Fezziwig
Encyclopedia
Mr. and Mrs. Fezziwig are characters featured in the Charles Dickens
novella A Christmas Carol
. Mr. Fezziwig is the owner of a warehouse business; Ebenezer Scrooge
and Dick Wilkins worked as apprentices for him. Mr. Fezziwig is a happy, foppish man with a large Welsh wig. In Stave 2 of A Christmas Carol, Mr. Fezziwig hosts his annual Christmas
ball
in the main room of the warehouse. Old Fezziwig liked to dance to "Sir Roger de Coverley", a lively tune popular in the 18th and 19th centuries.
Scrooge revisits Fezziwig with the Ghost of Christmas Past, during the Fezziwigs' lively Christmas party. Fezziwig is one of the few people to whom Scrooge is thankful, for he says, “He has the power to render us happy or unhappy; to make our service light or burdensome; a pleasure or a toil…The happiness he gives, is quite as great as if it cost a fortune.” Scrooge is reminded how much he once appreciated Fezziwig. Since Fezziwig is the elder Scrooge's opposite in many ways — in kindness, generosity, affection for his employees, relationship with family, and apparent happiness — Scrooge is thus confronted with the fact that his own choices have diverged greatly from those of someone he admires.
While the name is less well known, the scene in which the Fezziwigs appear is one of the most popular in film and stage productions, and is commonly used as the scene where Scrooge first meets Belle, his future fiancée, only for her to leave him after several years of neglect. The only other Fezziwigs mentioned by Dickens are the couple's three unnamed daughters, who are "beaming and lovable". In some interpretations of A Christmas Carol, Belle is Fezziwig's daughter, made poor by her father's lack of business acumen. In the original novella, "three Fezziwig daughters" are courted by young gentlemen.
In The Muppet Christmas Carol
, Fezziwig's character is played by Fozzie Bear
and called "Fozziwig". He is also shown to be alive at the end of the movie when Scrooge repents (although much older).
In A Christmas Carol
starring Kelsey Grammer
, Fezziwig, following a downturn in his business, comes to Scrooge
for a business loan. Scrooge, starting to turn into his greedy self, refuses the request, stating that he (Scrooge) would be throwing good money after bad.
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...
novella A Christmas Carol
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...
. Mr. Fezziwig is the owner of a warehouse business; 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...
and Dick Wilkins worked as apprentices for him. Mr. Fezziwig is a happy, foppish man with a large Welsh wig. In Stave 2 of A Christmas Carol, Mr. Fezziwig hosts his annual Christmas
Christmas
Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
ball
Ball (dance)
A ball is a formal dance. The word 'ball' is derived from the Latin word "ballare", meaning 'to dance'; the term also derived into "bailar", which is the Spanish and Portuguese word for dance . In Catalan it is the same word, 'ball', for the dance event.Attendees wear evening attire, which is...
in the main room of the warehouse. Old Fezziwig liked to dance to "Sir Roger de Coverley", a lively tune popular in the 18th and 19th centuries.
Scrooge revisits Fezziwig with the Ghost of Christmas Past, during the Fezziwigs' lively Christmas party. Fezziwig is one of the few people to whom Scrooge is thankful, for he says, “He has the power to render us happy or unhappy; to make our service light or burdensome; a pleasure or a toil…The happiness he gives, is quite as great as if it cost a fortune.” Scrooge is reminded how much he once appreciated Fezziwig. Since Fezziwig is the elder Scrooge's opposite in many ways — in kindness, generosity, affection for his employees, relationship with family, and apparent happiness — Scrooge is thus confronted with the fact that his own choices have diverged greatly from those of someone he admires.
While the name is less well known, the scene in which the Fezziwigs appear is one of the most popular in film and stage productions, and is commonly used as the scene where Scrooge first meets Belle, his future fiancée, only for her to leave him after several years of neglect. The only other Fezziwigs mentioned by Dickens are the couple's three unnamed daughters, who are "beaming and lovable". In some interpretations of A Christmas Carol, Belle is Fezziwig's daughter, made poor by her father's lack of business acumen. In the original novella, "three Fezziwig daughters" are courted by young gentlemen.
In The Muppet Christmas Carol
The Muppet Christmas Carol
The Muppet Christmas Carol is a 1992 musical comedy film adaptation of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol, starring Michael Caine as Ebenezer Scrooge, directed by Brian Henson, produced by The Jim Henson Company, and released by Walt Disney Pictures...
, Fezziwig's character is played by Fozzie Bear
Fozzie Bear
Fozzie Bear is a Muppet, created by Jim Henson. He is an orange, particularly fuzzy bear who works as a stand-up comic and has a catchphrase, "Wocka Wocka Wocka". Shortly after telling the joke, he is usually the target of rotten tomatoes and ridicule, especially from hecklers Statler and Waldorf...
and called "Fozziwig". He is also shown to be alive at the end of the movie when Scrooge repents (although much older).
In A Christmas Carol
A Christmas Carol (2004 film)
A Christmas Carol, also known as A Christmas Carol: The Musical, is a 2004 television film based on a 1994 stage musical of the same name, with songs written by Alan Menken and Lynn Ahrens . The musical is based on Charles Dickens' famous 1843 novella of the same name, produced by Hallmark...
starring Kelsey Grammer
Kelsey Grammer
Allen Kelsey Grammer is an American actor and comedian. He is most widely known for his two-decade portrayal of psychiatrist Dr. Frasier Crane on the sitcoms Cheers and Frasier...
, Fezziwig, following a downturn in his business, comes to 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...
for a business loan. Scrooge, starting to turn into his greedy self, refuses the request, stating that he (Scrooge) would be throwing good money after bad.