The Stingiest Man in Town

I saw this TV special when it originally aired a few days before Christmas in 1956 and ran out the next day to buy the original cast album (which I still have!). I loved the music and recall enjoying the show more than most TV specials of the time. I never saw it again and did not realize it had been out on DVD for a couple of years. Having viewed it again now, 58 years later, I was stunned by how good it still is! As with much early TV, I didn't expect much and was prepared for a less-than-stellar production, but I was genuinely impressed with the quality of the production, the first-rate cast, and especially the musical numbers and song writing. This special remains both entertaining and moving, with song lyrics that are far above the average pablum from TV musical productions of mid-century. The cast is drawn from top screen and stage stars, including several from opera and Broadway. I had forgotten how good a singer Vic Damone was and it is a real treat to hear Patrice Munsel, Robert Weede, Betty Madigan, and Johnny Desmond sing as well. Basil Rathbone, who had played Scrooge in an earlier, non-musical TV production, and Jacob Marley in a musical version, is perfectly cast as the old miser here. The restoration of this special reveals one of his best performances, which would otherwise have been lost forever. While never a dancer or singer by trade, he does admirably in all of his musical turns, but he soars above everyone during his magnificent, climactic scene with the Ghost of Christmas Future, singing "Mankind Should Be My Business" with so much genuine feeling that he makes long-time Carol fans forget Alastair Sim and George C. Scott for the moment. It is simply a riveting, compelling moment. I am sorry that some who have reviewed this print were either unimpressed or displeased with the understandably dated quality of a restored kinescope over a half-century old. It is a shame that television did not do more to film these productions and preserve them in better quality, but this one is quite good and more than just watchable, and the quality of the production pushes any misgivings about the black & white kinescope out of mind. I am grateful to the producers of this DVD for resurrecting such a fine production and memorable performances. This will be a regular on my holiday viewing schedule from now on. Finally, do not confuse this production with the later (1978) animated TV version, which is also good in its way, but not at all up to this one and geared more to children than adults.

I love Dickens' Christmas Carol and own many film versions, from the silent era to the present day. I have seen other vintage TV versions (like the 1954 Fredrick March/Basil Rathbone musical) but I had only read about this one until now. I have to say, I was surprised how good this is! First the bad: the picture quality is quite rough. This was a live TV production, so the performance itself was never put on film. This was a kinescope of the broadcast, where they literally filmed a TV screen in the studio to have a record of the show. Also, the original program was shown in color, but this, the only known copy, is in black and white. However, if you can forgive these flaws, you're in for a real treat! The songs are clever and often very moving. I found myself humming a couple of them long after the show ended. The sets and performances are all first rate -- kudos to Basil Rathbone for a very strong performance! I expected to enjoy this version as a curiosity and a nostalgic look back at early television, and I did . . . but it's much more than that. It's charming, and rather moving -- I was definitely a bit choked up in the finale. Because of the technical limitations and because the story is trimmed to leave time for the songs, this doesn't compare with the Alastair Sim or George C Scott versions. However, it's better than many others that I've seen. It's different, it's heartwarming, the music's great -- this is a really enjoyable film. It will definitely be an annual Christmas treat in our house! BTW -- The soundtrack is available here on Amazon on CD or MP3 download: Stingiest Original ORIGINAL RECORDINGS REMASTERED

Long thought to be lost, this recently found kinescope of a live production from 1956 is a cause for "A Christmas Carol" lovers and all folks imbued with the Christmas Spirit to rejoice. And even if you, yourself, are Scrooge-like in a general lack of sentiment for the Season you'll still find much of interest in this DVD if you enjoy time-travelling back to the good old days of live television. Don't expect great quality in the transfer. The image and sound leave much to be desired - if you are expecting miracles! But this is, I repeat, a kinescope from 55 years ago - and I am simply thankful that someone filmed it then and someone rediscovered it and uncovered it now! This DVD is in black and white, even though the broadcast was apparently in color. I would have loved to see it in color - and perhaps one day someone will colorize it, even though I generally hate colorization of films. But given that this was originally seen in color, if one day it is colorized then instead of tampering the effort will be more in keeping with restoring - and then, in my book, colorization becomes thoroughly legitimate. There may be the need for a SPOILER ALERT at this point. Where was I? Oh, yes - there is much in this version that is deplorable, especially by present day standards. Vic Damone as Young Scrooge and Patrice Munsel as Belle are not matched to their roles nor to one another - and their "Golden Dreams" goes on seemingly forever and instead of dreams it conjures nightmares! Time spent with the young Scrooge can't end soon enough. As a matter-of-fact, if Vic Damone as the young Scrooge was what the old Scrooge was truly like when young...no wonder he grew up to be such a rotten apple! Robert Weede as Marley is atrocious. He enters Scrooge's bedroom and it looks like he is wearing a mosquito net and hat on his head. He reminded me of the Edison Frankenstein monster approaching his maker. The song he sings is abysmal and is filled with many musical notes and lyrics - but they all add up and signify...nothing. A song can only touch the heart if it is written from the heart. This one - and "Golden Dreams" - were seemingly written less from the heart and more from the necessity to fill the required scenario. In watching this, obviously, for the first time and likewise hearing the musical score for the first time (even though the CD has been around, having survived apparent oblivion) I was getting quite disappointed by the production. Basil Rathbone was the only person in the production who knew how to act! The songs were so-so. I think I stifled a yawn. I remember thinking how great the songs were in the earlier live broadcast of Dickens' story - terrific songs that fit the time period of the plot like a hand in a glove - songs by the great Bernard Herrmann. That prior production had Frederic March as a very effective Scrooge and Basil Rathbone superb as Marley's Ghost. I was thinking of how chillingly effective that sequence had been in the March version - great music underscoring a truly haunting, ghostly visitation. Anyway...I was wavering towards a general dismissal of this version. Anytime one thinks longingly of another version of a thing, the one presently before you may be in trouble. But then Act Two made a quantum leap! First, there is thankfully no Vic Damone in this part. Scrooge has more to do. And then we are given two great songs and three very good ones. The great ones are "One Little Boy" and "The Birthday Party of the King." This is what song-writing is all about! Making us feel! These melodies came, yes, straight from the heart of composer Fred Spielman, wonderfully buttressed by the lyrics of Janice Torre. At last I was hearing songs to remember! Act Two renewed my faith in this version of the Christmas classic. And then, sadly, Act Three is almost derailed by an absolutely atrocious "Devil's Ballet" that rudely and pointlessly intrudes after Scrooge sees his gravestone - and goes on and on like a dark-side-of-the -moon "An American in Paris" ("Danse Macabre" it ain't!) All the drama of Scrooge's reformation is almost lost due to this long and silly interval. The bad ballet only ends when the demons or whatever they are stupidly "crucify" Scrooge against the cemetery fence - and just when I think that the third act will be two strikes out of three...just then Basil Rathbone returns with "Mankind Should Be My Business." Talk about heart! Let me say more about Rathbone as Scrooge here. In his opening number "Humbug" I was amazed at how very much Albert Finney sounded like him in the big-screen musical version entitled "Scrooge." Did the great Finney hear a cast recording of this production and pattern his vocal inflection after Rathbone? It is possible. But what is also odd is that Finney's Scrooge has many of the same movements as does Rathbone. Herky-jerky is the style - and Rathbone keeps his arms up, bent at the elbow through much of his performance, as did the later Finney. The song of Scrooge's reformation in this production is also quite similar to the song in the Finney version, or rather vice-versa on that chronology. Back to Rathbone: he sing/talks (like Rex Harrison's Professor Higgins) "Mankind Should Be My Business" and puts so much art and heart into it that it had me wiping my eyes. He is that good - here and throughout the entire show. I always liked Basil Rathbone - and for all of his many fans, what a joy it is to see him in this totally unique performance - and singing, too! And he delivers in spades! By the time he visits the Cratchit family on Christmas Day and reprises "One Little Boy" I knew that - despite all of its many flaws in acting, music, production - this...this would be a perennial in my Christmas viewing lineup. It is not to be missed. I can't help but think that if Basil Rathbone had been given the opportunity to play Scrooge in a full-blooded film version - where there is much more time to be had for every element of a production - he would have been up there with the best of the Scrooges. He looks absolutely perfect for the part! (Jim Carrey's computerized, tall and gaunt Scrooge is similar in appearance.) And more importantly, based on what we see here, he would have acted the part richly and well. Anyway...thanks for reading this. Merry Christmas - and God Bless Us, everyone!

Let me start by saying I am a huge fan of A Christmas Carol. I have purchased many versions over the years and to find a new one is a rare gift. That being said, I would have to say that this version is not the best of the Christmas Carol stories, but It is quite good. Especially for its age and that it was taped live. I think Basil is a good Scrooge but he is not great. And when he sings Humbug, he is not in sync with the orchestra. I found the book to be the weak, but the score is amazing. The performances by Vic Damone, Johnny Desmond, Patrice Munsel and Robert Weede are worth the purchase and the reason I gave the review five stars. After watching this version I purchased the soundtrack on itunes. It is a treat to watch. Happy Holidays!

In this second musical tv adaptation of Sir Charles Dickens yultide classic.."Scrooge"(played here by Basil Rathbone)learns about the true meaning of Christmas and caring more about his fellow man..from the spirit of his late partner"Jacob Marley"(Robert Weede)and the "Three Ghosts of Christmas"..the show presents an abridge version of the tale..which is not as dark or as surreal as the theatrical film versions that star:Alister Sim or Albert Finney.But the songs are entertaining and so is the performances of the cast..the only disappointment is..Mr.Rathbone..he is a talented actor..but..singing is not one of his talents..and his attemps to performs the tunes"Bah Humbug" and "Mankind Should Be My Business"are difficult to endure.Despite these flaws...this is a wonderful look back at a unique holiday tv special and a treasure for Dickens fans and tv buffs.

I wish I had found this the year it was first put on to a DVD (2011). But I have it now and am thrilled. It was an amazing production on early television. The production values were every bit as high as the best stage work done in 1956 (and that was high). The acting was superb and the singing outstanding. My only issue is with the DVD production. They did not even put Closed Captions on for people (like my mother) to be able to read. They don't have to do subtitles. All I ask is that Video producers include Closed Captions. I don't know which is less expensive. But it would have made the watching perfect if my mom could have read the words!

Thia is my very favorite version of "A Christmas Carol," most;y due to the performance of Basil Rathbone. The music is also very good. When I was a child, I was given the original cast album, and I played it until I wore out the album.

Long ago, I came across the LP for this, and eventually wore out my copy. A wonderful, Broadway quality score makes this one of the best musical adaptations of A Christmas Carol, and the all star 1950s cast of Broadway, opera, and pop stars makes for fun viewing. The visual quality of the kinescope is not great, and some of the special effects now seem at best quaint -- but it is great to finally see what I spent so many years just listening to.

I would recommend this for a Christmas Carol fan.

I only recently discovered this wonderful TV musical and am at a loss as to why there have not been any more major productions or recordings since 1956 (I am not including the awful animated version). The Score is Broadway-worthy with witty and humorous songs and the 'Golden Dreams' sequence verges on the operatic. Before this my favourite TV version of Dickens' tale was the 1954 production (also featuring Basil Rathbone, though as Marley this time) with music by Bernard Herrmann and text by Maxwell Anderson. This earlier production was more a musical play, while STINGIEST is structured more like a musical comedy. Rathbone is excellent as Scrooge and even manages to sing OK surrounded as he is by the magnificent voices of Patrice Munsel, Vic Damone, Johnny Desmond, Robert Weede, Martyn Green, et al. As this was taken from a black and white Kinescope (recorded by pointing a camera at a TV monitor) of the original 'live' colour broadcast, there are a few glitches and infelicities, but the joyousness of the production overcomes this. I would also recommend the LP of the score originally released on LP by Columbia in the US and now reissued on CD by Jasmine. This LP is not a 'soundtrack' taken from the broadcast performance but was recorded in the studio some time before (so that it would be on sale at the time the show went out on TV). Unlike similar albums of other TV musicals of the period (Cinderella in particular) it follows exactly the sequence of songs in the actual show and showcases the score brilliantly.

Please with quality and price had to wait for a bit but it arrived in the end

Well to be brutal I don't believe that much effort was made in it's transfer. It will never look as clear as broadcast due to how it was recorded but there are a number of artifacts that restoration would have removed. This aside it is amazing it did survive and it really shows how TV looked at Christmas in 1956. The production is a little clonky but it was live I believe and live TV is never as smooth. It grows on you and some of the songs are quite good indeed. Basil Rathbone is not a singer and thus does very little singing. I can imagine it was very magical for the viewer of the day and it still holds it still.

I purchased the sheet music decades ago and had never seen the show. It was good, but the script didn't quite meet my expectations. The DVD is well restored.