When you tell people that you will be playing "Marley" in "A Christmas Carol", and they say, "You're playing Bob Marley?", of course, they are joking. Aren't they?
Well, cultural references being what they are, Bob may end up better remembered than Jacob. Of course, Bob was an actual person, and Jacob is a plot device. Ebenezer Scrooge is one of the most widely understood literary icons in western literature, but he and Marley are probably better known from the thousands of Christmas Carol references pushed at us via TV and movies.
Who can remember all of the versions starring Mickey Mouse, Mr. Magoo, Bill Murray(Scrooged), Alistair Simms, Vanessa Williams(A Diva's C.C.), Reginald Owen, Tom Everett Scott (Karroll's Christmas), Jack Elam (Scrooge's Rock n' Roll Christmas), Cicely Tyson (Ms. Scrooge), and countless others? The version we are doing was done starring Kelsey Grammer, but I have yet to see that one.
The All Dogs Go To Heaven, Bugs Bunny, Flintstones, Jetsons, Muppets, and Blackadder franchises all had Christmas Carol related output.
I won't even start with all of the episodic TV Christmas Carol related stories, except to say that the TV show "The Odd Couple" was the best of that genre that I have seen. Who can forget Al Moliraro playing Murray the Cop playing Tiny Tim? Watch that one all the way through and you will be cured of your fear of clowns. Oh, you will still have nightmares, but you will see Al's huge hammy face saying, "God bless us, everyone."
Duck Tales is a cultural reference for anybody under 25 or so, and I would guess that more folks under 20 would associate Scrooge with Scrooge McDuck than with Ebenezer Scrooge.
Carl Barks, what have you wrought?
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