Christmas Carol-a-Thon 2025 continues here at Balladeer’s Blog with this comedic version from 1979.
RICH LITTLE’S CHRISTMAS CAROL (1979) – Balladeer’s Blog’s SIXTEENTH annual Christmas Carol-A-Thon continues! If you’re into celebrity trivia from the 1970s and earlier Rich Little’s Christmas Carol will have you laughing from start to finish over all the sly jokes and riffs that abound in this Canadian- made special. For those unfamiliar with Little, in the 60s, 70s and 80s he was a first- class celebrity impressionist.
The Canadian comic’s first venture into using the voices and personae of iconic celebrities as characters in the Charles Dickens classic began in the 1960s. Part of Rich’s stand-up act was a several minute sendup of A Christmas Carol with John Wayne, Jack Benny and other figures playing roles in the famous story. In 1963 he released it as a comedy album titled Scrooge and the Stars, reviewed previously here.
In 1979 Little expanded the story into an hour-long television special in which, through the aid of trick photography, costumes and makeup, he impersonated all of the entertainment legends that he worked into the Yuletide epic. Here is a rundown of the celebrities that Rich Little appeared as in this enjoyable Christmas special:
For the central role of Ebenezer Scrooge Little impersonated W.C. Fields, the whiskey- soaked and curmudgeonly comedian whose misanthropic humor made his persona perfect for the role. Little impersonated Hollywood Squares mainstay Paul “The JM J Bullock of his time” Lynde in the role of Bob Cratchit and long-time Tonight Show host Johnny Carson as the cheerful and charming Nephew Fred. Rich did a turn as Laurel and Hardy as the Charity Solicitors to round out the “cast” for the opening scene at Scrooge and Marley’s. Continue reading
NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME – The defending champs – the GRAND VIEW UNIVERSITY VIKINGS – took on the KEISER UNIVERSITY SEAHAWKS for the NAIA title. The Seahawks led 3-0 to end the 1st Quarter, but by Halftime Grand View University was on top 13-3. 
THE HUMAN FLY 
Origin: Rick Rojatt was given a fictional origin story for this Marvel Comics series. He was a young man who was severely injured in a car crash that killed his wife and children. After much reconstructive surgery, roughly 60% of Rojatt’s bone structure was replaced with lightweight steel. 
NATIONAL VCR DAY – I marked the day with this blog post reviewing 8 films from several genres and all released on video during the 1980s heyday of VCRs. Click 
FORGOTTEN TELEVISION – Paris (1979-1980) – James Earl Jones starred in Steven Bochco’s show about police detective Woody Paris 
DOUGLAS FAIRBANKS, JR.’s SWASHBUCKLER FILMS – The son of THE swashbuckler from Silent Movies appeared in several of his own, like The Corsican Brothers, Sinbad the Sailor, The Fighting O’Flynn and more. I reviewed all of them 
A CHRISTMAS CAROL: A GHOST STORY (2022) – Let me state right at the beginning that this version of the Carol has jumped into my Top 10 favorites, yet astonishingly as of this writing there are NO user or critic reviews of the production at IMDb. 
NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME – This year’s title tilt featured the 2023 champions – the IOWA WESTERN COLLEGE REIVERS – against the 2024 champions – the HUTCHINSON COLLEGE BLUE DRAGONS. 
BLOOD SABBATH (1972) – Anthony Geary, best known as Luke Spencer on General Hospital when that soap opera was kicking off the absurd trend of daytime dramas being more like Republic Serials, has passed away. Balladeer’s Blog marks the sad event with this review of Geary’s most Psychotronic movie. 
For her part, Genie had to suffer through a real-life marriage to Commander Riker from Star Trek: The Next Generation and Anthony had to suffer through bombs like Blood Sabbath. 
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