Byrdz Shower of Stars - 1954. Fredric March as Ebenezer Scrooge. Basil Rathbone as the Ghost of Jacob Marley. Bob Sweeney as Bob Cratchit. What could possibly go wrong ? Where do I begin ?The first three minutes of the program is taken up by Choral Singing. In fact, the program turns out to be a series of mediocre to bad songs interrupted occasionally with an abbreviated telling of "A Christmas Story". There is a way overlong love filled duet by the young Ebenezer and Belle following which she breaks off their engagement. Ummm... wha ? Following this, Ray Middleton goes on and on about Christmas and Santa which has nothing to do with the story. It's like he is supposed to be the "Ghost of Christmas PRESENTS"To make matters worse, March has a distractingly huge and obviously false nose that is not the color of his face. Then there is the final carol by "Tiny" Tim / choir during which we see several minutes of Frederic March making faces. It's just too too odd.I looked forward to seeing Basil Rathbone as Marley's Ghost but found him to be nothing special in the role.If you have made a list of "A Christmas Carols" to watch and need to check this one off .. do so... otherwise skip it.Almost forgot .. there are some cool ads for Chrystler cars !

Syl Back in the day, every great actor had played Ebenezer Scrooge and it was Fredric March's turn. Basil Rathbone played Jacob Marley. But I really wanted to see this episode for an appearance of a young Bonnie Franklin as Martha Cratchit. She and her sister Judy Franklin played sisters in this episode as the Cratchit sisters. Bonnie must have been only 10 years old. Sally Fraser's singing voice was dubbed by the great Marilyn Horne. Bernard Hermann wrote the score. We could argue forever which is the best Scrooge actor and which film is best of all. Every actor like Fredric March takes a different approach and every "Christmas Carol" rendition is worth watching especially with Basil Rathbone as Jacob Marley. This version only lasts about an hour.

patrickharman My wife's uncle gave us this clunker. It is by far the worst video adaptation of the Dickens classic we have ever experienced! From a visual storytelling perspective, there is far too much wasted screen time that advances the story not a whit; vapid songs about the "Spirit of Christmas" contribute only a "spirit of ennui" to the production, which bears little resemblance to the powerful tale of a soul's miraculous conversion and redemption that comes through the printed word and many fine films. If this video vehicle has any value at all, it could only be as a snapshot of the crass, commercialized America at mid-century that mistook drivel like this for high culture.The 1984 TV movie with George C. Scott delivers a far more satisfying experience.

eggheadjon I remember watching this for several Christmases when I was a young boy. Basil Rathbone as Marley scared the bejesus out of me, and I had nightmares.I never thought I'd ever see it again until a friend found it in a big catalog and gave me a print for Christmas. What a wonderful cast and what a shame this version wasn't better preserved. Maxwell Anderson, the adaptor, was born just a few miles from here and is buried in Crawford County.The cast is superb. Whoever hears of Ray Middleton any more, or Bob Sweeney. Frederic March's reputation has held up a little better, but any would-be actor could do a lot worse than to watch him work.The songs were corny and had the sound of being tossed off between breakfast and lunch. The boy soprano in the beginning had the same effect on me as a dentist's drill.It was neat that the print I got has the Chrysler commercials, spaced out a heckuva lot further apart than they are today. Sadly, they made a fuss about telling viewers the show was in living color, but mine came through in black and white - just like our TV did in 1955.