Television made Alastair Sim’s portrayal of Ebenezer Scrooge
into a classic. The British film
had been released theatrically in the U.S. in 1951, where it was soundly panned
by critics and ignored by audiences weaned on Lionel Barrymore’s near-annual portrayal on radio. Three years later,
it was put on the market for tele-airings, and Associated Artists Productions,
in its pre-Bugs Bunny days, snapped it up.
New York City’s WOR had recently inaugurated its “Million
Dollar Movie,” the program that aired a single film twice every weeknight. This was literal competition for the movie
house: see the film at your convenience, and if you liked it, come see it
again, with only a handful of commercials subbing for the box office. A Christmas Carol turned up during the week
of December 20, 1954… and audiences have been charmed ever since. “Colorized” and B&W versions abound on
home video. The Blu-ray has got to be
just around the corner.
Chrysler’s Shower of Stars, normally a variety show that
took over from the live drama series Climax every fourth week, slotted in a
filmed musical version of Dickens’ timeless tale for 1954’s Yuletide. Starring Fredric March as Scrooge and Basil
Rathbone as Marley’s Ghost, with a Bernard Hermann score, it became a CBS
perennial for a number of years.
Although the show was committed to color film, it seems to circulate
only as a B&W kinescope. Anyone
know if the original is now just Eastman pink?
D'ja ever notice it's only at Christmastime we hear Sinatra and
Crosby (and Como, and Williams, and Cole, and all those other velvet voices)? Lately, even that tradition has been going the way
of the LP. One of the joys of video has
been the resurrection of one-time-only gems, including the occasional holiday
special. Maybe this one will turn up
one day....
The animated Christmas special entered the “modern era” with
Magoo in ’62. Has it really been 50
years since we were introduced to razzleberry dressing, pens and pencibles, and
“I’m All Alone in the World”? Would a
latter-day “holiday”-themed cartoon dare to include an original tune titled “The Lord’s Bright Blessing”? Although I find the "Back on Broadway" trappings to be superfluous (making the parts to edit in favor of more commercials nowadays a no-brainer), the show is easily the most entertaining piece UPA ever did in the Henry J. Saperstein era (no "Cholly" the houseboy here, praise the heavens). Courtesy of Classic Media, I'll be cuing it up Christmas Eve to celebrate its golden anniversary.
BETTER LIVING FOR TELEVISION wishes you and yours "a Christmas far more glorious than grand," and a happy, healthy, prosperous New Year.