So Many "A Christmas Carol"s Trivia Quiz

Answer: No

'A Christmas Carol' was first published over ten years earlier, on 19 December 1843, and the first edition was completely sold out before Christmas. Its popularity has never waned, which is why it has inspired so many adaptations over the years. The sentiments of the season make the story of Ebenezer Scrooge realising how much happier he would be if he were a more loving person, and the final enjoyment of a merry Christmas by everyone, seem to convey a significant message.

Dickens experienced a lot of financial difficulties, and found that public readings of his work provided a dual benefit - increased book sales, and the cash payment for the performance. This reading, delivered to the Industrial and Literary Institute of Birmingham in the Birmingham Town Hall, was the first of many. And the tradition of reading 'A Christmas Carol' onstage has been carried on by a number of others, sometimes in character as Dickens himself performing the reading. Gerald Charles Dickens, great-great-grandson of the author, started presenting the story in 1993, and has released a CD of his performance, based on the script Dickens used in his original tour.

Answer: Scrooge, or, Marley's Ghost

It was a pretty ambitious plan to fit the entire story into a film that ran for a bit over 6 minutes! To facilitate this, the three Ghost of Christmas characters were cut out, and the story had Marley's ghost the only one required to help Scrooge see the error of his ways by showing him images of Christmas from his past, present and future.

The writing credit for the film is usually given to both Dickens and to C. J. Buckstone, whose stage adaptation 'Scrooge' is considered to be the more direct inspiration for the film's approach. Director Walter R. Booth told the story in twelve scenes, connected by explanatory intertitles.

The film had some impressive (for the time) special effects, such as making Marley's face appear superimposed on a door knocker. About half of the original footage has survived, and is preserved by the British Film Institute, which has made it available for viewing as a download from their website.

Answer: Lionel Barrymore

Lionel Barrymore (1878-1954) may be best remembered for the Academy Award he earned portraying the nasty Mr Potter in 'It's a Wonderful Life', or as the crusty Dr Gillespie in multiple 'Dr Kildare' films, but his annual Christmas performance as Scrooge was equally memorable.

He first performed it in 1934 on CBS radio, and repeated the performance every year until his death, with two exceptions. In 1936 the part was played by his brother John, because Lionel was in mourning for his recently-deceased wife, and in 1938 Orson Welles filled in when Barrymore was ill.

He was planned to play Scrooge in the 1938 MGM movie of 'A Christmas Carol', but was replaced by Reginald Owen because of the worsening arthritis that confined him to a wheelchair.

Answer: Jim Backus

The framework of the film shows us Mr Magoo on his way to the theatre where he is going to perform as Scrooge in a musical adaptation of 'A Christmas Carol'. The musical follows the traditional story, except the three ghosts appear in a different order, with the Ghost of Christmas Present coming first, followed by the Ghost of Christmas Past, and finally the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come. Being a musical, of course, it also has songs, featuring music from Jule Styne and lyrics from Bob Merrill.

Jim Backus (1913-1989) was the voice of the bumbling, extremely near-sighted Mr Magoo from 1948 until his death. You may also remember him for his portrayal of James Dean's father in the 1955 film 'Rebel Without a Cause', or as Thurston Howell III in the television series 'Gilligan's Island', which first aired 1964-1967.

Answer: Glendale, California (USA)

At the time of writing this quiz, tickets are available for the 54th season - and it shows no sign of stopping! The Glendale Centre Theatre produces 'A Christmas Carol' as its final show each year, running from late November until around Christmas. A live performance from the 2015 season, starring Tom Killam as Scrooge and Bradley Bundlie as Tiny Tim, was filmed for theatrical release. (I must point out that some sites say the first performance was in 1964, which would make the 50th year be 2013, not 2015.

But the theatre's site describes the 2019 season as the 54th one. Perhaps a few years did actually get missed, for one reason or another.)

Answer: Yosemite Sam

This eight-minute cartoon was the first part of a Christmas special called 'Bugs Bunny's Looney Christmas Tales', and was only very loosely based on the Dickens original. Most of the characters were just themselves, suitably cast so that their characteristic phrases and temperaments suited the character.

This included Yosemite Sam as Scrooge, Porky Pig as Bob Cratchit, Tweety Pie as Tiny Tim, and Bugs Bunny as Scrooge's nephew Fred, who disguised himself as the ghost of Marley to scare Scrooge into behaving more generously, totally deleting the three dream journeys with Christmas ghosts. Sylvester was Scrooge's cat, and Elmer Fudd, Foghorn Leghorn and Pepé le Pew made an appearance as carollers.

Answer: Mickey's Christmas Carol

While Scrooge McDuck (voiced by Alan Young for the first time) featured as Scrooge, and Donald Duck (voiced by Clarence Nash for the last time) appeared as his nephew Fred, it was the role of Mickey Mouse (voiced by Wayne Allwine, who took over from Walt Disney in 1947) as Bob Cratchit that got the title.

This was, after all, the first new theatrically-released Mickey Mouse cartoon for over 30 ears, and he has always been the Disney centrepiece. It was also the last time that any of the characters appearing in the film would be voiced by their original voice actor: Clarence 'Ducky' Nash voiced Donald Duck for the last time, and the original actors for the other well-known Disney characters had all died.

Answer: No

Michael Caine played Scrooge, in a serious dramatic interpretation of the part, while Muppetry (I know that's not a word, but you get what it means) went on around him. The film featured some old favorites, as well as new Muppets created specifically for their parts, including the three Ghosts of Christmas.

The Great Gonzo (Dave Goetz) served as the narrator, along with Rizzo the Rat (Steve Whitmire); Kermit (also performed by Steve Whitmire) took on the part of Bob Cratchit; Robin the Frog (Jerry Nelson) was Tiny Tim, and Miss Piggy (Frank Oz) his mother Emily. Scrooge's nephew Fred was another non-Muppet character, played by Steven Mackintosh.

While there are some liberties taken with a few characters in order to fit the persona of the Muppet portraying them, the story is essentially the same as the original. Directed by Brian Henson, this was the first Muppets film to be produced following the death of his father in 1990.

Answer: The Wizard of Oz

At the start of the 1939 film of 'The Wizard of Oz', Dorothy (Judy Garland) interacts with a number of people in Kansas, who are played by the same actors as those who portray characters she meets in Oz, helping to create the movie's suggestion that it was all just a dream.

In 'A Christmas Carol: The Musical', it is only the ghosts whose reality is cast into doubt by this double casting: Jane Krakowski, who portrays the Ghost of Christmas Past, also appears as a lamplighter; Jesse L. Martin, the Ghost of Christmas Present, is seen wearing a sandwich board in the street; Geraldine Chaplin is both the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Be and an elderly blind woman.

These are the three people Ebenezer Scrooge (played by Kelsey Grammar) encounters near the start, and refuses their requests for a donation.

The show has over 20 musical numbers, including the entire Christmas Yet to Come sequence and the scene in which Marley's ghost (Jason Alexander) visits Scrooge.

Answer: Jim Carrey

This was Disney's third version of the story, following 'Mickey's Christmas Carol' (1983) and 'The Muppet Christmas Carol' (1992), and it was a much darker version than the others, with characters more like those of Dickens, and less like Disney creations.

As well as providing a chance for Jim Carrey to demonstrate his ability to produce a range of voices and physical presence for the four characters, it also offered Gary Oldman the chance to be both Bob Cratchit and Marley's ghost, as well as doing the motion capture work for Tiny Tim. Colin Firth was Fred, Bob Hoskins portrayed Mr Fezziwig, and Cary Elwes played a number of minor roles, as well as being the body stand-in for Carrey when two of his characters were interacting with each other.