Welles and Barrymore In “A Christmas Carol”
December 24th, 2007
From Christmas Eve 1939, here is Orson Welles and his Mercury Theatre of the Air, performing “A Christmas Carol,” by you-know-who, featuring Lionel Barrymore as Ebenezer Scrooge. Everything clicked that evening, and if you’ve never heard this outstanding hour-long radio adaptation, I highly recommend it.
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Tags: 1939 mercury theatre broadcast, a christmas carol, lionel barrymore, orson welles
16 Comments Add your own
1. Lucie Wager | December 26th, 2007 at 11:23 am
This was wonderful, Thank you
2. DOuG pRATt | December 26th, 2007 at 3:30 pm
You’re welcome! I took it from an LP I bought about 25 years ago. Eight years after playing Scrooge on the radio, Lionel Barrymore of course played the Scrooge-like Henry F. Potter in “It’s A Wonderful Life.”
3. Lee Smith | December 20th, 2008 at 10:34 pm
This was wonderful. I am a huge fan of OTR and this ranks way up there.
Thank you very much.
4. DOuG pRATt | December 20th, 2008 at 10:40 pm
You’re very welcome. Has it already been a year since I put this up? I found it nowhere else online, so I wanted to fill the gap.
5. Chris | December 21st, 2008 at 2:55 am
Thank you for the wonderful experience. I was looking for some Christmas audio and came upon your site. Thank you! It made my evening!
6. DOuG pRATt | December 21st, 2008 at 8:10 am
Wow, that’s three “wonderfuls” for Orson Welles and the Campbell Playhouse. A year from now will be the 70th anniversary of its airing. I’m very glad you enjoyed hearing it, Chris. Hmm…. It just hit me how FDR-ish Lionel Barrymore looks in that photo.
7. Scrooged · Julia's&hellip | December 24th, 2008 at 11:16 pm
[...] You can listen to it below, or, for those who like primary source copy, here’s the transcript. (If it’s loading too slow, listen to it on this other guy’s blog, here.) [...]
8. Jane | December 26th, 2008 at 6:26 am
I fell asleep listening to this on the radio the other night, and was so happy to find it on your site! Thank you so much for posting it so others can enjoy hearing this version with Orson Welles and Lionel Barrymore!
9. jeaniebeanie | December 30th, 2008 at 9:13 am
Oh did I miss this? I have it on cassette and listen to it every year. Now I’m bummed! Christmas is over and I have all these decorations to take down. Here’s a bit of trivia: in the actual book, Scrooge never saw Marley’s face in the fire, but in the TILES around the fireplace.
10. doddee | December 16th, 2010 at 11:39 pm
Such a wonderful program. I heard it as a child. Thank you for bringing it back to us.
11. DOuG pRATt | December 16th, 2010 at 11:43 pm
You’re welcome! It gets a lot of hits this time of year.
12. Geoff martin | December 24th, 2010 at 1:42 am
What a treat! I put it on while I decorated the tree-really evoked an old fashioned feeling-Thank you so very much!
13. DOuG pRATt | December 24th, 2010 at 12:48 pm
Thanks for the note, Geoff! I really appreciate the feedback.
14. fortune teller | December 16th, 2011 at 1:11 pm
Thanks for posting this. There is something more magical and quaint about a “classic Christmas” vs. a modern, glossy, commercial one.
15. Wendy Q | December 24th, 2011 at 4:12 pm
Our local NPR station used to broadcast this at noon on Christmas Day so I could listen to it as I cooked. Alas, they stopped doing it, so I am thrilled to be able to find it again. A very merry Christmas to us all!
16. DOuG pRATt | December 24th, 2011 at 5:42 pm
This post gets a lot of hits this time of year. I have a better audio setup now, so maybe I’ll do it over.
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