Rich Little's Christmas Carol

Last updated
Rich Little's Christmas Carol
RichLittlesChristmasCarolHBO.jpg
Artwork for Rich Little's Christmas Carol on HBO
Also known asA Christmas Carol
Starring Rich Little
Country of originCanada
Production
Running time55 minutes
Production company CBC Television
Original release
Network CBC Television, HBO
ReleaseDecember 1978 (1978-12)

Rich Little's Christmas Carol, broadcast in Canada as A Christmas Carol, is a TV special that premiered on CBC Television in December 1978, and in the United States on Home Box Office (HBO) on December 16, 1979. It was produced by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation in 1978. It starred Rich Little in a one-man performance with impersonations of his characters playing the parts in Charles Dickens' famous 1843 holiday story, A Christmas Carol . [1] Little played the following celebrities:

Contents

The show was shot on videotape and included a laugh track.

§ - denotes the celebrity was deceased at the time of production

In 1963, Little released the LP "Scrooge and the Stars", which may have been the inspiration for this version of A Christmas Carol. On the LP, Little portrayed Scrooge as Jack Benny.

See also

Related Research Articles

<i>Mister Magoos Christmas Carol</i> 1962 animated musical holiday television special

Mister Magoo's Christmas Carol is a 1962 animated musical holiday television special produced by UPA. It is an adaptation of Charles Dickens' 1843 novella A Christmas Carol, and it features UPA's character Mr. Magoo as Ebenezer Scrooge. The special first aired on December 18, 1962, on NBC and was the first animated Christmas special to be produced specifically for television.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ebenezer Scrooge</span> Fictional character in A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens

Ebenezer Scrooge is a fictional character and the protagonist of Charles Dickens's 1843 short novel, A Christmas Carol. Initially a cold-hearted miser who despises Christmas, his redemption by three spirits has become a defining tale of the Christmas holiday in the English-speaking world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rich Little</span> Canadian-American impressionist and actor

Richard Caruthers Little is a Canadian-American comedian, impressionist and voice actor. Sometimes known as the "Man of a Thousand Voices", Little has recorded nine comedy albums and made numerous television appearances, including three HBO specials.

<i>Scrooge</i> (1951 film) 1951 film by Brian Desmond Hurst

Scrooge is a 1951 British Christmas fantasy drama film and an adaptation of Charles Dickens's A Christmas Carol (1843). It stars Alastair Sim as Ebenezer Scrooge, and was produced and directed by Brian Desmond Hurst, with a screenplay by Noel Langley. It also features Kathleen Harrison, George Cole, Hermione Baddeley, Mervyn Johns, Clifford Mollison, Jack Warner, Ernest Thesiger and Patrick Macnee. Michael Hordern plays Marley's ghost and the older Jacob Marley. Peter Bull narrates portions of Charles Dickens' words at the beginning and end of the film, and appears on-screen as a businessman.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bob Cratchit</span> Fictional character

Bob Cratchit is a fictional character in the Charles Dickens 1843 novel A Christmas Carol. The overworked, underpaid clerk of Ebenezer Scrooge, Cratchit has come to symbolize the poor working conditions, especially long working hours and low pay, endured by many working-class people in the early Victorian era.

<i>A Christmas Carol</i> (1938 film) 1938 American Christmas film directed by Edwin L. Marin

A Christmas Carol is a 1938 American drama film adaptation of Charles Dickens's 1843 novella of the same name, starring Reginald Owen as Ebenezer Scrooge, an elderly miser who learns the error of his ways on Christmas Eve after visitations by three spirits. The film was directed by Edwin L. Marin from a script by Hugo Butler.

<i>Christmas Carol: The Movie</i> 2001 animated film by Jimmy Murakami

Christmas Carol: The Movie is a 2001 British live action/animated film based on Charles Dickens's 1843 novella A Christmas Carol. Directed by Jimmy T. Murakami, the film features the voices of numerous actors including Simon Callow, Kate Winslet, Kate's sister Beth Winslet, and Nicolas Cage. The film was a critical and commercial failure upon release.

<i>A Christmas Carol</i> (1984 film) 1984 US television film directed by Clive Donner

A Christmas Carol is a 1984 British-American made-for-television film adaptation of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol (1843). The film was directed by Clive Donner, who had been an editor of the 1951 film Scrooge, and stars George C. Scott as Ebenezer Scrooge. It also features Frank Finlay as Marley's ghost, David Warner as Bob Cratchit, Susannah York as Mrs. Cratchit, Angela Pleasence as the Ghost of Christmas Past, Edward Woodward as the Ghost of Christmas Present and Roger Rees as Scrooge's nephew Fred; Rees also narrates portions of Charles Dickens' words at the beginning and end of the film. The movie was filmed in the historic medieval county town of Shrewsbury in Shropshire.

<i>Bugs Bunnys Christmas Carol</i> 1979 animated Christmas film by Friz Freleng

Bugs Bunny's Christmas Carol is an eight-minute animated film produced by Warner Bros. Television and DePatie–Freleng Enterprises, and aired on CBS on November 27, 1979 as the first segment of the Christmas special, Bugs Bunny's Looney Christmas Tales.

<i>A Christmas Carol</i> (2004 film) 2004 television film based on a 1994 stage musical

A Christmas Carol: The Musical is a 2004 American musical television film based on the 1994 stage musical by Alan Menken and Lynn Ahrens inspired by the 1843 novella of the same name by Charles Dickens.

<i>A Christmas Carol</i> (1999 film) 1999 British-American television film by David Jones

A Christmas Carol is a 1999 British-American made-for-television film adaptation of Charles Dickens' 1843 novella A Christmas Carol that was first televised December 5, 1999, on TNT. It was directed by David Jones and stars Patrick Stewart as Ebenezer Scrooge and Richard E. Grant as Bob Cratchit.

<i>Ebenezer</i> (film) 1998 Canadian television film by Ken Jubenvill

Ebenezer is a 1998 Canadian made-for-television fantasy drama Western film starring Jack Palance and Ricky Schroder. It is a re-telling of Charles Dickens' classic 1843 novella A Christmas Carol with Jack Palance giving a performance as Ebenezer Scrooge, á la Western genre.

Tiny Tim (<i>A Christmas Carol</i>) Fictional character from Dickens novella "A Christmas Carol"

Tiny Tim Cratchit is a fictional character from the 1843 novella A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. Although seen only briefly, he is a major character, and serves as an important symbol of the consequences of the protagonist's choices.

<i>A Christmas Carol</i> (2000 film) 2000 television movie directed by Catherine Morshead

A Christmas Carol is a 2000 British crime fantasy television film, written by Peter Bowker, that first broadcast on ITV on 20 December 2000. The film is a modern adaptation of Charles Dickens' 1843 novella of the same name, and stars Ross Kemp in the role of Eddie Scrooge, a cruel and unscrupulous loan shark who brings misery to the residents of a poor housing estate, before he is haunted by ghosts one Christmas Eve.

Mrs. Bob Cratchit's Wild Christmas Binge is a musical comedy written by Christopher Durang, a parody of the Charles Dickens 1843 novel A Christmas Carol. Durang was commissioned by Pittsburgh City Theatre Artistic Director Tracy Brigden to write a Christmas comedy. The show premiered November 7, 2002 at the City Theatre with Kristine Nielsen in the title role.

<i>A Christmas Carol</i> (2009 film) Film by Robert Zemeckis

Disney's A Christmas Carol is a 2009 American animated Christmas dark fantasy film produced, written for the screen and directed by Robert Zemeckis. Produced by Walt Disney Pictures and Zemeckis' ImageMovers Digital, and released by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, it is based on Charles Dickens's 1843 novel A Christmas Carol. The film was animated through the process of motion capture, a technique used in ImageMovers' previous animated films including The Polar Express (2004), Monster House (2006), and Beowulf (2007), and stars the voices of Jim Carrey, Gary Oldman, Colin Firth, Bob Hoskins, Robin Wright Penn and Cary Elwes. It is Disney's third adaptation of the novel, following Mickey's Christmas Carol (1983) and The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992).

Adaptations of <i>A Christmas Carol</i> Works based on Charles Dickenss 1843 novella

A Christmas Carol, the 1843 novella by Charles Dickens (1812–1870), is one of the English author's best-known works. It is the story of Ebenezer Scrooge, a greedy miser who hates Christmas, but is transformed into a caring, kindly person through the visitations of four ghosts. The classic work has been dramatised and adapted countless times for virtually every medium and performance genre, and new versions appear regularly.

<i>The Stingiest Man in Town</i> 1978 animated Christmas television special

The Stingiest Man in Town is a 1978 animated Christmas musical television special based on Charles Dickens' 1843 novella A Christmas Carol. It was created by Arthur Rankin Jr. and Jules Bass, and features traditional animation rather than the stop motion animation most often used by the company. It was an animated remake of a long-unseen, but quite well received, live-action musical special which had starred Basil Rathbone, Martyn Green, and Vic Damone. The live-action version had been telecast on December 23, 1956, on the NBC anthology series The Alcoa Hour, and was published on DVD in 2011, by VAI. The animated remake first aired December 23, 1978, in the United States on NBC, and was telecast in Japan the next day.

<i>A Christmas Carol</i> (musical) American stage musical

A Christmas Carol is a musical with music by Alan Menken, lyrics by Lynn Ahrens, and book by Mike Ockrent and Lynn Ahrens. The musical is based on Charles Dickens' 1843 novella of the same name. The show was presented annually at New York City's Theater at Madison Square Garden from December 1, 1994, to December 27, 2003.

"A Christmas Carol" is the December 23, 1954 episode of the hour-long American television anthology variety series, Shower of Stars. The episode is an adaptation of Charles Dickens' 1843 novella of the same name.

References

  1. December 1979 HBO Program Guide (The China Syndrome on cover), page 12