmas bonus and a raise.
The film is effective in black and white, showing the grimy times of 19th century England. And the musical score is alternately dramatic and uplifting.
There are other black-and-white versions, including the 1938 film starring Reginald Owen in the title role with a young June Lockhart, decades before her starring roles in “Lassie” and “Lost In Space,” in an uncredited role as Belinda Cratchit, the daughter of Bob Cratchit. The 1935 version of the film, called “Scrooge,” starred Seymour Hicks in the title role.
But Sims playing the title role makes the 1951 version the best film of the group.
Scrooged (1988)
Not the traditional version of the Dickens tale, but “Scrooged” stars Bill Murray as television network executive Frank Cross, who is under pressure to bring big numbers for his channel during the holiday season.
The comedy is set during the 1980s and is a nice comparison to the old-fashioned Scrooge character from the 1800s.
Murray excels as the selfish, cynical television executive who is haunted by three spirits on Christmas Eve.
His supporting cast includes Karen Allen, John Forsythe and John Glover, David Johansen, Carol Kane, Robert Mitchum (as Cross’ boss), and cameos by Robert Goulet, Buddy Hackett, Jamie Farr (as Jacob Marley), John Houseman, Lee Majors and Mary Lou Retton (as “Tiny Tim” Cratchit).
The film was originally panned by some critics but has emerged as a favorite.
In 1988, Roger Ebert called “Scrooged” “one of the most disquieting, unsettling films to come along in quite some time.’
“It was obviously intended as a comedy, but there is little comic about it, and indeed the movie’s overriding emotions seem to be pain and anger,” Ebert wrote in the Chicago Sun-Times. “This entire production seems to be in dire need of visits from the ghosts of Christmas.
The San Francisco Chronicle noted that “Scrooged” did not “pack the wallop of ‘A Christmas Carol.’”
“But it’s a funny and imaginative high-class effort,” the newspaper wrote in 1988. “Best of all, it stars Bill Murray, who has only to raise an eyebrow to get laughs.”
The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992)
The Muppet Christmas Carol stars two-time Academy Award-winner Michael Caine in the role of Scrooge, but Jim Henson’s Muppets steal the show.
Kermit the Frog and Miss Piggy play Bob and Mrs. Cratchit and Robin the Frog plays Tiny Tim. Gonzo has the role of the narrator.
Fozzie Bear is perfect in the role of “Fozziewig,” a variation on Fezziwig, Scrooge’s generous employer from his early days in business.
The film was directed by Brian Henson, the son of the Muppets puppeteer who died in 1990.
“I didn’t want to do it,” Henson told the BBC.
The younger Henson, however, was encouraged to continue the project, and his background on “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles,” “Labyrinth” and “The Witches” allowed him to give the Dickens classic a darker feel.
“I was able to bring that darkness that I had been working in, and mix it with the comedy. That’s the whole film,” Brian Henson told the BBC. “It’s Dickens and Henson. Scrooge is the leader of Dickens. Kermit the Frog as Bob Cratchit is the leader of Henson. The two contrasts crash into each other. They’re not particularly comfortable cohabitants. That’s why it’s so exciting.”
Songs in the film were written by Paul Williams, who earned an Oscar nomination for best original song for co-writing “The Rainbow Connection” from “The Muppet Movie.” He also wrote “Evergreen (Love Theme From A Star is Born),” which was sung by Barbra Streisand and won an Academy Award for original song; and “We’ve Only Just Begun,” sung by The Carpenters.
A Christmas Carol (1984)
This television movie of “A Christmas Carol” features George C. Scott as Scrooge, a role that brought him an Emmy Award nomination.
Scott’s supporting cast is also strong, with Academy Award nominee Frank Finlay in the role of Jacob Marley, two-time Emmy winner David Warner as Bob Cratchit and Emmy nominee Roger Rees in a dual as the narrator and as Scrooge’s nephew, Fred Holywell.
Angela Pleasence, Edward Woodward and Michael Carter play the ghosts of Christmas past, present and future, respectively. Susannah York plays Mrs. Cratchit and Anthony Walters portrays Tiny Tim.
“Scott has all the requisite physical gnarls and attitudes to convey the loathing the public has for this classical monster, except for the standard ‘Patton’ accent he brought with him from that great film,” reviewer J.P. Devine wrote in the Kennebec Journal on Friday. “He will be remembered for ‘Patton’ above all, but his ‘Scrooge’ will never be topped.”
A Christmas Carol (1971)
The Dickens story comes full circle for Alastair Sim, who reprised his role by voicing the character of Scrooge 20 years later in the 28-minute animated version of “A Christmas Carol” in 1971.
Another alumnus from the 1951 film, Michael Hordern, returns two decades later as the voice of Jacob Marley.
Producer Richard Williams won an Academy Award for best short subject (animated). Chuck Jones, famous for his work as an animator for Warner Bros. and the creator of characters such as Wile E. Coyote, Road Runner, Pepé Le Pew and Marvin the Martian, was the executive producer.
Scrooge looks back to past events in his life when he could have been kinder and more charitable, a point hammered home by the ghosts of Christmas past, present and future.
Other actors in the film include Michael Redgrave (narrator) and Melvyn Hayes as the voice of Bob Cratchit.
Information from newspaper archives was used in this report.
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