Christmas is a time of tradition and it is no different for the Television Crossover Hall of Fame. Usually for this month there are two inductions - one for Christmas, the other a multiversal. This December there have been a couple of inductions already announced, Bette Midler and John "Steed", but neither one really fits the tradition.
And so, with today's induction on Christmas Eve, we combine both categories with a TV character who embodies both traditions.
EBENEZER SCROOGE
Scrooge began life in BookWorld, of course, courtesy of fellow TVOXOHOF member Charles Dickens. And there have been incarnations of the old miser in the Cineverse and Theater World since then, The Audioverse and the world of comic strips would also have their versions of the old skinflint.
I may be wrong, but I think it is in the world of television where there have been the most incarnations of Ebenezer Scrooge. And in this list of portrayals, I didn't even include those to be found in the blipverts......
For example.....
So here's a list of the Scrooge televersions who share this one berth in the Hall of Fame. (They'll probably all have to be ensconced in their own wing!) They run the gamut of alternate TV worlds from various pocket dimensions of Skitlandia and the Tooniverse, so many Toobworlds in which other cultures hold sway, And there are a few alternate Scrooges who had exact counterparts who showed up in more than one Toobworld. For example, those played by Basil Rathbone and Fredric March in two separate productions each. (And Rathbone played one of those in an anthology series hosted by March!)
"Dickensian" (2015)
Played by Ned Dennehy
"Saturday Night Live" (2013)
Played byTaran Killam / Jimmy Fallon
A Christmas Carol: The Concert (2013)
Played by Michael Aaron Lindner (as Scrooge) / Michael Aaron Linder (as Scrooge)
"Epic Rap Battles of History"
- Donald Trump vs. Ebenezer Scrooge (2013)
Played by Zach Sherwin
"Robot Chicken"
- Born Again Virgin Christmas Special (2013)
Played by Drew Massey
"SMBC Theater"
- Scrooge (2012)
Played by Zach Weiner (as Scrooge)
"Mad"
- Fantastic Four Christmases/Red & White Collar (2012)
Played by Kevin Shinick
"The Charles Dickens Show"
- Christmas (2012)
Played by Louise Brealey (as Scrooge)
"Cartoonito Tales"
- Christmas Carol
Played by Edward French(as Ebeneezer)
"Ask Grim"
- Episode #1.4 (2010)
Played by David Beeler
The Carol Project (2006)
Played by Bill Bourne
Chasing Christmas (2005)
Played by Meshach Peters (as Scrooge)
"The Late Late Show"
- Episode dated 2 December 2005
Played by David McSavage (as Scrooge)
A Christmas Carol: The Musical (2004)
Played by Kelsey Grammer / Joshua Wilmott (as Scrooge) / Steven Miller (as Young Scrooge)
Scrooge and Marley (2001)
Played by Dean Jones
R2-D2: Beneath the Dome (2001)
Played by Barry Kite (as Scrooge)
Christmas Carol: The Movie (2001)
Played by Simon Callow (as Scrooge)
[I've included this because of Simon Callow's participation. His portrayal of Dickens is the official televersion for Toobworld.]
A Christmas Carol (1999)
Played by Josh Maguire (as Boy Scrooge) / Kenny Doughty (as Young Scrooge) / Patrick Stewart (as Mr. Ebenezer Scrooge)
Ebenezer (1998)
Played by Jack Palance / Aaron Pearl (as Ebenezer age 17) / Kyle Collings (as Ebenezer age 8, 12)
[This may be the version to be found in the Litless Toobworld of 'Sleepy Hollow' & 'Elementary', but in a world without Dickens, Scrooge's parents may have migrated to the American Old West.]
A Christmas Carol (1994)
Played by Jeremy Kerridge
"The Real Ghostbusters"
- Xmas Marks the Spot (1986)
Played by Peter Renaday
"George Burns Comedy Week"
- Christmas Carol II the Sequel (1985)
Played byJames Whitmore
Christmas Carol (1984)
Played by Michel Bouquet / Manuel Bonnet (as Young Scrooge)
Scrooge's Rock 'N' Roll Christmas (1984)
Played by Jack Elam (as Scrooge)
A Christmas Carol (1984)
Played by George C. Scott / Mark Strickson (as Young Scrooge)
The Gospel According to Scrooge (1983)
Played by Robert Buchanan / Eric Worre (as Young Adult Scrooge)
A Christmas Carol (1982/I)
Played by Richard Hilger /Stephen D'Ambrose (as Young Scrooge)
A Christmas Carol (1981)
Played by William Paterson /Casey Peterson (as Boy Scrooge) / Thomas Harrison (as Young Scrooge)
George Burns' Early, Early, Early Christmas Special (1981)
Played by Hans Conried
"3-2-1"
- Dickens (1979)
Played by Wilfrid Brambell (as Ebeneezer Scrooge)
A Christmas Carol at Ford's Theatre (1979)
Played by Ronald Bishop / Thomas Dillon (as Young Scrooge) / Steve O'Connor (as Youngest Scrooge)
The Stingiest Man in Town (1978)
Played by Walter Matthau/ Robert Morse (as Young Scrooge)
Scrooge (1978)
Played by Warren Graves / Colin Graves (as Young Scrooge)
A Christmas Carol (1977)
Played by Michael Hordern (as Scrooge) / John Salthouse (as Scrooge as a Young Man) / Dorian Healy (as Scrooge as a Schoolboy)
Canción de Navidad (1974)
Played by Antonio Passy (as Scrooge) / Mario Humberto Jiménez Pons (as Scrooge)
The Charles Dickens Show (1974)
Played by Edward Thorpe (as Scrooge)
A Christmas Carol (1971)
Played by Alastair Sim
Carry on Christmas (1969)
Played by Sidney James
A Christmas Carol (1969)
Played by Ron Haddrick
"Novela"
- Leyenda de Navidad (1966)
Played by Luis Prendes (as Scrooge)
Karácsonyi ének (1964)
Played by Sándor Pécsi / István Sztankay (as Young Scrooge)
Mr. Scrooge (1964)
Played by Cyril Ritchard / Don Francks(as Young Scrooge)
Ein Weihnachtslied in Prosa oder Eine Geistergeschichte zum Christfest (1960)
Played by Carl Wery / Elmar Wepper (as Ebenezer Scrooge als Lehrling) / Mario Münster (as Ebenezer Scrooge als Schuljunge)
"Fredric March Presents Tales from Dickens"
- A Christmas Carol (1958)
Played by Basil Rathbone / Kaplan Kaye (as Scrooge as a boy) / Howard Williams(as Scrooge as a young man)
"General Electric Theater"
- The Trail to Christmas (1957)
Played by John McIntire (as Ebeneezer Scrooge)
"The Alcoa Hour"
- The Stingiest Man in Town (1956)
Played by Basil Rathbone / Vic Damone (as Young Scrooge)
"Shower of Stars"
- A Christmas Carol III (1956)
Played by Fredric March
- A Christmas Carol (1954)
Played by Fredric March/ Craig Hill (as Young Scrooge)
Story of the Christmas Carol (1955)
Played by Norman Gottschalk / George Greer (as Young Scrooge)
The Merry Christmas (1955)
Played by Hugh Griffith (as Scrooge) / Peter Reeves (as Young Scrooge)
Ein Weihnachtslied in Prosa (1955)
Played by Harald Mannl
"Ponds Theater"
- A Christmas Carol (1953)
Played by Noel Leslie
"Kraft Theatre"
- A Christmas Carol (1952)
Played by Malcolm Keen
"Fireside Theatre"
- A Christmas Carol (1951)
Played by Ralph Richardson
"All Star Revue"
- Episode #2.16 (1951)
Played by Walter Slezak
A Christmas Carol (1950)
Played by Bransby Williams /Sean Lynch (as Boy Scrooge) / John Bentley (as Young Scrooge)
The Christmas Carol (1949)
Played by Joe Battista (as Boy Scrooge) / Taylor Holmes (as Ebeneezer Scrooge)
"The Philco-Goodyear Television Playhouse"
- A Christmas Carol (1948)
Played by Dennis King
A Christmas Carol (1947)
Played by John Carradine
A Christmas Carol (1943)
Played by William Podmore
So who should be the official televersion of Ebenezer Scrooge? I think we should honor a largely ignored Toobworld tenet that the first portrayal/adaptation should always be held as the official version. With that in mind, I think William Podmore in an experimental TV production in 1943 is the Ebenezer Scrooge of Toobworld. Sadly, not even publicity stills from that telecast survive as far as I can tell. According to the IMDb, the ability to save recordings from TV broadcasts wasn't available back then. (Apparently the world had more important things to think about back in the 1940s.....)
Otherwise, I am partial to several more modern versions like those played by George C. Scott and Patrick Stewart. And then there's the animated Scrooge voiced by Alastair Sim, who played my all-time favorite Scrooge in a 1950s movie.
At any rate, welcome aboard, Mr. Scrooge! (Even if you would probably think the TVXOHOF is nothing more than a load of humbug......)
BCnU!
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