The Stingiest Man In Town
Encyclopedia
The Stingiest Man in Town (1978
) is a Christmas special created by Arthur Rankin Jr. and Jules Bass
, which featured traditional animation
rather than the Animagic
most often used by the company. It was an animated remake
of a long-unseen, but quite well received, live-action musical special (also called The Stingiest Man in Town) which had originally starred Basil Rathbone
, Martyn Green
, and Vic Damone
. The live-action version had been telecast in 1956 on the anthology series The Alcoa Hour
.
As with previous Rankin-Bass specials, animation duties were provided by a Japan
ese studio, in this case Top Craft, which would later provide animation assistance for Hayao Miyazaki
's Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind and the TV series Adventures of the Little Koala
. Given that The Stingiest Man in Town was actually broadcast in Japan on Christmas Eve of 1978 (under the title Machi Ichiban Kechinbo), it is listed as an anime
in some sources. The Japanese version was directed by Katsuhisa Yamada
, better known for work on such bona fide anime as Mazinger Z
and Devil Hunter Yohko
.
, is a tale of Ebenezer Scrooge
told through the perspective of narrator B.A.H. Humbug (voiced by Tom Bosley
) obviously a word play on Scrooge's catch phrase, "bah humbug". Scrooge (performed by Walter Matthau
) is portrayed as the tightwad Charles Dickens
intended him to be with his consistent resistance to assist the poor or even have Christmas dinner
with his nephew Fred, performed by Dennis Day
and his family. In hopes of resuscitating the goodness of his one-time friend, the ghost of Jacob Marley
(voiced by Theodore Bikel
), Scrooge's former business partner, visits Scrooge in his mansion, exhorting him to change his ways. Scrooge deems this to be madness and soon prepares for bed.
Nevertheless, Scrooge's attitude soon changes after a fateful night wherein three ghosts also visit him and take him through his past. Within these pernicious shadows (which Scrooge created because of his avarice) and maliciousness toward his fellow men, Scrooge sees a younger caricature of himself, voiced by Robert Morse
and realizes how cryptic he has become. The Ghost of Christmas Present
(performed by Paul Frees
) proceeds to take Scrooge to the home of his diligent employee Bob Cratchit
and discovers just how much poverty Cratchit and his family wallow in. Cratchit's crippled son Tiny Tim
(voiced by Bobby Rolofson) touches Scrooge's heart and instigates a transformation within his personality. The production concludes with Scrooge manifesting his enhancements as he assists those less fortunate than himself.
1978 in film
The year 1978 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* February 1 - Bob Dylan's film Renaldo and Clara, a documentary of the "Rolling Thunder Revue" tour premieres in Los Angeles, California....
) is a Christmas special created by Arthur Rankin Jr. and Jules Bass
Jules Bass
Jules Bass is an American director, producer, composer, and author.- Biography :Educated at New York University, he first worked at an advertising agency in New York until the early 1960s, when he founded the film production company Videocraft International with Arthur Rankin, Jr...
, which featured traditional animation
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...
rather than the Animagic
AnimagiC
The AnimagiC is a German annual anime convention and one of the largest of its kind in the German-speaking world with currently about 12,000 visitors.-History:...
most often used by the company. It was an animated remake
Remake
A remake is a piece of media based primarily on an earlier work of the same medium.-Film:The term "remake" is generally used in reference to a movie which uses an earlier movie as the main source material, rather than in reference to a second, later movie based on the same source...
of a long-unseen, but quite well received, live-action musical special (also called The Stingiest Man in Town) which had originally starred Basil Rathbone
Basil Rathbone
Sir Basil Rathbone, KBE, MC, Kt was an English actor. He rose to prominence in England as a Shakespearean stage actor and went on to appear in over 70 films, primarily costume dramas, swashbucklers, and, occasionally, horror films...
, Martyn Green
Martyn Green
William Martyn-Green , better known as Martyn Green, was an English actor and singer. He is best known for his work as principal comedian in the Gilbert & Sullivan comic operas, which he performed and recorded with the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company and other troupes.After army service in World War I,...
, and Vic Damone
Vic Damone
Vic Damone is an American singer and entertainer.- Early life :Damone was born Vito Rocco Farinola in Brooklyn, New York to French-Italian immigrants based in Bari, Italy—Rocco and Mamie Farinola. His father was an electrician; and his mother taught piano. His cousin was the actress and singer...
. The live-action version had been telecast in 1956 on the anthology series The Alcoa Hour
The Alcoa Hour
The Alcoa Hour is a live anthology television series sponsored by Alcoa and telecast in the United States from 1955 to 1957. The series was seen Sundays on NBC at 9pm.-Overview:...
.
As with previous Rankin-Bass specials, animation duties were provided by a Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese studio, in this case Top Craft, which would later provide animation assistance for Hayao Miyazaki
Hayao Miyazaki
is a Japanese manga artist and prominent film director and animator of many popular anime feature films. Through a career that has spanned nearly fifty years, Miyazaki has attained international acclaim as a maker of animated feature films and, along with Isao Takahata, co-founded Studio Ghibli,...
's Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind and the TV series Adventures of the Little Koala
Adventures of the Little Koala
is an anime TV series produced by Tohokushinsha Film Corporation. It aired originally in Japan on TV Tokyo from October 4, 1984 through March 28, 1985, and then aired in the United States on Nickelodeon dubbed in English from 1987 to 1994...
. Given that The Stingiest Man in Town was actually broadcast in Japan on Christmas Eve of 1978 (under the title Machi Ichiban Kechinbo), it is listed as an anime
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
in some sources. The Japanese version was directed by Katsuhisa Yamada
Katsuhisa Yamada
is a Japanese animator. He is most noted for directing such memorable anime series as Genesis Climber Mospeada, Gatchaman, Mazinger Z, Devil Hunter Yohko and Record of Lodoss War.-External links:...
, better known for work on such bona fide anime as Mazinger Z
Mazinger Z
, known briefly as Tranzor Z in United States, is a Super Robot manga and anime series created by Go Nagai. The first manga version was serialized in Shueisha Weekly Shōnen Jump from October 1972 to August 1973, and it later continued in Kodansha TV Magazine from October 1973 to September 1974. In...
and Devil Hunter Yohko
Devil Hunter Yohko
is an anime series created by Madhouse, produced by Toho, and published in North America by ADV Films. Devil Hunter Yohko was ADV Films' first VHS release...
.
Plot
The 1978 version, based on the famous Dickens classic A Christmas CarolA 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...
, is a tale 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...
told through the perspective of narrator B.A.H. Humbug (voiced by Tom Bosley
Tom Bosley
Thomas Edward "Tom" Bosley was an American actor. Bosley is best known for portraying Howard Cunningham on the long-running ABC sitcom Happy Days. He also was featured in recurring roles on Murder, She Wrote, and Father Dowling Mysteries...
) obviously a word play on Scrooge's catch phrase, "bah humbug". Scrooge (performed by Walter Matthau
Walter Matthau
Walter Matthau was an American actor best known for his role as Oscar Madison in The Odd Couple and his frequent collaborations with Odd Couple star Jack Lemmon, as well as his role as Coach Buttermaker in the 1976 comedy The Bad News Bears...
) is portrayed as the tightwad 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...
intended him to be with his consistent resistance to assist the poor or even have Christmas dinner
Christmas dinner
Christmas dinner is the primary meal traditionally eaten on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day. In many ways the meal is similar to a standard Sunday dinner. Christmas feasts have traditionally been luxurious and abundant...
with his nephew Fred, performed by Dennis Day
Dennis Day
Dennis Day born Owen Patrick Eugene McNulty, was an Irish-American singer and radio, television and film personality.-Early life:...
and his family. In hopes of resuscitating the goodness of his one-time friend, the ghost of Jacob Marley
Jacob Marley
Jacob Marley is a fictional character who appears in Charles Dickens' 1843 novella A Christmas Carol.- Relationship with Scrooge:In life, Marley was the business partner of Ebenezer Scrooge. As teenagers, both men had been apprenticed in business and met as clerks in another business...
(voiced by Theodore Bikel
Theodore Bikel
Theodore Meir Bikel is a character actor, folk singer and musician. He made his film debut in The African Queen and was nominated for an Academy award for his supporting role as Sheriff Max Muller in The Defiant Ones ....
), Scrooge's former business partner, visits Scrooge in his mansion, exhorting him to change his ways. Scrooge deems this to be madness and soon prepares for bed.
Nevertheless, Scrooge's attitude soon changes after a fateful night wherein three ghosts also visit him and take him through his past. Within these pernicious shadows (which Scrooge created because of his avarice) and maliciousness toward his fellow men, Scrooge sees a younger caricature of himself, voiced by Robert Morse
Robert Morse
Robert Morse is an American actor and singer. Morse is best known for his appearances in musicals and plays on Broadway. He has also acted in movies and television shows. His best known role is that of J. Pierrepont Finch in the 1961 Broadway musical, and 1967 film How to Succeed in Business...
and realizes how cryptic he has become. The Ghost of Christmas Present
Ghost of Christmas Present
The Ghost of Christmas Present is a character in one of the best-known works of the English novelist Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol. The Spirit closely resembles Father Christmas from local folklore....
(performed by Paul Frees
Paul Frees
Paul Frees was an American voice actor and character actor.-Biography:He was born Solomon Hersh Frees in Chicago...
) proceeds to take Scrooge to the home of his diligent employee Bob Cratchit
Bob Cratchit
Robert "Bob" Cratchit is a fictional character who is the abused, underpaid clerk of Ebenezer Scrooge in the Charles Dickens story A Christmas Carol...
and discovers just how much poverty Cratchit and his family wallow in. Cratchit's crippled son 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...
(voiced by Bobby Rolofson) touches Scrooge's heart and instigates a transformation within his personality. The production concludes with Scrooge manifesting his enhancements as he assists those less fortunate than himself.