To the left, the players of the cast of “A Christmas Carol”
Beware the ides of Christmas past…
Date of Recording: 12.24.1975
Station: 660 WNBC New York City, New York, USA (WEAF/WRCA/WNBC)
Format: Top 40
Featured Air Talent: Don Imus (Imus in the Morning), Dick Summer, Cousin Bruce Morrow (Cousin Brucie), Bill Rockefeller, Bob Vernon, Charles McCord
Contributor: Steve Tefft
Comments:
Aired on Christmas eve, 1975, following the Cousin’ Brucie Show (who does a short promo for it), this 28 minute production is every bit as good and professional as any you’ve ever heard. NBC pulled out all the stops in getting the radio and TV side together to add voices. Imus played Scrooge, but listen to the cast of characters heard here… Dick Summer, Cousin Bruce Morrow, Bill Rockefeller (producer), Bob Vernon (66 WNBC PM Drive)… more. Audio credits are given at the end.
This was done with nothing but class. Proof again that the National Broadcasting Company WAS THE BENCHMARK for programming up through the mid 1970s.
Enjoy, and… May you all enjoy a very MERRY CHRISTMAS and best wishes for the New Year!
Great stuff. I vaguely remember hearing this live…from the suburbs of Chicago! Of course, I used to listen to 66 and 77 at nighttime, far from NYC. Then again, the Big 89 was always blasting away, too, far from Chicago.
Is the Iman himself the voice of Schrooge?
Yes, that’s he. At the very end of the show the cast is revealed.
I believe this was WNBC’s 2nd production of A Christmas Carol, the 1st having produced
two years earlier under the direction of Jim Sans (former production director) I
don’t know if WNBC used Imus’ original tracks, or if he reprised the role in this
production. I enjoyed this period of WNBC (“Your Great Escape”–“The New York Sound.
It was personality driven adult oriented radio with retro Pams jingles.
This is one of the most unusual productions ever on the radio. Even better than the WBZ version with Gary Lapierre.