48 Fun Facts About Scrooged

Which director made Scrooged a year after the first Lethal Weapon?

Richard Donner kept telling Bill Murray to play scenes 'louder, louder, louder', and Murray later joked that he thought the director was deaf.

What is the job of Bill Murray's character in Scrooged?

Frank Cross is a ruthless television network president, staging a live Christmas Eve broadcast of A Christmas Carol called 'Scrooge'.

Which Bonnie and Clyde co-star plays Herman, the homeless man Frank meets at Claire's shelter in Scrooged?

Michael J. Pollard was Oscar-nominated as the hapless getaway driver in Bonnie and Clyde; two decades later he plays Herman, whose fate finally rattles Frank.

Scrooged co-writer Michael O'Donoghue wrote for Bill Murray on which TV show?

Saturday Night Live had O'Donoghue on its original writing staff, and Murray agreed to star in Scrooged only after reworking the script with its writers.

During his four-year break before Scrooged, Bill Murray took a cameo in which musical?

Little Shop of Horrors cast Murray as a pain-seeking dental patient, and he slips a 'Feed me, Seymour' ad-lib into Scrooged's closing singalong.

Producer Art Linson said only Bill Murray and which other star could guarantee a huge opening weekend in 1988?

Eddie Murphy was the only other name on Art Linson's list, the producer's defense of paying Murray a reported $6 million after four years away.

Which stand-up comic plays Eliot Loudermilk, the executive Frank fires for doubting his promo in Scrooged?

Bobcat Goldthwait plays the meek Eliot, who storms back into the building drunk and carrying a shotgun.

How did Frank's mentor Lew Hayward, the film's Marley figure, die?

Lew Hayward died of a heart attack while golfing; John Forsythe plays his decaying corpse, which warns Frank of the ghosts to come.

In Scrooged, the Ghost of Christmas Past appears in what form?

The Ghost of Christmas Past is a chain-smoking taxi driver who hauls Frank back through his childhood; Sam Kinison had been considered for the part.

Which 1970s New York punk frontman plays the Ghost of Christmas Past in Scrooged?

David Johansen went from fronting the proto-punk New York Dolls to a party hit with 'Hot Hot Hot' under his alter ego, Buster Poindexter.

Carol Kane's Ghost of Christmas Present is a violent fairy who hits Frank with what household appliance?

Carol Kane's fairy whacks Frank with a toaster among other blows; she really did hurt Murray, once tearing the inside of his lip.

In Scrooged's childhood flashback, young Frank gets veal for Christmas instead of which toy he asked Santa for?

A train set is what young Frank asked Santa for, and when he protests, his father tells him to get a job and buy one himself.

Who plays Claire Phillips, Frank's ex-girlfriend who runs a homeless shelter?

Karen Allen, of Raiders of the Lost Ark, plays Claire Phillips; the Christmas Future vision shows Claire hardened into a cold socialite after taking Frank's advice.

Which star of 1962's Cape Fear plays Preston Rhinelander, Frank's boss in Scrooged, who wants shows that appeal to pets?

Robert Mitchum's Rhinelander also saddles Frank with an unwanted assistant, Brice Cummings, who is plainly after Frank's job.

Who plays Grace Cooley, Frank's loyal assistant, in Scrooged?

Alfre Woodard plays Grace Cooley, the assistant Frank overworks on Christmas Eve; her son Calvin has not spoken since his father died.

What are the first words the mute boy Calvin says at the end of Scrooged?

'God bless us, everyone' comes when Frank, winding up his on-air speech, asks Calvin whether he forgot something, and the boy speaks for the first time since his father died.

Which song does Frank lead the cast and audience in singing at the end of Scrooged?

Frank leads everyone in 'Put a Little Love in Your Heart', Jackie DeShannon's 1969 hit, which a new duet version revived for the closing credits.

Which duo recorded Scrooged's closing-credits single, a No. 9 hit in January 1989?

Al Green and Annie Lennox take over a song the film has already used: Frank's studio crew sing it live on air in the finale, then the duet plays over the credits.

Frank's father in Scrooged's childhood flashback is played by which real-life relative of Bill Murray?

His brother Brian Doyle-Murray plays Earl Cross, and the casting mirrors itself: John Murray, another of Bill's three brothers in the film, plays Frank's brother James.

In Scrooged's fake promo 'The Night the Reindeer Died', which TV action star defends Santa's workshop from terrorists?

Lee Majors plays himself, greeted as the Six Million Dollar Man, and tells Santa the world can't afford to lose him before heading out to fight.

Which comedian plays Scrooge in IBC's live broadcast in Scrooged?

Buddy Hackett plays Scrooge in the show a reformed Frank ends up hijacking: he rehires Eliot with a raise, and the two take over the live broadcast.

Which Olympic gymnast plays Tiny Tim in IBC's live broadcast in Scrooged?

Mary Lou Retton, the 1984 Olympic all-around champion, plays Tiny Tim, tossing away the crutch to perform a tumbling pass.

Which jazz great appears as a street musician in Scrooged?

Miles Davis busks on a Manhattan sidewalk with Paul Shaffer, David Sanborn and Larry Carlton, and Frank heckles them, asking if they learned that song yesterday.

Which dance troupe plays the Scroogettes in IBC's live broadcast in Scrooged?

The Solid Gold Dancers turn up as the Scroogettes even though their own syndicated show had been cancelled in July 1988, months before the film opened.

In Scrooged, the Ghost of Christmas Past is aghast that Frank left Claire for which children's TV character?

Frisbee the Dog is the kids' show Frank was nurturing when he skipped Christmas dinner with Claire to dine with his boss, and the ghost can't believe he chose it over her.

In Scrooged, the Ghost of Christmas Present abandons Frank beside Herman, who is in what condition?

Frozen to death underground after leaving Claire's shelter, Herman gets a tirade from Frank, who rages that she would have fed him and kept him warm.

In Scrooged, what has happened to Calvin in the future the final ghost shows Frank?

He has been institutionalized, the first sight in a bleak future where Claire, having taken Frank's advice to look out for herself, has turned into a cold socialite.

How is Frank's body dealt with in the vision of his own funeral?

Frank is cremated in the vision; he finds himself inside the coffin as the flames close in, with only his brother James and sister-in-law Wendie attending.

In Scrooged, what Christmas gift does Frank tell his assistant Grace to put herself down for?

A bath towel is what Frank's Christmas list hands nearly everyone, and when Grace asks about her bonus instead, he upgrades her to a towel and a facecloth.

What does Frank insist the mice in the 'Scrooge' broadcast must wear?

Frank demands antlers on the mice for the live 'Scrooge' broadcast, suggesting they be stapled on when the handler objects.

At Claire's shelter in Scrooged, Herman and the other guests mistake Frank for which actor?

Richard Burton is who Herman takes Frank for, and when Frank objects to being called Dick, Herman apologises that they don't know him well enough yet.

For which award was Scrooged nominated at the 61st Academy Awards?

Best Makeup was a young Oscar at the time, created only after complaints that The Elephant Man's makeup work had no category to honour it.

Which film beat Scrooged to the Oscar it was nominated for?

Beetlejuice won at the ceremony that opened with a Snow White song-and-dance number, which led Disney to sue the Academy over its character.

Which studio released Scrooged on November 23, 1988?

Paramount Pictures released Scrooged on 23 November 1988, the day before Thanksgiving, and it topped that holiday weekend's box office.

In Scrooged, how does Frank react on learning his terrifying promo has scared an elderly viewer to death?

He is delighted: told that a grandmother keeled over watching it, Frank crows that you can't buy publicity like this and orders the promo run every half hour.

Which composer wrote the score for Scrooged?

Danny Elfman recorded more music than the film used, and the dropped cues surfaced only in 2011, when the score finally got an album of its own.

Which Park Avenue tower stood in for IBC's headquarters in Scrooged?

The Seagram Building lent IBC only its bronze-and-glass face: everything inside the network's offices was a set built in Los Angeles.

What rating did Scrooged receive from the MPAA?

PG-13 rather than a family PG: this Christmas comedy opens with terrorists storming Santa's workshop and later sends a sacked executive after Frank with a shotgun.

Which film was Bill Murray's biggest box-office hit before Scrooged?

Ghostbusters was the hit the posters leaned on: 'Bill Murray is back among the ghosts. Only this time, it's three against one.'

Which critic called Scrooged one of the most 'disquieting, unsettling films' in some time?

Roger Ebert's pan stuck with its star: in a 1990 interview with the critic, Murray defended the script and said his director kept telling him to play it 'louder, louder, louder.'

Which crooner appears as himself fronting a 'Cajun Christmas' special in IBC's parody lineup?

Robert Goulet sends himself up in the opening reel of fake promos, which the Los Angeles Times's critic called the film's high point before it veers out of hand.

Which star of 1973's The Paper Chase hosts IBC's live 'Scrooge' as himself in Scrooged?

John Houseman never saw the film released: he died on October 31, 1988, less than a month before Scrooged reached cinemas.

Which future Smallville cast member plays Brice Cummings, the executive angling for Frank's job in Scrooged?

John Glover plays Brice Cummings, sent in to 'assist' a rattled Frank; before long he has taken over the production.

The failure of which 1984 film preceded Bill Murray's long break from leading roles?

The Razor's Edge, Murray's earnest Somerset Maugham adaptation, sank without trace in 1984; he took his family to live in Paris and had no lead role until Scrooged.

Which M*A*S*H star plays Jacob Marley in IBC's live 'Scrooge' broadcast in Scrooged?

Jamie Farr, whose Corporal Klinger wore dresses on M*A*S*H hoping for a psychiatric discharge, plays the ghost of Scrooge's dead partner in IBC's live show.

Fleeing an armed Eliot in Scrooged, Frank runs straight into the Ghost of Christmas Future waiting where?

In an elevator: Frank dives in to escape Eliot's shotgun and finds the final ghost already aboard, ready to carry him off to a bleak future.

Which Best Supporting Actress nominee for 1987 has a cameo as a guest at Claire's shelter in Scrooged?

Anne Ramsey, The Goonies' Mama Fratelli, filmed the cameo beside her real husband, Logan Ramsey, but died in August 1988, three months before Scrooged opened.

In Scrooged, Frank soaks a waiter he imagines is on fire, then says he mistook him for which comedian?

Richard Pryor is who Frank says he took him for, after flinging water over a waiter only he can see burning, to the alarm of his boss across the table.