Movies: George C Scott

[dulcinea3]

I watched the George C. Scott version over the weekend. It didn't come on when scheduled; "The Ghost and Mr. Chicken came" on instead, which was fine with me, because I love that movie! "And they used Bon Ami!" LOL! Then "A Christmas Carol" came on afterwards. I'm not a big fan of Scott, but he took the part well. One thing that made me think was when the Ghost of Christmas Past came. In general, this part is interpreted as a female, although in the book it appears to be male. Interesting! Are there any movies where it is a male? Great cast in this movie - David Warner and Susanna York as the Cratchits, Roger Rees as Scrooge's nephew, and Frank Finlay as Marley. I know Barbara found him OTT, but I think Finlay generally is OTT, no matter what the role!

[Gypsy]

---

dulcinea3 wrote:
One thing that made me think was when the Ghost of Christmas Past came. In general, this part is interpreted as a female, although in the book it appears to be male. Interesting! Are there any movies where it is a male?

---

If memory serves, doesn't Roddy McDowell play the Ghost of Christmas Past in the Patrick Stewart version?

[oldBPLstackden…]

My wife has maintained for many years that her favorite movie version of "A Christmas Carol" was the Musical,"Scrooge"- [ her first exposure to the story was the Mr. Magoo cartoon version ]--Every time I have seen this musical version, I have been a little annoyed with some of the liberties they took with the original story-line [ mainly Scrooge dressing up as "Father Christmas" and delivering that elaborate toy mechanical merry-go-round to the Cratchit household ] but I guess it really does capture the essence of the tale and humanizes Ebenezer Scrooge [ by probing into his past and showing how he was hurt in his younger days ]
My first exposure to the story came watching a stage production put on by my classmates in elementary school [ in the 4th or 5th grade- this would have been around 1966-67-68 ] and shortly afterwards, I saw a movie version for the first time on TV one afternoon over Christmas Vacation...It was a local station that was just about the only station around at the time that played old movies- probably because that was all they could afford to run- and this movie had an old feel to me- at the time , I was guessing it was from the 1930's- but it could have been made later- possibly the 40's, or even the 50's, but definately no later than that...I don't remember the whole movie, but I still vivdly recall the opening scenes, and especially the scenes where Scrooge eats his "melancholy dinner in the same melancholy restaurant" and then goes home to a very dark street , where the buildings seemed several stories tall- and then where Marley's Ghost takes Scrooge over to his bedroom window, to look out on a scene of many Spirits flying past with all their chains and fetters attached... Now, the thing that spooks me is that I have never, ever seen this same version again...I know I didn't hallucinate it, but every time they have shown one of the older movie versions on TV, I have checked them out, and they are never the exact same one...The actor who played Scrooge was not a tall, thin man, but more of a short, balding man...to my mind, it could have been Lionel Barrymore- but I haven't been able to find any record of that...This has perplexed me no end, and has been driving me BATTY for years...
[ not long after I saw that movie, our sixth grade teacher read the entire original Charles Dickens book to the class, aloud. I know there are slightly different versions of that, too- this was the one that began "Marley was as dead as a coffin-nail" - as opposed to "dead as a door-nail ]

[johns]

I'm guessing it is either the 1935 version with Seymour Hicks as Scrooge or the 1938 version with Reginald Owen as Scrooge.

[ConnieAnnKirk]

Welcome to the book club, Old BPL! It's funny how almost everyone seems to have a "first encounter" story with this story, or a favorite version.

~ConnieK

---

oldBPLstackdenizen wrote, in part:
My wife has maintained for many years that her favorite movie version of "A Christmas Carol" was the Musical,"Scrooge"- br>

---

[oldBPLstackden…]

First, I just want to say "Thank You" for that welcome, ConnieK...I am very new at this , so it appears I inadvertently started up another "folder"- when I typed in "Movie versions ..."-My intention was simply just to add some more thoughts to this "Movies" folder [ that I wrote to the first time ]...
If anyone is curious about my "user name"- It refers back to how [ from the age of Seven and up ] I practically grew up in the confines of the Main Branch of The Berkeley Public Library [ Berkeley, California ] - I started off in the "Boys and Girls Room" way upstairs, but in my Teen Years, I gradually graduated over to the "Stacks", in the heart of the old building, [ which has since been completely reconstructed ] with its somewhat musty old volumes packed into its several landings [ which seemed to hang on some kind of cast-iron framework ]...where I perused Humor Books by Nathaniel Benchley and others, and some Poetry, among other things...I also wound up down in the Reference Room, the Magazine Alcove, and finally, The Arts and Music Room...
I'm afraid I was a much more avid reader in my younger days- and after I became a hardened "TV Addict", my reading skills have suffered greatly...Although my wife and I have still found time to read some books aloud to each other in recent years...

[ConnieAnnKirk]

No problem, oldBPLstackdenizen--I'm able to link your post back onto this thread, so I'll do that now. Never fear, just enjoy the new experience and the forum! I know what you mean about enjoying the stacks in libraries. I also now understand your screen name! Ha.

~ConnieK

---

oldBPLstackdenizen wrote:
First, I just want to say "Thank You" for that welcome, ConnieK...I am very new at this , so it appears I inadvertently started up another "folder"- when I typed in "Movie versions ..."-My intention was simply just to add some more thoughts to this "Movies" folder [ that I wrote to the first time ]...
If anyone is curious about my "user name"- It refers back to how [ from the age of Seven and up ] I practically grew up in the confines of the Main Branch of The Berkeley Public Library [ Berkeley, California ] - I started off in the "Boys and Girls Room" way upstairs, but in my Teen Years, I gradually graduated over to the "Stacks", in the heart of the old building, [ which has since been completely reconstructed ] with its somewhat musty old volumes packed into its several landings [ which seemed to hang on some kind of cast-iron framework ]...where I perused Humor Books by Nathaniel Benchley and others, and some Poetry, among other things...I also wound up down in the Reference Room, the Magazine Alcove, and finally, The Arts and Music Room...
I'm afraid I was a much more avid reader in my younger days- and after I became a hardened "TV Addict", my reading skills have suffered greatly...Although my wife and I have still found time to read some books aloud to each other in recent years...

---

[oldBPLstackden…]

Well, the only problem is, they have been showing those versions [ the 1935 and 1938 ones ] over the past several years [ mainly on the non-commercial stations ] and I have looked at them both, and they don't match my memory...That 1938 version seems the most likely candidate, but from what I read about it, it did not have the scene I described with the ghosts in chains, flying by outside of Srooge's bedroom window [ unless it is possible that was edited out of an earlier release, and re-released? Apparently, that 1938 movie was supposed to be lacking in all the "scarier" scenes ] I've also read {again} that Lionel Barrymore was unable to play the role because of crippling arthritis, and Reginald Owen took his place [ unless, they had begun filming with Mr. Barrymore, and somehow, the original film survived ? I guess that sounds crazy...but I'm sure I saw what I saw, when I saw it, and still have never seen it again since...I guess this will just continue to be a mystery ]

[dulcinea3]

I tried looking up information on Barrymore as Scrooge. Lionel Barrymore had been reading the part of Scrooge in a radio production every year, and so he was the natural choice for the part when MGM made the movie. However, his crippling arthritis prevented this, and he recommended his friend Reginald Owen for the role. Barrymore did appear in a specially-filmed trailer for the film, which is known by the name "A Fireside Chat with Lionel Barrymore". I couldn't find any detailed description of this short, but maybe that's what you saw? Apparently it is included as an extra on a DVD of the Owen version.

I'm not sure, since it's been some years since I watched it, but does the Sims version have a scene with the ghosts flying by the window? I'm pretty sure I have seen at least one movie that includes that. I know it wasn't the Scott version, which I saw last week.

[oldBPLstackden…]

No, I'm pretty sure it couldn't have been a trailer- it was too long and involved to be one- Also, I've seen the Alistair Sims 1951 version a couple of times now, and I'm positive that is not the same movie, as well- the feeling/ ambience of the movies were very different...Also, I remember the actor who played Scrooge [in the first version I saw ] was more of a short, stocky person.

[dulcinea3]

---

Gypsy wrote:

---

dulcinea3 wrote:
One thing that made me think was when the Ghost of Christmas Past came. In general, this part is interpreted as a female, although in the book it appears to be male. Interesting! Are there any movies where it is a male?

---

If memory serves, doesn't Roddy McDowell play the Ghost of Christmas Past in the Patrick Stewart version?

---

I saw it the other night (very late, after drinks out with some friends!), and it looked like Joel Grey, but I missed the credits.

[malabar]

Note to oldBPLstackdenizen-- Ditto to your statement: "This has perplexed me no end, and has been driving me BATTY for years..." I remember seeing Lionel Barrymore play Scrooge in a movie shown decades ago during the noon hour in the auditorium of my senior high school in Manitowoc, Wisconsin. The movie was shown at Christmas time for the students who did not go home for lunch. I saw it for 2 or 3 successive years, the last being 1950. I have not seen it since that time. I have looked for it in the TV guides and searched for it on the internet to no avail. I was so sure that it was Lionel Barrymore that I saw. I guess I'll have to ask my brother or an old classmate if they remember this particular movie.

Message Edited by malabar on 12-29-2007 07:08 PM

[oldBPLstackden…]

Thank you so much for validating my "Mystery Question"...When I saw this movie, it was in the 1967-68 time period- but it appears it was still around at that point in time, at any rate.