Biographic - Sunday December 21, 2008 Comic Strip Licensing and Permissions

Transcript

The story of Ebenezer Scrooge, the sour skinflint who is forced to confront his cold-hearted past, "A Christmas Carol" By Charles Dickens was first published in 1943. Scrooge is one of literature's most enduring characters. His last name has become a byword for miseraly and mean-spirited... but the tale of his redemption has become a heartwarming holiday favorite. "A Christmas Carol" has been adapted countless times for theatre, Opera radio, tv and film. It was first brought to the silent screen in 1901, and both Lionel and John Barrymore played Ebenezer Scrooge in radio versions in the 1930s. A 1938 movie cast veteran british actor Reginald Owen as Scrooge, and was followed by a number of TV adaptations. 1951 saw Alistar Sim portray Scrooge in the classic movie adaptation that has become a parennial TV staple. (Sim Actually reprised the role in an Oscar-nominated animated version two decades later.) Albert Finney took on the role in a 1970 musical, and Oscar-winner George C. Scott starred in a 1984 tv movie of the tale. 1988's "Scrooged" gave a new spin on the story. It starred Bill Murray as a hard-hearted tv executive, with comedian Buddy Hackett playing scroogeon a tv show. The list of actors who have played Scrooge ranges from heavyweight such as Jack Palance, Walter Matthau and James Earl Jones to Tom Curry and Kelsey Grammer. TV greats Henry "Fonzie" winkler and Patrick "Captain" Picard Stewart have tackled the part, and a number of actresses, including Susan Lucci, Vanessa Williams and Cecely Tyson, have also rendered their interpretations. Disney's "Mickey's Christmas Carol" gave the world Scrooge McDuck, and Michael Caine joined forces with the Muppets to tell the tale in 1992. Next Christmas will bring another major adaptation, when Jim Carrey takes the lead in a cast that also includes Gary Oldman, Colin Firth, and Bob Hoskins.

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