A Christmas Carol was a 1949 low-budget, black and white television special narrated by Vincent Price. Compressing the Charles Dickens classic story into a half hour, it is stated to be "the oldest extant straight adaptation of the story" for television. It was originally produced as a syndicated production for airing on 22 stations across the United States on Christmas day in 1949. It was sponsored by Magnavox and represented that company's first use of television advertising. In 1952 the show was acquired by Consolidated Television Sales for further syndication.