Walk London Following Dickens Books Nov 13, 2009
Inspired by the bustle and humanity of the London metropolis, Charles Dickens included many London historic buildings and places in his novels. More than a century after they appeared in such Dickens novels as David Copperfield, Oliver Twist, Bleak House, Christmas Carol and Little Dorrit (to name only a few), these locations are today part of a secret London: buildings that exist between the real and the fictional and whose uses have changed many times over the years. (Suite101.com)
KCCT raises curtain on holiday performances Nov 12, 2009
The play, adapted from Charles Dickens classic Christmas story, will run for two weekends. The cast includes Jim Lott and Jim Holcomb as Ebenezer Scrooge and Jacob Marley, respectively. (Terrell Tribune, TX)
Hollywood gets in the holiday spirit Nov 12, 2009
The newest version of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol features Jim Carrey as Scrooge. Presented in 3-D, Disney's A Christmas Carol is the latest from director Robert Zemeckis, who presents Dickens' London with the same performance-capture technology he used on The Polar Express and Beowulf. (The Clarion-Ledger)
Crime and punishment - could classic novels help offenders? Nov 11, 2009
Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens, Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck and the modern adventure novel Touching the Void by Joe Simpson all resonated with offenders in different ways. One of her former students, Andy French, who spent several years in prison for drug offences, is now studying for a teaching degree. (BBC News -- UK)
Infotainment Nov 10, 2009
Walt Disney Cos high-tech adaptation of Charles Dickens A Christmas Carol topped the North American box office on Sunday with lower-than-expected ticket sales of $31 million. Industry pundits had forecast a three-day haul. (Daily Times, Pakistan)
Jim Carrey's Scrooge cashes in to become No. 1 Nov 10, 2009
The Disney animated version of the Charles Dickens classic knocked "Michael Jackson's This Is It" to second place with $14 million, according to studio estimates Sunday ... The Disney animated version of the Charles Dickens. (San Francisco Chronicle)
Chu crowned Miss Hawaii Teen USA Nov 10, 2009
The animated version of the Charles Dickens classic knocked the King of Pop out of the No. 1 spot as "Michael Jackson's This Is It" slipped to second place with $14 million, according to studio estimates. "This Is It," presenting rehearsals Jackson shot before his death in June, raised its domestic total to $57. (Honolulu Advertiser)
Tolkien trilogy sold at auction Nov 9, 2009
A 23-volume set of Charles Dickens novels fetched 4,100, while a copy of James Joyce's Ulysses, illustrated by French artist Henri Matisse, sold for 1,500. Bids for the collection were made from buyers in France, the United States and Japan, as well as the UK.. (Yahoo News -- Lord of the Rings)
Carreys Carolwraps up box office Nov 9, 2009
Jim Carrey stars in this updated 3-D version of Charles Dickens story of a man who looks into his past, present and future one Christmas Eve ... The Disney animated version of the Charles Dickens classic knocked the King of Pop out of the No. 1 spot as "Michael Jackson's This Is It" slipped to second place with $14 million, according to studio estimates Sunday. (MSNBC -- News)
'Christmas Carol' No. 1 at box office Nov 9, 2009
The $175 million animated movie, which utilized performance-capture technology to allow Jim Carrey to play multiple roles from Charles Dickens' beloved story, represented the best opening in director Robert Zemeckis' career. And even though 'Carol' performed a bit below expectations, the family film should hold up well in the coming weeks, especially since it'll be playing on nearly 200 pricey IMAX screens until "Avatar" opens on December 18. (CNN -- US)
"A Christmas Carol" tops North America box office Nov 9, 2009
This animation is Disney's third adaptation from English writer Charles Dickens' timeless classic that was published in 1843. It tells an old miser, Ebenezer Scrooge, who, with the help of three ghosts, realizes the sharp of his own personality before kindness goes into his otherwise cold heart. (Xinhuanet, China)
AP News in Brief Nov 9, 2009
He grasps the tone of the Charles Dickens novel (darker than most film versions) ... He grasps the tone of the Charles Dickens novel (darker than most film versions) ... Technology finally has caught up with Charles Dickens' imagination. (Fresno Bee -- Nation)
Carrey's 'Christmas Carol' Wraps up $31M Weekend Nov 9, 2009
The Disney animated version of the Charles Dickens classic features Carrey as Ebenezer Scrooge and as all three Christmas ghosts that show Scrooge the error of his miserly ways. Special: Get Sarah Palins New Book Incredible FREE Offer. (Newsmax)
What's old is new Nov 8, 2009
The poster gives pause: It says "Disney's A Christmas Carol," four words instead of the usual three, a bossy corporate possessive staking claim to Charles Dickens' story and his turf. Yet this Disney Dickens is altogether different - and altogether surprising. (San Francisco Chronicle -- Entertainment)
Grisham's short stories long on characters Nov 8, 2009
As a kid, I recall reading short stories by Mark Twain and Charles Dickens and even as a young student, the great authors - Faulkner and Eudora Welty and Flannery O'Connor. Hemingway. (Athens Banner-Herald)
"The September Issue" Nov 8, 2009
"Crude" sometimes seems like improbable fiction, a story co-authored by Charles Dickens and Che Guevara in which a former oilfield worker named Pablo Fajardo, who still lives in the two-room house where he grew up, is now the plaintiffs' lead attorney, threatening to bring the world's fifth-largest corporation to its knees. One of the story's many oddities is that Chevron was never involved in Ecuadoran oil exploration, or in the alleged systematic and deliberate discharge of oil sludge and... (Salon)
Review: 'Christmas Carol' just OK Nov 7, 2009
Even so, November 6 is an absurdly premature release date for the latest Hollywoodization of Charles Dickens' yuletide staple, "A Christmas Carol." Blame "Avatar," which has a lock on every last IMAX screen when it releases December 18. But why should Disney be running scared of a sci-fi extravaganza. (CNN)
Review: 'Christmas Carol' Lively Update Nov 7, 2009
Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol" has had so many incarnations in film and television that in order for anything to be fresh about it, there would have to be a newfangled way of viewing it to create any excitement around it. So, leave it to Disney and filmmaker Robert Zemeckis to take the Dickens classic and turn it upside down (at times, literally). (KFOXTV.com, TX)
Disney's A Christmas Carol: A Scrooge for This Season Nov 7, 2009
It's not that the Charles Dickens' tale, first published in 1843, is unknown to the reading or viewing audience. Event by event, word for word all 28,723 of them, from "Marley was dead" to "God Bless Us, Every One" this might be the most familiar of all stories, including the Gospels. (Time.com)
Robert Zemeckis' 'Christmas Carol': Bah humbug. Too many special effects Nov 7, 2009
We won't linger on the story, since you've no doubt caught one of the countless adaptations since the Charles Dickens piece was first published in 1843. We meet the grizzled grinch as a bitter old man hovering over the open coffin of his newly dead partner, Jacob Marley. (FOX59, IN)
Film review: 'A Christmas Carol' gets 3 stars Nov 6, 2009
" Dazzling, ornate visuals take us to the snowy London of 1837, swooping over its digital rooftops and down its digital chimneys. Faces take on musculature, expression and detail.But like those earlier films, and certainly to a greater degree given the pathos, warmth and wit of the story, "A Christmas Carol" lacks and needs desperately that human touch.That cinematic literalist Robert Zemeckis, who in Forrest Gump had a character say "I'm going to San Francisco" and then scored the scene with... (Seacoast New Hampshire)
A Christmas Carol Movie Review Nov 6, 2009
How does one improve a beloved classic like Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol. If you're director Robert Zemeckis () the answer is obvious: toss in chase scenes and motion-capture special effects. (Suite101.com)
No Turkeys On November Movie Menu Nov 6, 2009
While "Twilight" fans are counting the stars down to the film's release, the curtain will be drawn on plenty of other holiday season releases, starting Nov. 6 with director Robert Zemeckis' high-tech update of Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol.". Zemeckis, who challenged the landscape of special effects with his hit "Back to the Future" trilogy and Oscar-winning drama "Forrest Gump," is riding high again on the motion capture technique that he revolutionized for "The Polar Express" to give... (KERO 23, CA)
Disney - and Carrey - slaughter classic ‘Christmas Carol' Nov 6, 2009
Charles Dickens' story is timeless, beautiful, emotional and insightful ... That one point comes from the fact that at least the script is Charles Dickens and, therefore, good. (Rexburg Standard Journal, ID)
‘A Tale’ that packs too much into the telling Nov 6, 2009
Charles Dickens s sweeping saga A Tale of Two Cities encompasses a wide swath of history and culture to illustrate the best of times and the worst of times in London and Paris at the end of the 18th century ... Play by Dwayne Hartford, adapted from the novel by Charles Dickens. (Boston Globe)
Technology helps director Zemeckis deliver a spirited ‘Christmas Carol’ Nov 6, 2009
Written by: Zemeckis, based on the novel by Charles Dickens. Starring: The voices and digitally mutated likenesses of Jim Carrey, Gary Oldman, Colin Firth, Robin Wright Penn, Bob Hoskins. (Boston Globe)
Best Christmas Family Movies Nov 6, 2009
But it retells the classic Charles Dickens story of Ebenezer Scrooge on that fateful Christmas Eve when he is visited by three ghosts ... But Gonzo is (or thinks he is) Charles Dickens and he proceeds to tell Rizzo (and the viewers) the story of Ebenezer Scrooge. (Suite101.com)
Ghost of Christmas Past Quiz Nov 6, 2009
What are the first words in Charles Dickens' book "A Christmas Carol". a. Bah humbug. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, PA)
* FILM REVIEW: Scrooge goes 3D Nov 6, 2009
Starring in this latest adaptation of Charles Dickens frequently filmed 1843 novella is Jim Carrey, who joins a distinguished roster of movie Scrooges that includes Alastair Sim, Albert Finney, George C. Scott, Bill Murray and Mr Magoo. But while audiences will hear Carreys voice (he also plays the ghosts of Christmases past, present and yet to come) and see his distinctive body language, the figure before them will be a computerized amalgam of human and animated elements. (Taipei Times, Taiwan -- World Business)
Wall St. Gets Hands on H1N1 Vaccine Nov 6, 2009
Harkens back to Charles Dickens. They are still playing the system. (CBS News)
'Carol' captured for modern filmgoers Nov 5, 2009
Los Angeles, California (CNN) -- Ebenezer Scrooge has been haunting the holiday season ever since Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol" was published in 1843 and the miserly old geezer has also been "bah humbug-ing" the big screen for decades. Reginald Owen played Scrooge in the 1938 adaptation of the classic tale. (CNN)
What's Playing Nov 5, 2009
A Christmas Carol - An animated retelling of Charles Dickens classic novel about a Victorian-era miser taken on a journey of self-redemption, courtesy of several mysterious Christmas apparitions. (imdb) 96 min. PG. Beechwood: 4:10, 6:45 and 9:10 p.m. daily starting Friday, with additional shows at 1:30 p.m. Friday-Sunday; Carmike: 1, 3:20, 5:40 and 8 p.m. daily starting Friday, with additional shows at 10:20 p.m. Friday-Saturday. (Athens Banner-Herald)
MORE: This 'Carol' fits Dickens' vision Nov 5, 2009
3-D 'Christmas Carol' fits Charles Dickens' vision - USATODAY.com ... 3-D 'Christmas Carol' fits Charles Dickens' vision. (USA Today)
Special effects a ghost of the present Nov 5, 2009
Directed by Robert Zemeckis Screenplay by Robert Zemeckis, based on the novella by Charles Dickens Rated PG, 96 minutes Cinemas everywhere ... It's as if Charles Dickens wrote this story to be a movie,'' he has said. (Sydney Morning Herald -- Entertainment)
John Grisham's short stories long on characters Nov 5, 2009
A: As a kid I recall reading short stories by Mark Twain and Charles Dickens and even as a young student, the great authors Faulkner and Eudora Welty and Flannery O'Connor. Hemingway. (Honolulu Advertiser)
LETTER: 'Bite the bullet or die from the wounds' Nov 5, 2009
father bob wrote on Nov 2, 2009 2:31 PM:" Larry S. RoliradA HEALTH CARE PLEDGE FOR CONSERVATIVESAs a Conservative who DOES NOT have Health Insurance:I, ___________, as a conservative who DOES NOT have health care insurance, do hereby refuse all health care paid for by the government. I pledge if I become sick, or a member of my family becomes sick, that I will refuse to be treated by any doctor, hospital or emergency personnel if the cost for these services will in any way be subsidized by a... (Mattoon Journal-Gazette, IL)
Five of the Best Christmas Movies E... Nov 4, 2009
While Charles Dickens' story A Christmas Carol has been retold numerous times in a variety of ways, this version which stars Bill Murray as Frank Cross is arguably one of the best. The tale is retold this time with the Scrooge character as a television executive. (Suite101.com)
Jim Carrey Gives Scrooge New Life Nov 4, 2009
Director Robert Zemeckis and Jim Carrey Bring the Beloved Charles Dickens "A Christmas Carol" to the 21st Century ... (AP) Technology finally has caught up with Charles Dickens' imagination. (CBS News -- Entertainment)
Carrey, computers bring new life to Scrooge Nov 4, 2009
LOS ANGELES - Technology finally has caught up with Charles Dickens' imagination ... Jim Carrey plays a host of roles in the latest update of Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol." Here he talks about the film. (MSNBC -- News)
Carrey, Zemeckis capture 21st century Scrooge Nov 4, 2009
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Technology finally has caught up with Charles Dickens' imagination. Jim Carrey and Robert Zemeckis' new take on "A Christmas Carol" brings to life the fantasy about miser Ebenezer Scrooge's holiday redemption in a way old Hollywood never could have dreamed. (WSVN-TV Miami, FL)
Scrooge Rings in Holiday Movie Season Nov 4, 2009
The latest version of Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol" features Jim Carrey as Scrooge. Coming on Ebenezer's coattails will be everything from vampire romance ("The Twilight Saga: New Moon") and end-of-the-world stories ("2012," "The Road") to epic science fiction ("Avatar") and a new incarnation of the world's greatest detective ("Sherlock Holmes"). (CBS News)
romantic exoticism Nov 4, 2009
The cultivation of empathy for the sufferings of others could even be a vehicle for social change, as in the works of Charles Dickens. That this emotionalism was sometimes exaggerated or artificial should not obscure the fact that it also contained much that was genuine and inspiring. (Harper's Magazine)
Actor Carrey switches on lights Nov 4, 2009
Actor Jim Carrey flicked the switch on the Oxford Street lights, themed around the work of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol, at 1815 GMT.. At the same time, British actor Colin Firth switched on the lights in nearby Regent Street. (BBC News -- Entertainment)
Humbug! Christmas Carol has no spirit Nov 4, 2009
Jim Carrey stars in this updated 3-D version of Charles Dickens story of a man who looks into his past, present and future one Christmas Eve ... Weve already had to endure Carrey mugging it up as the Grinch while Zemeckis turned The Polar Express into a bloated and freaky-looking theme park attraction, and now these two have gone and put the stink on Charles Dickens beloved A Christmas Carol. (MSNBC -- News)
Grisham's Short Story Collection in Demand Nov 4, 2009
NEW YORK, Nov. 3, 2009. "A Time to Kill" Author Releases Collection of Short Stories Based on His Years as a Lawyer; Sparks Publishing Price War. (CBS News -- Entertainment)
'A Christmas Carol' Nov 3, 2009
Charles Dickens' most popular creation, Ebenezer Scrooge, usually takes on the tenor of the times, so it's not surprising that Robert Zemeckis' new performance-capture animation version of "A Christmas Carol" has its star, Jim Carrey, musing about where his Scrooge fits in today. "I was thinking about it this morning, how this story ties into everything we're going through," says Carrey, who, thanks to the technology, plays Scrooge as well as the three ghosts haunting him. (FOX59, IN)
Carrey's Scrooge Rings In Hollywood Holiday Spirit Nov 3, 2009
The latest version of Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol" features Jim Carrey as Scrooge. Coming on Ebenezer's coattails will be everything from vampire romance ("The Twilight Saga: New Moon") and end-of-the-world stories ("2012," ''The Road") to epic science fiction ("Avatar") and a new incarnation of the world's greatest detective ("Sherlock Holmes"). Presented in 3-D, "Disney's A Christmas Carol" is the latest from Oscar-winning director Robert Zemeckis ("Forrest Gump"), who presents... (KIRO TV, WA)
Why Do So Many Baseball Players Chew Tobacco? Nov 3, 2009
Charles Dickens, who visited the United States in 1842, referred to Washington as "the headquarters of tobacco tinctured saliva" and described a trial at which the judge, defendant, jury, and spectators all had their own spittoons. He also observed signs at a medical college requesting that students expectorate into designated boxes so as not to "discolour the stairs." In the same year as Dickens' visit, Americans played what was likely the first-ever game of baseball, in Manhattan. (Slate)
Christmas comes early Nov 2, 2009
Written by Charles Dickens in 1843, it tells the tale of the miserly Ebenezer Scrooge, who is taught the true meaning of the holiday season by a parade of ghostly visitors ... Back to the Future', 'Forrest Gump', 'The Polar Express' and 'Beowulf' but insists that with 'A Christmas Carol' he never strayed from his aim of making a film that would be true to Charles Dickens' original vision ... "Technology should serve the story, not the other way round," the director says, "but what's remarkable... (iAfrica.com)
Christmas Movies for Kids Nov 1, 2009
The Muppets come together in this popular re-telling of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol. Miser Ebenezer Scrooge is visted by three ghosts on Christmas Eve who take him to visit moments in his past, present and future so that Scrooge may learn more about himself, those around him and the true meaning of Christmas spirit. (Suite101.com)
Wells speaker a writer for many varied genres Oct 31, 2009
AURORA Channeling Charles Dickens, author Lee Sheldon assumed Dickens' persona as a way to tell his own story how he grew as a writer during his lecture A Writer's Life at Wells College Friday night ... He recited the very first poem a song really that Charles Dickens made up as a toddler while his parents were arguing: There's a pie of gold in the sky when angels are nearby. (Auburn Citizen, NY)
Opening Up A Colorful Cosmic Jewel Box Oct 30, 2009
25, 2005) Just like Charles Dickens' Christmas Carol takes us on a journey into past, present and future in the time of only one Christmas Eve, two of the European Southern Observatory's telescopes captured. (Aug. (Science Daily)
Holiday films roll out some heavy subjects Oct 30, 2009
This computer-generated animated telling of the Charles Dickens story looks snazzy, but will moviegoers want to see another version of the classic holiday tale ... Cast: Gary Oldman, Jim Carrey, Bob Hoskins, Robin Wright Penn, Collin Firth Produced by: Jack Rapke Directed by: Robert Zemeckis Written by: Robert Zemeckis, Charles Dickens. (Fresno Bee)
Tolkien trilogy sold at auction Oct 28, 2009
A 23-volume set of Charles Dickens novels fetched 4,100, while a copy of James Joyce's Ulysses, illustrated by French artist Henri Matisse, sold for 1,500. Bids for the collection were made from buyers in France, the United States and Japan, as well as the UK.. (Yahoo News -- Lord of the Rings)
Library books go the way of the dodo Oct 28, 2009
He remembers his English class last year being assigned Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol" on their laptops. Taking notes on the text. (Honolulu Advertiser)
The spirit of Sleepy Hollow lives on Oct 25, 2009
Like Charles Dickens, who once dined at Irving s nearby home, Irving achieved a celebrity that today s best-selling authors would envy. So this village (population 10,200), about 30 miles north of New York City, is no stranger to ghoul-seeking tourists. (Boston Globe)
Marriage dissolving like the Dickens Oct 25, 2009
99) By the time Charles Dickens had grown tired of his wife, the couple had 10 children and Dickens was a rich and famous man. The two separated, unhappily and against Catherine's will, and Dickens published a notice in the newspapers declaring her an unfit mother. (Montana Standard, MT)
Improving SAT Vocabulary with Class... Oct 24, 2009
Kaplan and Prestwick House are among publishers who produce amended versions of classic novels to help students improve their vocabulary as they prepare for the SAT. Titles from Prestrick include: Frankenstein by Mary Shelly [Prestwick House, Inc. September 1, 2007], Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad [Prestwick House, Inc. July 1, 2007], and A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens [Prestwick House, Inc. July 1, 2007. Kaplan produces such amended novels as: Little Women by Louisa May Alcott [Kaplan... (Suite101.com)
Will 2009 Oscar Race Be More Animated? Oct 21, 2009
"Astro Boy," based on the 1960s TV cartoon series; "Battle for Terra," a CGI saga of intergalactic war; "A Christmas Carol," a 3-D rendition of the Charles Dickens tale from the director of "The Polar Express," using performance capture to re-animate Jim Carrey; "Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs," a popular 3-D comedy combining science with giant foodstuffs; "Coraline," a 3-D stop-motion of Neil Gaiman's fantasy/horror tale; "Fantastic Mr. Fox," a purposefully retro-looking... (CBS News -- Entertainment)
British theater to stage "Romeo and Juliet" in China Oct 21, 2009
It has previously won acclaims of Chinese audience with dramas such as Charles Dickens' "Oliver Twist" and Shakespeare's "Hamlet". Director Paul Stebbings said such simplistic style helps reveal the sorrow and ecstasy of the characters in the story to the utmost. (Xinhuanet, China)
Are we due a wave of book piracy? Oct 20, 2009
Page last updated at 18:36 GMT, Monday, 19 October 2009 19:36 UK. Are we due a wave of book piracy. (BBC News -- UK)
Manhattan to the max Oct 20, 2009
In that way it reminds me of Charles Dickens, Lethem explained. The writer also has been quoted as saying that he was strongly influenced by Saul Bellow, Phillip K. Dick, and Charles Finney in this latest work. (Boston Globe)
Niagara Falls' Thundering Waters Aw... Oct 19, 2009
The Niagara Parks Commission lists such notables as Mark Twain and Charles Dickens as visitors to Niagara Falls. "Niagara Falls is a most enjoyable place of resort. The hotels are excellent, and the prices not at all exorbitant. " said Mark Twain of his visit to Niagara. (Suite101.com)
Phila.'s spooky Eastern State Penitentiary Oct 18, 2009
Charles Dickens, who toured the prison in 1842, later wrote: "The system is rigid, strict and hopeless. Solitary confinement, I believe, in its effects, to be cruel and wrong.". The years following Dickens' visit saw the eventual breakdown of the solitary confinement system, but it would be another 71 years before it was officially abandoned in 1913. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, PA)
Sendak, Ever-Untamed, Sees 'Wild Things' Adapted Oct 14, 2009
It started by picking up "Great Expectations" by Charles Dickens, one of his great loves, and was followed by listening to Mozart's "Don Giovanni." ... "One looks for signs and symptoms of what is good and what is bad, what is pulling you down and what is holding it up. It's Mozart, but I haven't listened to him carefully for a long time. Now he's back in my life with a vengeance. ... And there's Charles Dickens.". (KIRO TV, WA)
