Scrooge (1913 film)
Encyclopedia
Scrooge is a 1913 British
black and white silent film
based on the 1843 novel A Christmas Carol
by Charles Dickens
. It starred Seymour Hicks
as Ebenezer Scrooge
. In the United States it was released in 1926 as Old Scrooge.
The film's cast included Seymour Hicks
as Scrooge, William Lugg
, Leedham Bantock, J. C. Buckstone
, Dorothy Buckstone, Leonard Calvert, Osborne Adair, Adela Measor and Ellaline Terriss
. Hicks had played the role of Scrooge regularly onstage since 1901 before this, his first appearance in the role in film. He was to play Scrooge again, in the 1935 film Scrooge
.
Scrooge was a Zenith Film Company production, by whom it was also distributed on its release date in September 1913. Some scenes in the black and white 35mm film were colour toned.
is seen pacing his library seeking inspiration for a new story. It comes to him and he settles down to write A Christmas Carol. A short introductory synopsis describing miserly
London businessman Ebenezer Scrooge
leads into a shot of his nephew Fred Wyland giving money to poor children on Christmas Eve
. Scrooge, upon leaving his office, is chased by poor children. At the office, Scrooge's clerk Bob Cratchit
bids goodbye to his crippled son Tiny Tim
and goes to work. A poor woman comes to the office to beg from Scrooge but he turns her away. Cratchit gives her money. At Middlemarks, the poor line up for food. When the food runs out, Middlemark goes to Scrooge for assistance but he is turned away. Scrooge gives Cratchit a second hand quill as a Christmas present and after Cratchit has gone, he settles down with his money to sleep.
Scrooge is visited on Christmas Eve
by the ghost of his dead business partner, Jacob Marley
, who warns him that three more ghosts will appear during the night trying to show Scrooge the error of his ways. As the night wears on, Scrooge is visited by the Ghost of Christmas Past
, the Ghost of Christmas Present
and the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come
. Scrooge is shown in sequence his childhood sweetheart, Cratchit's Christmas, a vision of the death of Cratchit's crippled son Tim, and his own lonely tombstone. Scrooge wakes and realising the error of his ways, throws money from his window to the poor children and sends a boy for a large turkey for Cratchit and then goes to visit them for lunch in good humour.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
black and white silent film
Silent film
A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound, especially with no spoken dialogue. In silent films for entertainment the dialogue is transmitted through muted gestures, pantomime and title cards...
based on the 1843 novel A Christmas Carol
A Christmas Carol
A Christmas Carol is a novella by English author Charles Dickens first published by Chapman & Hall on 17 December 1843. The story tells of sour and stingy Ebenezer Scrooge's ideological, ethical, and emotional transformation after the supernatural visits of Jacob Marley and the Ghosts of...
by Charles Dickens
Charles Dickens
Charles John Huffam Dickens was an English novelist, generally considered the greatest of the Victorian period. Dickens enjoyed a wider popularity and fame than had any previous author during his lifetime, and he remains popular, having been responsible for some of English literature's most iconic...
. It starred Seymour Hicks
Seymour Hicks
Sir Arthur Seymour Hicks , better known as Seymour Hicks, was a British actor, music hall performer, playwright, screenwriter, theatre manager and producer. He married the actress Ellaline Terriss in 1893...
as Ebenezer Scrooge
Ebenezer Scrooge
Ebenezer Scrooge is the principal character in Charles Dickens's 1843 novel, A Christmas Carol. At the beginning of the novel, Scrooge is a cold-hearted, tight-fisted and greedy man, who despises Christmas and all things which give people happiness...
. In the United States it was released in 1926 as Old Scrooge.
The film's cast included Seymour Hicks
Seymour Hicks
Sir Arthur Seymour Hicks , better known as Seymour Hicks, was a British actor, music hall performer, playwright, screenwriter, theatre manager and producer. He married the actress Ellaline Terriss in 1893...
as Scrooge, William Lugg
William Lugg
William Lugg was a British actor and singer of the late Victorian and Edwardian eras. He had a long stage career beginning with roles in several Gilbert and Sullivan operas and continuing for over four decades in drama, comedy and musical theatre...
, Leedham Bantock, J. C. Buckstone
J. C. Buckstone
John Copeland Buckstone was an English stage and film actor of the late Victorian and Edwardian eras, who was most famous for his 1901 stage play Scrooge, which was the basis for the first film version of A Christmas Carol in the same year...
, Dorothy Buckstone, Leonard Calvert, Osborne Adair, Adela Measor and Ellaline Terriss
Ellaline Terriss
Ellaline Terriss, born Ellaline Lewin , was a popular English actress and singer, best known for her performances in Edwardian musical comedies...
. Hicks had played the role of Scrooge regularly onstage since 1901 before this, his first appearance in the role in film. He was to play Scrooge again, in the 1935 film Scrooge
Scrooge (1935 film)
Scrooge is a 1935 British film directed by Henry Edwards featuring Seymour Hicks as Ebenezer Scrooge, the miser who hates Christmas. It was the first sound version of the Charles Dickens classic A Christmas Carol, not counting a 1928 short subject that now appears to be lost.- Film :Hicks had...
.
Scrooge was a Zenith Film Company production, by whom it was also distributed on its release date in September 1913. Some scenes in the black and white 35mm film were colour toned.
Plot
The opening credits are followed by a scene in which Charles DickensCharles Dickens
Charles John Huffam Dickens was an English novelist, generally considered the greatest of the Victorian period. Dickens enjoyed a wider popularity and fame than had any previous author during his lifetime, and he remains popular, having been responsible for some of English literature's most iconic...
is seen pacing his library seeking inspiration for a new story. It comes to him and he settles down to write A Christmas Carol. A short introductory synopsis describing miserly
Miser
A miser, cheapskate, snipe-snout, penny pincher, piker, scrooge, skinflint or tightwad is a person who is reluctant to spend money, sometimes to the point of forgoing even basic comforts and some necessities...
London businessman Ebenezer Scrooge
Ebenezer Scrooge
Ebenezer Scrooge is the principal character in Charles Dickens's 1843 novel, A Christmas Carol. At the beginning of the novel, Scrooge is a cold-hearted, tight-fisted and greedy man, who despises Christmas and all things which give people happiness...
leads into a shot of his nephew Fred Wyland giving money to poor children on Christmas Eve
Christmas Eve
Christmas Eve refers to the evening or entire day preceding Christmas Day, a widely celebrated festival commemorating the birth of Jesus of Nazareth that takes place on December 25...
. Scrooge, upon leaving his office, is chased by poor children. At the office, Scrooge's clerk Bob Cratchit
Bob Cratchit
Robert "Bob" Cratchit is a fictional character who is the abused, underpaid clerk of Ebenezer Scrooge in the Charles Dickens story A Christmas Carol...
bids goodbye to his crippled son Tiny Tim
Tiny Tim (A Christmas Carol)
Timothy Cratchit, called "Tiny Tim", is a fictional character from the 1843 novella A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. He is a minor character, the young son of Bob Cratchit, and is seen only briefly, but serves as an important symbol of the consequences of the protagonist's choices...
and goes to work. A poor woman comes to the office to beg from Scrooge but he turns her away. Cratchit gives her money. At Middlemarks, the poor line up for food. When the food runs out, Middlemark goes to Scrooge for assistance but he is turned away. Scrooge gives Cratchit a second hand quill as a Christmas present and after Cratchit has gone, he settles down with his money to sleep.
Scrooge is visited on Christmas Eve
Christmas Eve
Christmas Eve refers to the evening or entire day preceding Christmas Day, a widely celebrated festival commemorating the birth of Jesus of Nazareth that takes place on December 25...
by the ghost of his dead business partner, Jacob Marley
Jacob Marley
Jacob Marley is a fictional character who appears in Charles Dickens' 1843 novella A Christmas Carol.- Relationship with Scrooge:In life, Marley was the business partner of Ebenezer Scrooge. As teenagers, both men had been apprenticed in business and met as clerks in another business...
, who warns him that three more ghosts will appear during the night trying to show Scrooge the error of his ways. As the night wears on, Scrooge is visited by the Ghost of Christmas Past
Ghost of Christmas Past
The Ghost of Christmas Past is a character in the well-known work of the English novelist Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol.The Ghost of Christmas Past was the first of the three spirits that haunted the miser. Ebenezer Scrooge in order to prompt him to repent...
, the Ghost of Christmas Present
Ghost of Christmas Present
The Ghost of Christmas Present is a character in one of the best-known works of the English novelist Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol. The Spirit closely resembles Father Christmas from local folklore....
and the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come
Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come
The Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come, A.K.A., The Ghost of Christmas Future, is a fictional character in English novelist Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol. It is the ghost that haunts the miser Ebenezer Scrooge, in order to prompt him to adopt a more caring attitude in life and avoid the horrid...
. Scrooge is shown in sequence his childhood sweetheart, Cratchit's Christmas, a vision of the death of Cratchit's crippled son Tim, and his own lonely tombstone. Scrooge wakes and realising the error of his ways, throws money from his window to the poor children and sends a boy for a large turkey for Cratchit and then goes to visit them for lunch in good humour.
External links
- Scrooge on the Silent Era website
- http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0224067/Scrooge on the Internet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie Database is an online database of information related to movies, television shows, actors, production crew personnel, video games and fictional characters featured in visual entertainment media. It is one of the most popular online entertainment destinations, with over 100 million...
] - http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/26617?view=castScrooge on the British Film InstituteBritish Film InstituteThe British Film Institute is a charitable organisation established by Royal Charter to:-Cinemas:The BFI runs the BFI Southbank and IMAX theatre, both located on the south bank of the River Thames in London...
website]