Scrooge, A Christmas Carol, And How Dickens Invented Christmas

Christmas is a special time here in RunPee Towers. As well as trying to get the definitive list of Christmas films, non-Christmas Christmas films, and modern takes on an old story, we also have a soft spot for the Dickens classic A Christmas Carol.

Fortunately, for people like us who are keen to make lists, there are loads of other people out there who also know the story and are keen to make their version of it. We’ve already managed to produce a few articles and, in the fullness of time, we’ll aim to track them all down. Then we’ll do what we love doing most…we’ll watch and review them!

To start with, here are a couple of Scrooge articles on the topic…

All About A Christmas Carol

An essay about the writing of the original novella…and how it became so well known and beloved.

The Man Who Invented Christmas

A delightful adaptation of how A Christmas Carol came to be.

So…having (hopefully!) whetted your appetites to see the story on a screen, let’s have a look at the many adaptations over the years. (Each review we include will be added as we watch them all…check in each Christmas season.)

Live Action Scrooge Films

• Scrooge, or, Marley’s Ghost (1901)
• A Christmas Carol (1908)
• A Christmas Carol (1910)
• Scrooge (1913)
• A Christmas Carol (1914)
• The Right to Be Happy (1916)
• Scrooge (1922)
• A Christmas Carol (1923)
• Scrooge (1928)
• Scrooge (1935)
• A Christmas Carol (1938)
• Leyenda de Navidad (1947)
• Scrooge (1951)
• Scrooge (1970)
• An American Christmas Carol (1979)
• Scrooged (1988)
• The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992)
• A Christmas Carol (2012)
• A Christmas Carol (2015)
• A Christmas Carol (2018)
• The Passion of Scrooge (2018)
• A Christmas Carol (2020)
• Spirited  (2022)

Animated Scrooge Films

• Mister Magoo’s Christmas Carol (1962)
• A Christmas Carol (1982)
• Mickey’s Christmas Carol (1983)
• A Christmas Carol (1994)
• A Christmas Carol (1997)
• Christmas Carol: The Movie (2001)
• A Christmas Carol (2006)
• Bah, Humduck! A Looney Tunes Christmas (2006)
• A Christmas Carol (2009)

Scrooge on Television

These first few were all performed live and are, therefore, nearly impossible to track down. The only time they ever pop up is when someone recorded the TV with a cine camera…it did happen! So get searching through your lofts, cellars, sheds, and garages.

• A Christmas Carol (1944)
• Christmas Night (1946)
• A Christmas Carol (1947)
• A Christmas Carol (1948)
• A Christmas Carol (1948)
• The Christmas Carol (1949)
• A Christmas Carol (1950)
• A Christmas Carol  (1951)
• A Christmas Carol (1952)
• A Christmas Carol (1953)
• A Christmas Carol (1954)
• A Christmas Carol(1955)
• The Stingiest Man in Town (1956)

The rest were actually recorded on videotape and are consequently only very difficult to find!

• Tales from Dickens: A Christmas Carol (1959)
• Mr. Scrooge (1964)
• Carry on Christmas (1969)
• A Christmas Carol (1977)
• Rich Little’s Christmas Carol (1978)
• A Christmas Carol (1984)
• Bah, Humbug!: The Story of Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol” (1990)
• A Christmas Carol (1999)
• A Christmas Carol: The Musical (2004)
• A Christmas Carol Goes Wrong (2017)
• A Christmas Carol (2019)
• Christmas Carole (2022)

Scrooge in Animated TV

• Mister Magoo’s Christmas Carol (1962)
• A Christmas Carol (1969)
• A Christmas Carol (1971)
• The Stingiest Man in Town (1978)
• Bugs Bunny’s Christmas Carol (1979)
• A Christmas Carol (1982)
• Brer Rabbit’s Christmas Carol (1992)
• A Flintstones Christmas Carol (1994)

Scrooge…Direct To DVD

• A Christmas Carol (2002)
• A Sesame Street Christmas Carol (2006)
• The Smurfs: A Christmas Carol (2013)
• 2^nd Chance for Christmas (2019)

Scrooge Skits – Parody

• Blackadder’s Christmas Carol (1988)
• Beavis and Butt-head, (1995) “Huh-Huh-Humbug”
• The Haunted Tea-Cosy: A Dispirited and Distasteful Diversion for Christmas (1998)
• I’m Sorry I Haven’t a Christmas Carol (2003)
• Karroll’s Christmas (2004)
• An American Carol (2008)
• A Christmas Chuckle (2009)
• All American Christmas Carol (2013)
• A Christmas Boner  (2013)
• Epic Rap Battles of History (2013)
• Turn of the Scrooge (2013)
• Soylent Scrooge (2017)
• A VHS Christmas Carol: Live! (2021)

Scroogesque – Derivative works

Film

• It’s Never Too Late (1953)
• Scrooged (1988)
• Surviving Christmas (2004)
• Scrooge & Marley (2012)
• Mister Scrooge to See You (2013)
• My Dad Is Scrooge (2014)
• A Christmas Carol (2018)
• The Man Who Invented Christmas (2017)
• A Christmas Carol (2020)
• Spirited (2022)
• Christmas Carole

Made for TV Films

• Rod Serling’s A Carol for Another Christmas (1964)
• An American Christmas Carol (1979)
• Skinflint: A Country Christmas Carol (1979)
• John Grin’s Christmas (1986)
• Ebbie (1995)
• Ms. Scrooge (1997)
• Ebenezer (1997)
• The Ghosts of Dickens’ Past (1998)
• A Christmas Carol (2000)
• A Diva’s Christmas Carol (2000)
• Scrooge & Marley (2001)
• A Carol Christmas (2003)
• Chasing Christmas (2005)
• Ghosts of Girlfriends Past (2009)
• Christmas Cupid (2010)
• It’s Christmas, Carol! (2012)
• A Nashville Christmas Carol (2020)

Live TV series episodes

• Topper (1953) So1E12 – Christmas Carol
• Bewitched (1967) S04E16 – Humbug not be Spoken Here
• The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour (1967) S02E15
• The Odd Couple (1970) S01E12 – Scrooge Gets an Oscar
• Omnibus (1973) S07E18 – A Christmas Carol
• Sanford and Son (1975) S05E12 – Ebenezer Sanford
• The Six Million Dollar Man (1976) S04E10 – A Bionic Christmas Carol
• WKRP in Cincinnati (1980) S03E07 – Bah Humbug
• Alice (1981) S06E09 – Mel’s Christmas Carol
• Family Ties (1983) S02E09 – A Keaton Christmas Carol
• Highway To Heaven (1984) S01E13  – Another Song For Christmas
• Fame (1985) S05E09 – Ebenezer Morloch
• George Burns Comedy Week (1985) S01E12 – A Christmas Carol II: The Sequel
• A Different World (1989) S03E10 – For Whom the Jingle Bell Tolls
• Mr. Belvedere (1989) S06E11 – A Happy Guys Christmas
• Star Trek: The Next Generation (1991) S04E13 – Devil’s Due
• Northern Exposure (1994) S06E03 – Shofar, So Good
• Martin (1996) S05E10 – Scrooge
• Xena: Warrior Princess (1996) S02E09 – A Solstice Carol
• I Was a Sixth Grade Alien (2000) S02E14- A Very Buttsman Christmas
• The Catherine Tate Show (2009) – Nan’s Christmas Carol 
• Doctor Who (2010) S06E00 – Doctor Who: A Christmas Carol
• Suite Life on Deck (2010) S03E15 – A London Carol
• Kelly Clarkson’s Cautionary Christmas Music Tale (2013)
• General Hospital (2019) S57E182 – General Hospital’s Christmas Carol
• A Christmas Carol Goes Wrong (2017) – Review coming soon!
• Upstart Crow (2018)  S03E07 – A Crow Christmas Carol – Review coming soon!
• Staged (2022) S03E06 – Knock Knock – Review coming soon!

Animated TV series episodes

• Gumby (1957) – Scrooge Loose
• Bugs Bunny’s Christmas Carol (1979)
• The Dukes (1983) – A Dickens of a Christmas
• The Jetsons (1985) – A Jetson Christmas Carol
• The Real Ghostbusters (1986) – X-Mas Marks the Spot
• Beverly Hills Teens (1987) – Miracle at The Teenclub parts I & II
• Bravestarr  (1987) – Tex’s Terrible Night
• Camp Candy (1989) – Christmas in July
• The Chipmunks (1989) – Merry Christmas, Mr. Carroll
• Animaniacs (1993) – A Christmas Plotz
• Avenger Penguins (1994) – A Christmas Carol
• 101 Dalmatians: The Series (1997) – A Christmas Cruella
• An All Dogs Christmas Carol (1998)
• Adventures from the Book of Virtues (2000)
• Maxine’s Christmas Carol (2000)
• Pepper Ann (2000) – A Valentine’s Day Tune
• Aqua Teen Hunger Force (2002) – Cybernetic Ghost of Christmas Past from the Future
• The Simpsons (2003) – ‘Tis the Fifteenth Season
• Veggie Tales (2004) – An Easter Carol
• Kappa Mikey (2006) – A Christmas Mikey
• Bah, Humduck! A Looney Tunes Christmas (2006)
• A Christmas Carol: Scrooge’s Ghostly Tale (2006)
• American Dad! (2006) – The Best Christmas Story Never Told
• Wayside (2007) – Wayside Christmas
• Barbie in a Christmas Carol (2008)
• Dora’s Christmas Carol Adventure (2009)
• The High Fructose Adventures of Annoying Orange (2012) – Orange Carol
• The Looney Tunes Show (2012) – A Christmas Carol
• Jake and the Never Land Pirates (2014) – Captain Scrooge
• Thomas & Friends (2016) – Diesel’s Ghostly Christmas
• My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic (2016) – A Hearth’s Warming Tail
• The Powerpuff Girls (2017) – You’re A Good Man, Mojo Jojo!
• Family Guy (2017) – Don’t Be A Dickens at Christmas
• Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! (2017) – Scroogey Doo
• Ducktales, (2018) – Last Christmas!
• The Loud House (2020) – A Flipmas Carol