A Christmas Carol (1971 film)
Encyclopedia
A Christmas Carol is an Academy Award-winning animated cartoon
adaptation of Charles Dickens
' venerable 1843 novella
which was a made-for-television production originally broadcast on ABC
in the United States
.
, credited as "Master Animator". It starred Alastair Sim
as the voice of Ebenezer Scrooge
— a role Sim had previously performed in the 1951 live-action film Scrooge
. Michael Hordern
likewise reprised his 1951 performance as Marley's Ghost in the same film. Michael Redgrave
narrated the story and veteran animator Chuck Jones
served as executive producer. Williams' son Alexander Williams, then aged four, provided the voice for Tiny Tim
.
that graced 1930s editions of the book. The intended audience does not include young children and some regard the film's bleak mood and emphasis on darkness and shadows as making it the most frightening of the many dramatizations of the Dickens classic.
, A Christmas Carol was considered so well done, that it was subsequently released theatrically (thereby rendering it eligible for Oscar consideration). The film did in fact win the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film for 1972 and to this day remains the only film adaptation of Dickens' story to be so honored. Some industry insiders, in fact, were so unhappy that a short originally shown on television was given the award, that the Academy changed its policy, disqualifying any future works initially shown on television.
Animation
Animation is the rapid display of a sequence of images of 2-D or 3-D artwork or model positions in order to create an illusion of movement. The effect is an optical illusion of motion due to the phenomenon of persistence of vision, and can be created and demonstrated in several ways...
adaptation of Charles Dickens
Charles Dickens
Charles John Huffam Dickens was an English novelist, generally considered the greatest of the Victorian period. Dickens enjoyed a wider popularity and fame than had any previous author during his lifetime, and he remains popular, having been responsible for some of English literature's most iconic...
' venerable 1843 novella
A Christmas Carol
A Christmas Carol is a novella by English author Charles Dickens first published by Chapman & Hall on 17 December 1843. The story tells of sour and stingy Ebenezer Scrooge's ideological, ethical, and emotional transformation after the supernatural visits of Jacob Marley and the Ghosts of...
which was a made-for-television production originally broadcast on ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
Cast (voices) and characters
- Alastair SimAlastair SimAlastair George Bell Sim, CBE was a Scottish character actor who appeared in a string of classic British films. He is best remembered in the role of Ebenezer Scrooge in the 1951 film Scrooge, and for his portrayal of Miss Fritton, the headmistress in two St. Trinian's films...
... Ebenezer ScroogeEbenezer ScroogeEbenezer Scrooge is the principal character in Charles Dickens's 1843 novel, A Christmas Carol. At the beginning of the novel, Scrooge is a cold-hearted, tight-fisted and greedy man, who despises Christmas and all things which give people happiness... - Michael RedgraveMichael RedgraveSir Michael Scudamore Redgrave, CBE was an English stage and film actor, director, manager and author.-Youth and education:...
... Narrator - Michael HordernMichael HordernSir Michael Murray Hordern was an English actor, knighted in 1983 for his services to the theatre, which stretched back to before the Second World War.-Personal life:...
... Marley's Ghost - Diana QuickDiana Quick-Life:Quick was born in London, England. She grew up in Dartford, Kent, the third of a dentist's four children. She was educated at Dartford Grammar School for Girls, Kent. She was greatly aided by her English teacher, Miss Davis, who encouraged her to pursue acting...
... Ghost of Christmas Past - Joan SimsJoan SimsJoan Sims was an English actress best remembered for her roles in the Carry On films, and latterly for playing Madge Hardcastle in As Time Goes By.-Early life:...
... Mrs. Cratchit - Paul Whitsun-JonesPaul Whitsun-JonesPaul Whitsun-Jones was a Welsh actor.He was educated at Merchant Taylors' School, Northwood, Middlesex.-Career:Whitsun-Jones played the role of Mr Bumble in the original West End production of the musical Oliver!...
... Ragpicker/Fezziwig - David TateDavid TateDavid Fitzgerald Tate is a former American football defensive back in the National Football League for the Chicago Bears , the New York Giants and the Indianapolis Colts . He played college football at the University of Colorado and was drafted in the eighth round of the 1988 NFL Draft....
... Scrooge's Nephew/Charity Man - Felix Felton ... Ghost of Christmas Present
- Annie West ... Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come
- Melvyn HayesMelvyn HayesMelvyn Hayes is an English actor probably best known for playing the effeminate Gunner "Gloria" Beaumont in the 1970s BBC sitcom It Ain't Half Hot Mum,-Early life and career:...
... Bob Cratchit - Mary Ellen Ray ... Mrs. Dilber
- Alexander Williams ... Tiny TimTiny Tim (A Christmas Carol)Timothy Cratchit, called "Tiny Tim", is a fictional character from the 1843 novella A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. He is a minor character, the young son of Bob Cratchit, and is seen only briefly, but serves as an important symbol of the consequences of the protagonist's choices...
(uncredited)
Production
A Christmas Carol was directed by Richard Williams and its visual style is also largely due to Ken HarrisKen Harris
Ken Harris was an American animator who worked for several film studios. He is widely considered as one of the master animators of his time....
, credited as "Master Animator". It starred Alastair Sim
Alastair Sim
Alastair George Bell Sim, CBE was a Scottish character actor who appeared in a string of classic British films. He is best remembered in the role of Ebenezer Scrooge in the 1951 film Scrooge, and for his portrayal of Miss Fritton, the headmistress in two St. Trinian's films...
as the voice of Ebenezer Scrooge
Ebenezer Scrooge
Ebenezer Scrooge is the principal character in Charles Dickens's 1843 novel, A Christmas Carol. At the beginning of the novel, Scrooge is a cold-hearted, tight-fisted and greedy man, who despises Christmas and all things which give people happiness...
— a role Sim had previously performed in the 1951 live-action film Scrooge
Scrooge (1951 film)
Scrooge, released as A Christmas Carol in the United States, is a 1951 film adaptation of Charles Dickens's A Christmas Carol. It starred Alastair Sim as Ebenezer Scrooge and was directed by Brian Desmond Hurst, with a screenplay by Noel Langley.The film also features Kathleen Harrison in an...
. Michael Hordern
Michael Hordern
Sir Michael Murray Hordern was an English actor, knighted in 1983 for his services to the theatre, which stretched back to before the Second World War.-Personal life:...
likewise reprised his 1951 performance as Marley's Ghost in the same film. Michael Redgrave
Michael Redgrave
Sir Michael Scudamore Redgrave, CBE was an English stage and film actor, director, manager and author.-Youth and education:...
narrated the story and veteran animator Chuck Jones
Chuck Jones
Charles Martin "Chuck" Jones was an American animator, cartoon artist, screenwriter, producer, and director of animated films, most memorably of Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies shorts for the Warner Bros. Cartoons studio...
served as executive producer. Williams' son Alexander Williams, then aged four, provided the voice for Tiny Tim
Tiny Tim (A Christmas Carol)
Timothy Cratchit, called "Tiny Tim", is a fictional character from the 1843 novella A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. He is a minor character, the young son of Bob Cratchit, and is seen only briefly, but serves as an important symbol of the consequences of the protagonist's choices...
.
Visual style
This adaptation of A Christmas Carol has a distinctive look, created by multiple pans and zooms and by innovative, unexpected scene transitions. The visual style, which is unusually powerful, is inspired by 19th century engraved illustrations of the original story by John Leech and the pen and ink renderings by illustrator Milo WinterMilo Winter
Milo Winter was a well known book illustrator, who produced works for editions of Aesop's Fables, Arabian Nights, Alice in Wonderland, Gulliver's Travels, Tanglewood Tales and others.- Background :...
that graced 1930s editions of the book. The intended audience does not include young children and some regard the film's bleak mood and emphasis on darkness and shadows as making it the most frightening of the many dramatizations of the Dickens classic.
Academy Award
Originally produced as a 1971 television specialTelevision special
A television special is a television program which interrupts or temporarily replaces programming normally scheduled for a given time slot. Sometimes, however, the term is given to a telecast of a theatrical film, such as The Wizard of Oz or The Ten Commandments, which is not part of a regular...
, A Christmas Carol was considered so well done, that it was subsequently released theatrically (thereby rendering it eligible for Oscar consideration). The film did in fact win the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film for 1972 and to this day remains the only film adaptation of Dickens' story to be so honored. Some industry insiders, in fact, were so unhappy that a short originally shown on television was given the award, that the Academy changed its policy, disqualifying any future works initially shown on television.