Here's another song from a TV musical I referenced a couple times the past few weeks, The Stingiest Man in Town. It was a 1956 special on the Alcoa Hour based on Dickens' A Christmas Carol. Many of the names involved might no longer be household ones, but for the day it was a respectable cast, with a couple of full-fledged opera stars in it (Patrice Munsel and Robert Weede, who also starred in the Frank Loesser musical, The Most Happy Fella), as well as pop stars, like Vic Damone, Johnny Desmond, and The Four Lads. Also in the cast was one of my favorite character actors, John McGiver, along with Martyn Green, a leading Gilbert & Sullivan interpreter of the time. And above all, one Hollywood legend as Scrooge. That would be none other than Basil Rathbone, famous for playing Sherlock Holmes in the movies from 1936-1946, The score by Fred Spielman and Janice Torre isn't especially memorable, although there are some nice things in it. And I like this one, not just for the song itself, which has a sweet charm to it, but perhaps even more for it being sung by Basil Rathbone. He's no singer at all, but handles the number effectively. I should also note that I like it when songs are written from famous lines in literature, as this is. This number comes from late in the show, after Scrooge has learned his lesson. It takes its title from a line from Dickens when Scrooge has told the Ghost of Jacob Marley that his former partner was always a good man of business, and the specter admonishes him with this line. And so, here, Scrooge has learned that lesson. "Mankind Should Be My Business." I'll toss in a couple of other numbers. We already played the song, "A Christmas Carol" and heard snippets from the title number "The Stingiest Man in Town" done on the Julie Andrews special This first additional tune here is a low-key, sweet piece sung by Martha Cratchit -- who, no, is not Bob's wife but oldest daughter -- performed by Betty Madigan, "Yes, There Is a Santa Claus." Why this minor character got a solo number and not the Mrs., I have no idea. And we'll end things here with a reasonably melodic ballad, "Birthday Party for the King," sung by Johnny Desmond, as Scrooge's nephew Fred. In the Dickens story, Fred is someone who does love Christmas, though tends to be much more fun-loving than the pious character here. But happily, one with a good set of pipes, which ultimately is proper for Christmas.
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AuthorRobert J. Elisberg is a political commentator, screenwriter, novelist, tech writer and also some other things that I just tend to keep forgetting. Feedspot Badge of Honor
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