Mickey's Christmas Carol (1983)

The classic Disney animated characters play the roles in this animated retelling of the Charles Dickens masterpiece.

Director:

Burny Mattinson

Writers:

Charles Dickens (based on the book: "A Christmas Carol" by), Burny Mattinson (story adaptation)

Stars:

Alan Young, Wayne Allwine, Hal Smith

Nominated for 1 Oscar.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Alan Young	...	Scrooge - Scrooge McDuck / Begger Dog (voice)
Wayne Allwine	...	Bob Cratchit - Mickey Mouse / Weasel Gravedigger / Begger Dog (voice)
Hal Smith	...	Jacob Marley's Ghost - Goofy / Collector for the Poor #1 (voice)
Will Ryan	...	Collector for the Poor #2 / Ghost of Christmas Present (Willie the Giant) / Ghost of Christmas Future (Pete) / Santa Claus (Big Bad Wolf) / Weasel #2 (voice)
Eddie Carroll	...	Ghost of Christmas Past - Jiminy Cricket (voice) (as Eddy Carroll)
Patricia Parris	...	Belle - Daisy Duck (voice)
Dick Billingsley	...	Tiny Tim (voice)
Clarence Nash	...	Nephew Fred - Donald Duck (voice)
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Tasos Kostis	...	Goofy

Storyline

It's the same old classic Charles Dickens story with an all star Disney cast. Uncle Scrooge McDuck is appropriately enough Scrooge and is visited by his dead partner and 3 spirits one night to remember the joys of Christmas.

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Plot Keywords:

1980s | ebenezer scrooge character | reference to ebenezer scrooge | half dressed cartoon animal | barefoot cartoon animal | 

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Taglines:

He's back! Mickey Mouse - in his first new motion picture in 30 years...

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Genres:

Animation | Short | Comedy | Family | Fantasy

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Certificate:

G

Did You Know?

Trivia

This was the last Disney film until Aladdin (1992) to say "The End"

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Goofs

The front door to Bob Cratchit's house has an X on the bottom half. In the long overhead shots such as Scrooge discovering the Ghost of Christmas Present is gone and his arrival to Cratchit's house at the end, the X is not shown. Then it's back in the closer shots.

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Quotes

Cratchit: Oh, that Fred. Always so full of kindness.
Scrooge: Aye. He always was a little peculiar
[door bell rings]
Scrooge: ... AND stubborn!

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Crazy Credits

The film opens with a shot of Mickey Mouse's head, the way the old Mickey Mouse Disney cartoons start out. Mickey is wearing a hat and scarf, in keeping with the Christmas theme.

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Alternate Versions

Television airings on NBC in the 1980s and CBS in the early 1990s were an hour long. The first half originally featured Donald's Snow Fight, Pluto's Christmas Tree, and The Art of Skiing. Brief clips of other Disney Christmas shorts were shown. The second half featured this short in its entirety. Each of the four segments in the program featured wraparound narrations by Mickey, Donald Duck and Goofy. From 1988 onwards, The Art of Skiing was removed from the annual broadcast and replaced with various segments. The 1993 CBS telecast featured The Making of 'The Nightmare Before Christmas' in its place.

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Connections

References Three Little Pigs (1933)

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Soundtracks

Oh, What a Merry Christmas Day
(1983)
Words and Music by Fredrick Searles and Irwin Kostal
Part of Mickey's Christmas Carol during the opening credits and at the end

User Reviews

Still one of the better versions

With all the remakes of "A Christmas Carol," it's nice to watch one that actually captures a warm, Christmas spirit. This animated version is short and leaves out a lot of the storyline, but it gives you the basics. Mickey Mouse makes a surprisingly good Bob Cratchit, and the Tiny Tim is the only one from any movie so far who has actually won my sympathy instead of annoying me! It helps a lot that Scrooge has a more human voice than the other Disney characters. A lot of his dialog is heartfelt and touching.

The music is nice, too, adding a lot to the feel of the movie. The animation is clean and creates a much better London than most live action movies can!

This version is great to watch with kids - it is simplified, so it is easy for them to understand, but you will enjoy it too. It makes you glad it's Christmas time :)

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

16 December 1983 (USA)

Also Known As:

Mickey's Christmas Carol

Box Office

Budget:

$3,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Walt Disney Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

26 min

Sound Mix:

3 Channel Stereo (5.0 Surround Sound) (L-R)

Color:

Color Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1