A CHRISTMAS CAROL IN PROSE (1960) GERMAN TELEVISION VERSION

EIN WEIHNACHTSLIED IN PROSA ODER EINE GEISTERGESCHICHTE ZUM CHRISTFEST (1960) – Christmas Carol-A-Thon 2024 comes to a close with this review of a neglected version of A Christmas Carol that aired on German Television in 1960.

A Christmas Carol in Prose or A Ghost Story for Christmas had previously been performed live in 1955 but no copies exist. Even this 1960 version was unavailable on video for decades, and the 2015 transfer to DVD is not as clear as it could be.

Ein Weihnachtslied in Prosa is in black & white and is basically as stiff and unnatural as American television presentations of stage plays were in 1960 and earlier. The lengthy runtime and slow pace are made more noticeable by the absence of key scenes that are replaced with an actor playing Dickens (Peter Arens) doing narration.

As much as I complain about Carols which pad Belle’s screen time I found the substitution of part of her role with Dickens talking to be annoying. My only other complaint would be the purely homicidal overacting of Scrooge (Carl Wery) toward Bob Cratchit (Herbert Kroll at left), especially during Nephew Fred’s (Klaus Havenstein’s) visit.

An interesting change is replacing the two Charity Collectors with a nun (Anita Bucher) soliciting donations for charity. She has no better luck with Scrooge than the two men ever do. Carl Wery’s portrayal of the old miser grew on me as the production rolled on.

Wery captures the essential nature of Scrooge as a man whose misanthropic attitude is largely a defensive shield against all the pain that the world has thrown at him. Yes, much of that pain was self-inflicted but it’s still the reason for his unpleasant demeanor.

A fantastic adjustment to the Christmas party thrown by Mr. and Mrs. Fezziwig (Walter Jannsen and Toni Treutler) is to treat it like an all-out dance number that would have fit perfectly in an all-musical version of A Christmas Carol. Or maybe even the 1993 Christmas Carol Ballet version that I seem to be one of the few fans of.

I always love discovering Carols that I haven’t seen before and this German telefilm may not be the best ever made but it was like watching a lost version from 1950s or 1960s television. I recommend it!

As for other major roles – Stefan Schnabel played Marley’s Ghost, Hans Baur was the Ghost of Christmas Past, Walter Buschhoff portrayed the Ghost of Christmas Present (pic above left) and Otto Bruggeman played the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come.

Also appearing were Brigitte Rau as Fred’s Wife, Hanna Burgwitz as Mrs. Cratchit, Thomas Margulies as Tiny Tim and Jurgen Clausen as my new favorite Dick Wilkins. Yes, I will soon be adjusting my Ultimate Christmas Carol accordingly.