A Christmas Carol
About A Christmas Carol
Ebenezer Scrooge hates Christmas. On Christmas Eve the ghost of Jacob Marley and the spirits of past, present, and future show him the chances he wasted, the way he treats Bob Cratchit, and the death waiting if he does not change. He chooses the morning after.
Cast & crew
More about A Christmas Carol
J. Searle Dawley directed this one-reel Edison adaptation of Charles Dickens's 1843 novella. Marc McDermott plays Scrooge. Charles S. Ogle plays Bob Cratchit. Viola Dana and Shirley Mason are also billed. The English Wikipedia times it at about 13 minutes. Wikidata lists 10 minutes and also names Charles Kent and Ashley Miller beside Dawley. Edison distributed it. It is the second oldest surviving screen version, after the 1901 British Scrooge, or, Marley's Ghost.
Themes
Look
The Bronx Edison crew kept the camera in one place and framed the actors full length.
Preservation
A one-reel print survives. Copies are on the Internet Archive and Wikimedia Commons.
Notes
- The camera stays fixed, and the actors play in full figure, as on a stage.
- Copies are on the Internet Archive and on Wikimedia Commons.
- William Bechtel and Carey Lee are on the catalog cast.
Scenes
- The spirits walk Scrooge through his past and the grave that waits if he stays as he is.
Influenced by
- Charles Dickens's A Christmas Carol
Also available
- Internet Archive (AChristmasCarol)
