Next we have another visual interpretation of "A Christmas Carol" this time in the the form of View-Master reels!
These were sort of the YouTube of their day, video entertainment that you could access whenever you wanted. They had lots of adaptations of popular TV shows and movies, but they also adapted a lot of stories, such as our favorite, which was first released in 1956.
The picture at top is a scan of the set from my own collection. I think this is a relatively early issue, based on the cover format and the fact that it still has the "Sawyer's" name, rather than the GAF logo so prominent on the new ones when I was a kid. I believe that Fisher-Price owns the brand now, and you can still buy sets and viewers!
You can find images of a lot of the various reels on the Internet, so I gathered up all 21 that tell our story and took the liberty of adding the captions as shown on the reels themselves.
Take a look:
Part One:
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| "MERRY CHRISTMAS, UNCLE!" - "BAH!" SAID SCROOGE, "HUMBUG!" |
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| SCROOGE SAW THE FACE OF MARLEY, HIS DEAD PARTNER. | |
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| MARLEY'S GHOST CAME RIGHT THROUGH THE HEAVY DOOR |
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| "I AM THE GHOST OF CHRISTMAS PAST." |
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| SCROOGE WEPT TO SEE HIMSELF AS A POOR, NEGLECTED BOY. |
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| HE SAW AGAIN MR. FEZZIWIG'S CHRISTMAS BALL. |
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| "A GOLDEN IDOL HAS DISPLACED ME," SHE SAID. |
Stay tuned for Reel Two!
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