Boys' Life (December 1952) - Part 1

Boys' Life (December 1952)
Editor: Irving Crump
Artist: Creig Flessel

Here's about as snappy a graphic adaptation as you'll ever see in two full-color pages, included inside the comic insert in Boys Life magazine!

Take a look:

Needs More Editing!

My editor, Slugger, is working hard!

LIFE Magazine (December 25, 1944) - Part 2

The LIFE magazine photo spread from the December 25, 1944 issue featuring Lionel Barrymore as Scrooge is a fascinating piece.

It offers something of a "what if" in that it perhaps shows what a movie featuring Barrymore as Scrooge would have looked like. He famously did not get the chance to play the part in 1938. I may have mentioned that once or twice!

The story indicates it was enacted at the MGM studios, so the photos do look movie-ish.

They show the cast list, which is really helpful, but it's not a particularly well-known bunch, with a couple of exceptions.

Who wore it better?

Most fascinating of all is June Lockhart, who's made up to look like Ann Rutherford's version of the Ghost of Christmas Past from the 1938 movie.

June is best-known for her later TV "mom" roles on "Lassie" and "Lost in Space," but if you recall, she played Belinda Cratchit in the 1938 movie with her real-life parents Gene and Kathleen Lockhart!

She no doubt remembered that, but did whoever was casting this photo shoot know? Pretty fun, though!

June's still around, age 94!

I also recognize Jeff York, well his name, as the Ghost of Christmas present. He was a big guy who originally acted in serials and B-movies under his sort-of birth name Granville Owen, then changed his name after service in WWII to Jeff York. I imagine he was going for a Bruce Bennett thing, as Herman Brix broke away from the stigma of serial acting by changing his name.

In any event, it got him signed to MGM, which is how he wound up here. I remember him most as Mike Fink in a couple of "Davy Crockett" episodes on the Disney TV show. From reruns of course!

I have to look on he IMDB to identify any of the other "actors," but they seem to be MGM contract players. I don't think any of them would have been cast in an actual live-action version of "A Christmas Carol" if it were to have been made in 1944, except maybe for Dickie Hall as Tiny Tim.

In any event, it all works well for these purposes.

The photography by Ralph Crane is great, but no surprise as he was very accomplished. If you Google him, you'll see all sorts of great photos.

My editor likes this one!

Old LIFE magazines have fun ads in them, including some for products that don't exist anymore. I'd buy this one, though:

LIFE Magazine (December 25, 1944) - Part 1

LIFE Magazine (December 25, 1944)

Photographer: Ralph Crane

Scrooge: Lionel Barrymore

Lionel Barrymore really loomed large over the Christmas season from the 1930s-50s with his annual radio portrayal of Ebenezer Scrooge in "A Christmas Carol." So much, so that for Christmas 1944, LIFE magazine devoted a seven page spread to a visualization of him as Scrooge in costume with a supporting cast on fully-dressed sets.

It's pretty cool! Take a look:

Treasury Star Parade #52 - "A Modern Scrooge" (1942) - Part 2

We probably don't need a spoiler alert for the ending of the "A Modern Scrooge" episode of "Treasury Star Parade," as you know that Lionel Barrymore's Scroogesque character will see the error of his ways and start buying war bonds!

I think it was a clever idea to adapt Barrymore's Scrooge persona for this purpose. Fredric March's introduction makes it clear that everybody knew "A Christmas Carol" and by this point in time we know that everybody associated Lionel Barrymore with the role.

Looking back, it's fun that Fredric March is the narrator, as we know he played Scrooge in the 1954 "A Christmas Carol" presentation on the "Shower of Stars" TV series.

I think both March and Barrymore do a great job here, but that's no surprise, as they each had won an Oscar for Best Actor by 1942 and Fredric March had another one coming for "The Best Years of Our Lives" (1946)!

When this episode first started, I immediately recognized Paul Douglas as the announcer. He did a lot of sports announcing and radio work mixed in with stage acting before crashing Hollywood in "A Letter to Three Wives" in 1949. Next thing you know, he's a movie star! My favorite movie of his was his next, "It Happens Every Spring," from later in 1949.

The other actor who gets credited is J. Donald Wilson, who was an actor, writer and producer of various radio shows, including the popular west coast mystery show "The Whistler."

The whole thing is well done and I'm sure helped sell plenty of war bonds!

"Treasury Star Parade" #52 - "A Modern Scrooge" (1942) - Part 1

"Treasury Star Parade" #52 - "A Modern Scrooge" (1942)
Host: Fredric March
Scrooge Surrogate: Lionel Barrymore

We continue our Barrymore-athon with a different take on Scrooge from Lionel. It's a modern Scrooge, as presented on the "Treasury Star Parade" in 1942 with Fredric March as host.

This was a series of transcriptions discs sent to local radio stations for them to broadcast with the intent of selling war bonds.

To help with the cause, all sorts of stars were enlisted to appear on these shows.

Someone had the great idea of playing on the public's familiarity with Lionel Barrymore as Ebenezer Scrooge to cast him as "A Modern Scrooge" who must see the light in order to buy war bonds.

Will he be convinced? Take a listen and find out:

The Globe Theater Program #12 1944 - Part 2

Music director Bernard Katz goes over music cues with Lionel Barrymore.

So, that 1944 episode of "Globe Theatre" featuring an edited version of Lionel Barrymore's "A Christmas Carol" adaptation from is "The Mayor of the Town" series is an interesting thing.

The question, though, is what episode of "The Mayor of the Town" is this? As I undertand it the Armed Forces Radio Service (AFRS) would record the Christmas episodes of various shows (Crosby, Hope, Benny, etc.) then use them the following December for their transcriptions.

This would seem to indicate that this is the 1943 episode of "Mayor" used by the AFRS in 1944, as they wouldn't have had time to edit the 1944 show into the "Globe Theatre" format.

But we were just listening to the 1943 recording, weren't we? This version is extremely similar, but it's not the same performance. Some of the actors are different. I don't think Marley's Ghost is played here by Hans Conreid. This actor doesn't roll his Rs in that theatrical manner.

The Cratchit kids sound a bit different, but I think Mrs. Cratchit sounds even more like Agnes Moorehead!

The biggest difference as far as the story itself goes is that this 1944 "Globe Theatre" show does not include the scene with Belle and her husband. I presume this scene was edited out for time constraints.

The AFRS guys had to do a lot of editing with the network shows they recorded, as they needed to get rid of the commericals. This was especially hard for a show like "Fibber McGee and Molly," where our friend Harlow Wilcox would sneak the Johnson's Wax commercials into the conversation!

In any event, I think they do a good job with the show here and Herbert Marshall as the host gives it an extra touch of class!

One thing I feel the need to mention is that I recognize the theme song of "Globe Theatre" as "A Handful of Stars," which was a hit for Glenn Miller and his Orchestra in 1940. This song actually has a couple of connections that are somewhat interesting.

It was introduced in the MGM movie "Hullabaloo" in 1940. I've seen that movie on TCM and it's a very forgettable B-picture starring Frank Morgan, but it was directed by Edward L. Marin, who had directed the 1938 movie version of "A Christmas Carol" and features Reginald Owen in a small role!

Also in another small part was Cy Kendall, who played the Ghost of Christmas Present on Ronald Colman's 1941 recording!

Here's Glenn Miller's record of "A Handful of Stars" as a bonus:

The Globe Theater Program #12 1944 - Part 1

The Globe Theatre Program #12
Host: Herbert Marshall
Scrooge" Lionel Barrymore

So, we go from the AFRS recording of "The Mayor of the Town" that featured Lionel Barrymore's 1943 performance as Scrooge in his annual adaptation of "A Christmas Carol" to another AFRS recording using that same series, this one from the "Globe Theatre" show, as hosted by Herbert Marshall in 1944.

This particlaur series took recordings from "regular" radio shows and edited them a bit for presentation under the "Globe Theatre" name for service personnel. Herbert Marshall mentions at the end of the show that this was selected from "Mayor of the Town" (leaving off the "the" - what would Harlow Wilcox say?) and mentions that Frank Martin is the narrator (good to confirm) and Bernard Katz is the music director.

Give it a listen below and we'll discuss next time:

Part 1:

Part 2:

"The Mayor of the Town" (December 23, 1943) - Part 3

The 1943 edition of Lionel Barrymore's annual portrayal of Scrooge from his regular radio series "The Mayor of the Town" is another adaptation that gets twenty-odd minutes to work with.

I'm always interested in how the creators decide to represent the story. What do they include, what do they leave out and do they include anything new?

The show starts with some narration that's pretty faithful to the book. Frank Martin, the narrator, says that it was 100 years ago, which further indicates this show was from 1843.

As with most adaptations, we get the same goings-on in Scrooge's office, as he yells at Bob Cratchit for using coal, argues with his nephew and blows off the charity collectors. Scrooge is pretty pleased with himself through all of this.

In the back-and-forth with Bob Cratchit, Bob namedrops Tiny Tim, Belinda and Martha.

Scrooge goes home and sees Marley's face in his knocker, then Marley's Ghost appears inside Scrooge's room. Marley's Ghost warns him that three ghosts will visit him, but he doesn't say when.

The Ghost of Christmas Past actually appears right away to show Scrooge a couple of scenes from his past.

They see young Ebenezer at school, where the spirit says he was chided for his tears by the schoolmaster. Then we actually hear the schoolmaster doing the chiding! He says that Christmas isn't at all important, a sentiment rejected by old Scrooge.

I think that's a fun little nugget!

Next, Scrooge and the spirit visit the Christmas party with Fezziwig. Dick Wilkins even gets a line or two!

Then we get an intriguing take of the Belle situation (although she's unnamed here). We hear a couple chatting as they wrap gifts, Scrooge acknowledges that he knows the woman, then the spirit recaps the breakup. The husband then mentions how he saw Scrooge in his office, as per usual.

After this the ghost tells Scrooge that he'll meet the Spirit of Christmas Present, who promptly appears.

They fly over Camden Town, which Scrooge does not recognize, but he does know that Bob Cratchit lives there.

Inside the Cratchit house, Mrs. Cratchit is getting ready for Christmas dinner. She has Belinda and Martha do some prep work, then also has "Joseph and Thomas" help out. Where's Peter, though? And the other Cratchit daughter?

Anyway, Bob comes in carrying Tiny Tim, who's shouting "Giddyap, Dobbins," which is pretty fun.

Scrooge actually seems upset that Bob never told him that Tiny Tim was sick.

They have dinner, toast Scrooge, then Bob prompts Tiny Tim to say his famous line and the family laughs.

The ghost warns that Tiny Tim will die before he hands Scrooge off to the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come, who awaits him.

Scrooge meets this spirit and says how he's a dark phantom with a hidden face with more expository dialogue saying how they're in a neglected graveyard. Scrooge asks the spirit why he's pointing to a grave and whose name is on it. Then, startlingly, the spirit says, "You are that man, Ebenezer Scrooge!" I wonder why they had him talk. It makes you jump, though!

Scrooge pleads for a second chance, then finds himself back in his bedroom on Christmas morning.

He calls out the window to the requisite loitering boy and has him buy the turkey to send to Bob Cratchit.

The narrator comes back to tell us how Scrooge enjoyed being out and about on Christmas morning and that he went to nephew's house and his nephew's wife kissed him! I don't think we ever hear the nephew referred to as "Fred" in this show.

Scrooge meets Bob at the office next morning and does a very good job of pretending to be mad before raising Bob's salary.

The narrator provides a faithful wrap-up before Scrooge breaks the fourth wall to quote Tiny Tim.

And we're at the end of an entertaining version of the story with Lionel Barrymore in top form!

"The Mayor of the Town" (December 23, 1943) - Part 2

The 1943 broadcast of "The Mayor of the Town" featuring Lionel Barrymore's annual turn as Scrooge in an adaptation of "A Christmas Carol" is pretty fun!

I think it's really cool that he was able to keep the tradition going by using his own show. Listening audiences of the time must have really looked forward to hearing their favorite Scrooge each year.

Incidentally, I see this show often listed as just "Mayor of the Town," but the actual title seems to be "The Mayor of the Town," as that's how it tends to be announced.

This particular program features Frank Martin as the announcer and narrator. It sounds to me like he might also be playing Fred, but I'm not sure, as I'm not overly familiar with Mr. Martin's voice.

The announcer on "The Mayor of the Town" was sometimes (usually) Harlow Wilcox, whose voice I'm very familiar with. He's not on this episode, but he did provide the narration on Basil Rathbone's 1942 recording of "A Christmas Carol."

Hans Conreid makes Rita Hayworth do the old hand-to-forehead!

A voice on this show that I definitely recognize is that of Hans Conreid, who plays Marley's Ghost in a rather theatrical manner. You can detect a touch of Snidely Whiplash there! I think he's great!

To show that everything comes back around, Hans had played the Ghost of Christmas Past on Ronald Colman's recording of "A Christmas Carol" in 1941!

Lionel Barrymore's costar on "The Mayor of the Town" was Agnes Moorehead, who played his housekeeper. I think she may be playing Mrs. Cratchit here.

Agnes Moorehead was a terrific radio actress, best-known in that medium for her awesome performance on the "Sorry, Wrong Number" episode of "Suspense," first presented in 1943 and revisited several more times.

She worked a lot with Orson Welles, even appearing as Margo Lane opposite his Lamont Cranston on "The Shadow" radio series in 1937/38. She did not appear in either of "The Campbell Playhouse" versions of "A Christmas Carol" with Welles, however, but did get a good role as the title character's mother in "Citizen Kane" (1941)!

Of course, Ms. Moorehead eventually found her most famous role as Endora, mother of Samantha on the "Bewitched" TV series in the 1960s. Her TV husband, Maurice Evans, had a small role in the 1935 "Scrooge" with Sir Seymour Hicks. See, it all comes back to "A Christmas Carol" somehow!

After all this, I hope Agnes Moorehead actually was in this episode!

In any event, this AFRS version of "The Mayor of the Town" doesn't indicate who the other cast members in the episode were, but a good job was done by all!

Next, we'll discuss the plot points of this adaptation.

In the meantime, here's a bonus episode of "The Mayor of the Town" in its usual format. My editor picked this one because it features a bunch of cats!

Enjoy!

Part 1:

Part 2:

"The Mayor of the Town" (December 23, 1943) - Part 1

"The Mayor of the Town" (1943)
Scrooge: Lionel Barrymore

We move from the Barrymore-less "A Christmas Carol" from 1938's "The Campbell Playhouse" to Lionel Barrymore's own radio show "The Mayor of the Town" in 1943.

At least this was presumably 1943, but a lot of references show the year of this broadcast as 1942, but in 1942, Lionel Barrymore played Scrooge on Rudy Vallee's show.

In any event, Lionel started a new tradition at some point by leaving the format of "The Mayor of the Town" for one episode each Christmas to play his accustomed role of Scrooge for the listening audience.

A lot of shows from the golden age of radio were not preserved. They were broadcast and then they were gone. However, a good many shows were recorded and edited by the AFRS (Armed Forces Radio Service) to be shared with military personnel.

We are fortunate to have the AFRS version of one of the episodes of "The Mayor of the Town" featuring Lionel Barrymore as Scrooge in an adaptation of a "A Christmas Carol"

Give it a listen and then we'll discuss...

Who is Mrs. Dilber?

While listening to "The Campbell Playhouse's" 1938 adaptation of "A Christmas Carol," the question of "Who exactly is Mrs. Dilber?" came up again.

The narrator, Orson Welles, describes the character as a "charwoman" and Old Joe calls her "Mrs. Dilber." They're the only two characters in that scene, so there's no mistaking that this version considers Mrs. Dilber to be the charwoman.

I think that in the book, Mrs. Dilber is the laundress. It's a bit hard to follow, so let's break down the original text:

Scrooge and the Phantom came into the presence of this man, just as a woman with a heavy bundle slunk into the shop. But she had scarcely entered, when another woman, similarly laden, came in too; and she was closely followed by a man in faded black, who was no less startled by the sight of them, than they had been upon the recognition of each other. After a short period of blank astonishment, in which the old man with the pipe had joined them, they all three burst into a laugh. 

OK, so two women enter the shop.

“Let the charwoman alone to be the first!” cried she who had entered first. “Let the laundress alone to be the second; and let the undertaker’s man alone to be the third. Look here, old Joe, here’s a chance! If we haven’t all three met here without meaning it!” 

The woman who entered first is the one who speaks. It's not clear yet whether she's the charwoman or the laundress, but it seems like she's the charwoman volunteering to go first.

“You couldn’t have met in a better place,” said old Joe, removing his pipe from his mouth. “Come into the parlour. You were made free of it long ago, you know; and the other two an’t strangers. Stop till I shut the door of the shop. Ah! How it skreeks! There an’t such a rusty bit of metal in the place as its own hinges, I believe; and I’m sure there’s no such old bones here, as mine. Ha, ha! We’re all suitable to our calling, we’re well matched. Come into the parlour. Come into the parlour.”

The parlour was the space behind the screen of rags. The old man raked the fire together with an old stair-rod, and having trimmed his smoky lamp (for it was night), with the stem of his pipe, put it in his mouth again.

While he did this, the woman who had already spoken threw her bundle on the floor, and sat down in a flaunting manner on a stool; crossing her elbows on her knees, and looking with a bold defiance at the other two.

“What odds then! What odds, Mrs. Dilber?” said the woman. “Every person has a right to take care of themselves. He always did.” 

So, the woman who had already spoken, who is the one who entered first, calls the other woman "Mrs. Dilber."

“That’s true, indeed!” said the laundress. “No man more so.” 

OK, that seems to indicate that the woman who was addressed as "Mrs. Dilber" is the laundress, as the laundress is  the one who answers, right? 

“Why then, don’t stand staring as if you was afraid, woman; who’s the wiser? We’re not going to pick holes in each other’s coats, I suppose?” 

This is the other woman speaking.

“No, indeed!” said Mrs. Dilber and the man together. “We should hope not.”

“Very well, then!” cried the woman. “That’s enough. Who’s the worse for the loss of a few things like these? Not a dead man, I suppose.”

“No, indeed,” said Mrs. Dilber, laughing.

“If he wanted to keep ’em after he was dead, a wicked old screw,” pursued the woman, “why wasn’t he natural in his lifetime? If he had been, he’d have had somebody to look after him when he was struck with Death, instead of lying gasping out his last there, alone by himself.”

“It’s the truest word that ever was spoke,” said Mrs. Dilber. “It’s a judgment on him.”

“I wish it was a little heavier judgment,” replied the woman; “and it should have been, you may depend upon it, if I could have laid my hands on anything else. Open that bundle, old Joe, and let me know the value of it. Speak out plain. I’m not afraid to be the first, nor afraid for them to see it. We know pretty well that we were helping ourselves, before we met here, I believe. It’s no sin. Open the bundle, Joe.” 

So, by now we have Mrs. Dilber and the other woman going back and forth. Non-Mrs. Dilber is the one who just asked Joe to open her bundle.

But the gallantry of her friends would not allow of this; and the man in faded black, mounting the breach first, produced his plunder. It was not extensive. A seal or two, a pencil-case, a pair of sleeve-buttons, and a brooch of no great value, were all. They were severally examined and appraised by old Joe, who chalked the sums he was disposed to give for each, upon the wall, and added them up into a total when he found there was nothing more to come.

“That’s your account,” said Joe, “and I wouldn’t give another sixpence, if I was to be boiled for not doing it. Who’s next?”

Mrs. Dilber was next. Sheets and towels, a little wearing apparel, two old-fashioned silver teaspoons, a pair of sugar-tongs, and a few boots. Her account was stated on the wall in the same manner. 

OK, Mrs. Dilber was the second to open her bundle and it did not include the bed curtains, rings and all.

“I always give too much to ladies. It’s a weakness of mine, and that’s the way I ruin myself,” said old Joe. “That’s your account. If you asked me for another penny, and made it an open question, I’d repent of being so liberal and knock off half-a-crown.”

“And now undo my bundle, Joe,” said the first woman. 

So, now the first woman, who's established not to be Mrs. Dilber presents her bundle.

Joe went down on his knees for the greater convenience of opening it, and having unfastened a great many knots, dragged out a large and heavy roll of some dark stuff.

“What do you call this?” said Joe. “Bed-curtains!”

“Ah!” returned the woman, laughing and leaning forward on her crossed arms. “Bed-curtains!”

“You don’t mean to say you took ’em down, rings and all, with him lying there?” said Joe.

“Yes I do,” replied the woman. “Why not?”

“You were born to make your fortune,” said Joe, “and you’ll certainly do it.”

“I certainly shan’t hold my hand, when I can get anything in it by reaching it out, for the sake of such a man as He was, I promise you, Joe,” returned the woman coolly. “Don’t drop that oil upon the blankets, now.”

“His blankets?” asked Joe.

“Whose else’s do you think?” replied the woman. “He isn’t likely to take cold without ’em, I dare say.”

“I hope he didn’t die of anything catching? Eh?” said old Joe, stopping in his work, and looking up.

“Don’t you be afraid of that,” returned the woman. “I an’t so fond of his company that I’d loiter about him for such things, if he did. Ah! you may look through that shirt till your eyes ache; but you won’t find a hole in it, nor a threadbare place. It’s the best he had, and a fine one too. They’d have wasted it, if it hadn’t been for me.”

“What do you call wasting of it?” asked old Joe.

“Putting it on him to be buried in, to be sure,” replied the woman with a laugh. “Somebody was fool enough to do it, but I took it off again. If calico an’t good enough for such a purpose, it isn’t good enough for anything. It’s quite as becoming to the body. He can’t look uglier than he did in that one.”

Scrooge listened to this dialogue in horror. As they sat grouped about their spoil, in the scanty light afforded by the old man’s lamp, he viewed them with a detestation and disgust, which could hardly have been greater, though they had been obscene demons, marketing the corpse itself.

“Ha, ha!” laughed the same woman, when old Joe, producing a flannel bag with money in it, told out their several gains upon the ground. “This is the end of it, you see! He frightened every one away from him when he was alive, to profit us when he was dead! Ha, ha, ha!” 

I think that settles it, then. Mrs. Dilber is the laundress, not the charwoman, and it is that charwoman who takes the bed curtains.

Just to be sure, what's the definition of charwoman?

char·wom·an

/ˈCHärˌwo͝omən/

noun

dated•British

noun: charwoman; plural noun: charwomen

1. a woman employed to clean houses or offices.

   
   

   

   
   

Based on what a charwoman does, there's no doubt that the character of Mrs. Dilber in the 1951 movie version starring Alastair Sim is the charwoman. I think because that movie is often considered to be the definitive version, a lot of people think that Mrs. Dilber is the charwoman.

I'd even venture to say that some versions use the 1951 movie as their source rather than the actual book!

I think the 1938 radio adaptation from "The Campbell Playhouse" is the earliest case I've seen of Mrs. Dilber being the charwoman, though. Or am I forgetting something?

"The Campbell Playhouse" (December 23, 1938) - Part 3

The 1938 version of "A Christmas Carol" from "The Campbell Playhouse" is similar in some ways to the more famous 1939 version, but it's not just swapping Lionel Barrymore for Orson Welles.

The 1938 broadcast includes Orson Welles reading from scripture as a Christmassy introduction. The interesting thing with that is it's the same passage from Luke (although a bit longer) that Linus uses to illustrate the true meaning of Christmas in "A Charlie Brown Christmas" (1965)! Surely a coincidence, but interesting nonetheless.

Once the story gets going, the beginning scenes in Scrooge's office use practically the same script as in 1939, including the odd bit about "Fothergill" (or something like that) having owed Scrooge "seventeen and six" since Michaelmas.

Everything with Scrooge's nephew Fred, the charity solicitor (played by Ray Collins - Fun!) and Bob Cratchit is the same, so you would think the rest of the show will follow suit. (As with 1939, Fred is never mentioned or heard from again. Joseph Cotten wasn't a star yet!)

Interestingly, though, while the incidents are largely the same in the rest of the show, the presentation and dialogue is a bit different.

This first becomes noticeable when Scrooge sees Marley's face in the fireplace and hears the bells ring, things that were not included in 1939. The dialogue with Marley's Ghost is also different, but the point is the same.

The Ghost of Christmas Past has the jet of light and the extinguisher cap here. He does show Scrooge the same scenes from the past: lonely young Ebenezer, Fezziwig's party, the breakup with Belle and Belle's happy marriage.

Of note, Scrooge does not call Fezziwig by name. He just says "my old master." Orson Welles does refer to him as Fezziwig when he's running over the cast at the end, however.

When Scrooge extinguishes the ghost, we have the station break.

When we return, Scrooge meets the Ghost of Christmas Present. As in 1939, they go to Bob Cratchit's house, but not Fred's party. But here in 1938, the spirit flies Scrooge around the city to see people celebrating the holiday. The scene after Bob's house where the spirit shows Scrooge the other celebrations is extended quite a bit.

The most surprising difference in this production is when the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come shows up and talks to Scrooge! He doesn't really say a lot, and I presume that the next year they figured it was just as well to keep the spirit silent and have Scrooge say some expository dialogue. Oddest thing here is that the spirit points to Scrooge's grave and reads the name rather than having Scrooge read it.

The spirit brings Scrooge to the Cratchit house where we learn that Tiny Tim has died, but instead of including the scene with the other businessmen discussing Scrooge's death, we have the charwoman, identified as Mrs. Dilber, selling the shirt and bed curtains to Old Joe.

When Scrooge wakes up on Christmas morning, he sounds kind of crazy. He sounds like a leprechaun or something!

We don't have Scrooge doing much else on Christmas morning. He doesn't talk to the kid out the window or buy a turkey or meet the charity gentleman. Those things were all included in 1939.

Instead, in this version, we cut right to the next morning where Scrooge beats Bob to the office and raises his salary.

A little more narration and scene!

So, what we have here is a very solid version of the story. Orson Welles was a master of dramatic radio and he's at his peak here.

The whole company is hititing on all cylinders. The music (by Bernard Herrmann), sound effects, etc. - all topnotch.

Orson even does us a solid by running down the names of the cast and the roles they play. That helps us latter day listeners a ton!

I'm sure that radio listeners in 1938 were disappointed not to hear Lionel Barrymore play Scrooge that year, but he did so for many years to come and this gives us the rare chance to hear Orson Welles tackle the role.

The irony is that this is the earliest of the series as sponsored by Campbell's Soup that survives, so chronologically, we actually get to hear Welles before Barrymore!

Let's just be glad for whatever does survive from old time radio!