This version of "A Christmas Carol" was telecast on "SHOWER OF STARS" three years in a row (1954. '55, and '56). THIS one was the second telecast, as shown on December 15, 1955.
Cool. I want to see every vintage Christmas Carol before I pass. It's been my passion all my life. I love Basil Rathbone, but I'm not crazy about these other people though I do recognize some names, I just dont get the characters. It just seems completely off. And I've never seen a blonde Bob Cratchit.
Oh, come on, Nikos, Basil Rathbone gave hundreds of better performances in his long career than that poorly scripted and directed 'walk on' that was really a walk through ;) Watch his many portrayals of Sherlock Holmes that was, in it's day, the best Holmes about. As for 'modern' Holmes portrayals, no one in my opinion beats the late, great Jeremy Brett. What a sad loss he was. Have a Happy 2021 and stay well. Cheers, BH
@@BillHalliwell yeah I ve seen all of his movie and TV work that still exists. I don't say that this performance is his best but it is the best Jacob Marley I 've seen.
@@NikosTsoup OK, yes, I get you. My advice is to see more 'Marleys'. There are dozens and dozens of versions of A Christmas Carol out there. This one was not the worst by all means, but the chunks they took out of the original story bordered on disrespect to Dicken's. You really should read the story on the page, it is a short story in its original form and the description of the Marley character is really brilliant writing that gives you the perfect mental image. I'm a retired film and TY critic so I reckon I've seen most versions (at last official count there were 135, I kid you not.) For me, the absolute best is an English film version made in 1951 starring Alistair Sim as Scrooge (a brilliant performance!) and Michael Hordern plays a really scary Marley. It is recognised around the world as the best version by film societies, film clubs, critics, reviewers, clergy etc., etc. I'll leave you with a fun fact: regarding Scrooge's favourite word: humbug. Merriam-Webster defines a humbug as something or someone that is false or deceptive. In its verb form, to be humbugged is to be deceived or be the victim of a hoax. While the word's exact origins are unknown, it is defined by an exciting history of hoaxes and spectacles dating as far back as the 1750s. Cheers, again. BH
@@BillHalliwell 135 wow. I have seen 61 and honestly my favourite Marley was Rathbone and Alec Guiness in the 1970 version. I understand that many versions are a disgrace to Dickens, but I like to examine the art of cinema without focusing on the original writing that much.
NEVER SEEN THIS VERSION B4...GREAT ACTING...FREDERIC MARCH & BASIL RATHBONE, ETC. ...IMMEDIATELY, FELL IN LOVE WITH IT...I WAS A YEAR OLD WHEN SHOWER OF STARS CAME OUT...;)
Today a friend and coworker mentioned that she and her partner had watched Basil Rathbone in a musical version "A Christmas Carol". That was a surprise, since until this afternoon I hadn't a clue that such a retelling of the story existed. She was right, though: it may have been short, but very engaging. I'll be saving this for what may become a yearly traditional viewing.
Wow! With the iconic actors March and Rathbone as lead actors, the legendary Bernard Herrmann composing the music and the great Maxwell Anderson writing the adaptation and lyrics the creators of this television production didn't hesitate to hire the best that was available at that time!
Herrmann also scored and conducted the 1938 and 1939 Orson Welles radio adaptations of "A Christmas Carol" on "THE CAMPBELL PLAYHOUSE" (the second one featured the great Lionel Barrymore).
Herrmann scored and conducted the 1938 and '39 radio adaptations of "A Christmas Carol" for Orson Welles' "CAMPBELL PLAYHOUSE". Orson was "Scrooge" in the 1938 edition; Lionel Barrymore was featured in the 1939 version [the one heard most often today].
I was 12 when this was broadcast. I don't remember seeing it. But, I do remember the cars. I wanted to be a car designer when I grew up. I miss the America I grew up in and used to know. ☃🎄🤶🎅MERRY CHRISTMAS🎅🤶🎄☃
I actually remember watching this as a kid in the early 50's. It was my first "Christmas Carol" and made a great impression on me. Yes, it's showing its years but, then, so am I. March and Rathbone were big stars then and the family all gathered around the TV to see a big production like this. Of course we watched it in black and white. Wonderful to see it again!
I always love to watch different versions of this story - this one was great! A new one for me! Excellent all the way, even if some of the singing was a bit overdone... those were the times. It was great to hear "new" Christmas carols (more like Yuletide really). Oh, those Chrysler commercials - priceless. Thank you!
One of my favorite stories. I have seen several versions of it. This one was well done. I have always been a fan of March and Rathbone. The caroling was a festive addition.
This one is new to me...TY for sharing & posting...music score was wonderful...I'm sure I've not seen this one before & I really like Basil Rathbone...especially as Sherlock Holmes
I've seen some of those Sherlock Holmes movies with Basil Rathbone, and I used to have some cassettes and C.D.s of him on the "Sherlock Holmes" radio show, with Dr. Watson being played by Nigel Bruce, who also played the role in the films.
I'm so stoked to watch this. I have no idea what to expect but I'm a Rathbone fan. Thanks for the UpL! Happy Holidays to all! AWESOME! Great version of one of my Holiday favs!
The eloquent beginning of this television production makes me long for the wonderful carolers I heard when I lived in Oregon and years later in England. Sadly, you don't hear door to door nor public square carolers in California. :(
In 2020, trust me you hear them in quite a few places in America. There are still places where people will never let these wonderful traditions go! smile
I'm a Californian & we would sing Christmas Carols every year. . San Francisco is dead now but every year our parents would bring us to I Magnin & Co. & talk about a fantasy Christmas~ wow!🎄🎁⛄️🍬🎅💟🎄
As somebody mentioned before, according to IMDB a very young Bonnie Franklin (like 10 years old) plays Susie and the credits at the end of this list Judy and Bonnie Franklin playing Martha and Susie. Bonnie had a sister Judy, this must be her. How cool!
You mean the same Bonnie Franklin from "One Day At A Time"? I think I misread the ending credits because I don't remember seeing her name listed. Speaking of which, I just realized that they didn't list the name of the actor who played Mr. Fezziwig.
The music score is very recognizable as Bernard Herrmann's--the darker passages are so strange to hear with A CHRISTMAS CAROL, yet they are suited to the darkness in the story.
@@fromthesidelines In the book, it is Scrooge's nephew, Fred, his wife and friends that Scrooge has Christmas dinner with. The next morning, Scrooge goes back to the counting house where he works and pretends to be mad at Bob Crachcit for coming to work late, but then becomes friendly and cheerful as he wishes Bob a Merry Christmas and promises to raise his salary and help his family, especially Tiny Tim. These scenes, for some reason, are left out of this adaptation of the story. Also not shown are the scenes depicting Scrooge's lonely childhood, his being left alone at school, and his sister, Fan, coming to bring him home. The show doesn't even mention that Fan was Fred's mother. Then, when Scrooge is shown his future, we don't see the scenes where the businessmen are standing in the streets talking about Scrooge being dead, where his charwoman and undertaker are selling some of his possessions to a receiver of stolen goods named Joe, or where the Crachcit family is mourning the death of Tiny Tim. Incredibly enough, they don't even show the Spirit of Christmas Yet To Come! I've heard of literary license, but this is ridiculous!
Two things: 1) The Ghost of Christmas Past is certainly a babe; 2) One of the Cratchit kids (Susan) was played by Bonnie Franklin, who grew up to be Ann Romano in One Day At A Time.
Thank you for putting this on the Web. Who knew that Frederick March ever played Scrooge? Too bad about the singing but nowadays we can mute the speakers without getting up from the couch. Commercials were interesting, too. Looks like March took out his left front canine to fit the character.
If I were Chrysler I'd show the commercials BEFORE and AFTER the play. But not during! Ah, but what am I complaining about? Otherwise I love this adaption.
While not up to the filmed versions, this was probably quite a lavish production for TV in 1954 when musical films like Kiss Me Kate and Student Prince were big box office. Aimed at family audiences the darkness was toned down a bit perhaps and of course the hour TV format hobbled it a bit, but overall very well done. It was broadcast in color back in the day, but was only recorded in black and white. Pity.
Perhaps the nephew of Scrooge (in view of his financially suggestive top hat and all), could at least have given Bob a shilling, maybe even a half crown, for Christmas.
@@SonofFrenzi Fredric March, of course, plays Scrooge himself in this program from the 1950s. I knew that Basil Rathbone played Scrooge in "The Stingiest Man In Town" (a live television musical special, also from the '50s), because I read about it in a book about the early days of TV entitled "How Sweet It Was" (1966). As I once pointed out in another RU-vid comment a few years ago, this wasn't the only time Rathbone played a Charles Dickens character, because he also appeared as the cruel Mr. Murdstone in the 1935 film adaptation of "David Copperfield," with Freddie Bartholomew, W.C. Fields, and Edna May Oliver. "The Stingiest Man In Town" was also the title of an animated television musical special broadcast around the 1970s or '80s, in which Walter Matthau was the voice of Scrooge and Tom Bosley (whom we all remember as Howard Cunningham on "Happy Days") voiced Scrooge's companion, a tiny insect named B.A.H. Humbug ("Bah, humbug," get it?), who's also the story's narrator. It's kind of weird that the producers of the program gave Scrooge a bug as a pet. It made a little more sense when, in another cartoon version of the novel from the 1990s (I think), the old man's pet was a dog named Debit (in the book, Scrooge had no pets at all).
Thank you very much for posting this. I really like the way the direction went. I am certainly no expert, but it was such a different take then others I have seen. I am not sure why they thought mr. March needed a fake nose. A couple of times I thought it would get lit on fire when he got too close to a candle. It made me think of Lucy when she caught her fake nose on fire in I Love Lucy! LOL Merry Christmas!
Yes Ebeneezer Scrooge pulling up in a Chrysler Dodge may not be historically accurate but you get the idea. Also : Marleys ghost :`I am condemned to walk the earth because I didn`t buy a Chrysler.`
I have watched this great play for years but never before at such an early date but this year 2018 has been such a sick and twisted sad one that I and thousands like me have turned to grabbing something decent and wonderful which is more than a Month away but I need it desperately. greed has been with us forever but in this year over $200Billion has been made buy Tax benefits to those who already have more than they'll ever need and Poverty has increased by 400%. watching and listening to this ONE story give me a touch of hope that some good will come out of this pitiful year!!
We've got Mr. Trump to thank for that, because he's the one who gave all those rich fat cats their tax breaks, not to mention the fact that he added to the budget deficit after he promised to balance the budget. His promises obviously mean nothing to him, anymore than common decency does. He said he would "drain the swamp," meaning he would clamp down on government corruption, but instead, he has made it worse by filling his administration with some very shady characters. Yet, so many people still talk about what a great President he is, and how he allegedly improved the economy, even though a lot of that improved economy started long BEFORE Trump took his oath of office, and some economists predict that there may be another Stock Market failure or bank meltdown. Then, what good does the economy do us?
From the cars, this looks like 1955 or 56. The cars look loke 55. But colortv really only took off in 1956 and later. But no matter, the cast and the performances alone makes this great. Wwilliam Lundigan BEFORE Man into Space.....
This is the only version where Scrooge is fickly on repenting or not. You can clearly see at the end that either he wants to change his ways or remain as a squeezing, wrenching, coverus old sinner.
First of all, I think you meant to write "beginning," not "begging." Second (this is just for the record), Alan Hale, Jr, was the actor who played the "Captain" (or "Skipper," as they called him on the show) on "Gilligan's Island."
a version i have NOT seen, that's rare these days. :) wonderful, golden age of television production. frederic march was excellent in ANYthing he did, while basil rathbone (what a voice!) is so... well, so HIM. and it is neat to see at 2:10 and other points the great Wayne Songer (playing fife/flute here, but a multi-instrumentalist). he can be seen in other shower of stars productions as well as jack benny episodes and even playing clarinet in the hilariously terrible mayberry concert band in the andy griffith episode "the mayberry band." yes, he's miming to flute audio in this one, but he was a legit studio music great, especially on woodwinds.
