Iconic photos of a changing city, and commentary on our Collections & Exhibitions from the crew at MCNY.org
It’s Christmas Eve. An old man sitting close to his fire is visited by his former business partner, his formerly alive business partner. Covered in chains and looking very much the worse for death, Jacob Marley (of the lending firm Scrooge and Marley) warns his breathing partner of the consequences of a life lived without love, charity, and friendship. Ebenezer Scrooge (of Scrooge and Marley) says “Bah, humbug!”
Joan Marcus. [ Walter Charles as Scrooge and Jeff Keller as the Ghost of Jacob Marley in A Christmas Carol.] 1994. Museum of the City of New York. F2013.41.1679
So begins a story of redemption that has entertained countless audiences for the last 170 years. Author Charles Dickens was only 31 years old when A Christmas Carol was first published in serial form. (At this time, the blogger chooses to refrain from judging the merit of her own accomplishments by the age of 31, and recommends that readers do the same. ) This was the winter of 1843; the author still had Great Expectations and A Tale of Two Cities to write in the years ahead, but he already had the character of Oliver Twist and The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby to his credit. The year before A Christmas Carol, Dickens visited New York City for the first time. He returned again in 1867, touring the country and no doubt performing readings from his wildly popular Christmas tale.
An instant hit, Scrooge’s night with Christmas spirits past, present, and future, was presented by Dickens himself as part of his readings repertoire. By the turn of the century, full scale theatrical productions where standard touring fare in England. Several musical adaptations appeared throughout the United States in the 1970s. The first appearance of Scrooge on the Broadway stage was in 1979 in a musical re-imaging of the story called Comin’ Uptown. The show starred Gregory Hines as a tap-dancing Harlem slumlord.
Unknown. [Gregory Hines in dressing room as in Scrooge from Comin’ Uptown.] 1979. Museum of the City of New York. 83.60.10
Joan Marcus [ Michael Mandell as the Ghost of Christmas Present and Walter Charles as Scrooge.] 1994. Museum of the City of New York. F2013.41.1680
Joan Marcus. [Walter Charles as Scrooge in A Christmas Carol.] 1994. Museum of the City of New York. F2013.41.1681