SUNDAY STORY:Split Personality

In Charles Dickens’ words, Ebenezer Scrooge is a “squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous, old sinner,” but the longtime star of South Coast Repertory’s “A Christmas Carol” is anything but that in real life. This year’s “Tiny” Tim Cratchit, Omead Moini, often compares working with Landon to spending time with family.

“When he is on stage as Scrooge, you think ‘That’s Scrooge,’ ” the 7-year-old said. “But in real life, he is really, really nice.”

So nice, in fact, that when Landon’s two daughters were young children, he did not permit them to come to the show. He didn’t want them to see him as a mean person.

Though he successfully hides it while portraying Scrooge, Landon’s kind nature is strikingly evident in real life. His soul, as described by Omead, is “bright and happy.”

As a founding artist of the repertory, Hal Landon Jr. created the role of Scrooge there in 1980, and has performed it every year since. Landon credits genetics for initially landing him the role.

“I was the skinniest and the baldest of the available actors at the time,” he said. “I think that had more to do with it than anything.”

Though at times he has been offered attractive parts to star elsewhere during the holidays, Landon continues to play Scrooge year after year without hesitation.

“It’s pretty hard to beat playing Ebenezer Scrooge,” he said. “People tell me Christmas doesn’t start for them until they see me as Scrooge.”

By emphasizing different aspects of Scrooge’s personality, Landon is able to keep the role fresh each time around. This year, he focuses on how fears of abandonment and loneliness affected his character’s development, leading Scrooge to seek power through the accumulation of material wealth.

The play’s director, John-David Keller, spoke fondly of Landon’s ability to make it look like a new performance every year.

“The thing I love about Hal more than anything else is he never stops working at it,” Keller said. “He invests himself in the show every time he does it.”

Landon’s favorite part about “A Christmas Carol” is the show’s ability to engage the audience and keep theatergoers coming back each season — what he refers to as “the whole spirit of Christmas thing.” He also thinks it’s the feeling of redemption, as experienced by his character, that keeps audiences past, present and future so engaged.

“Everybody makes mistakes, maybe not quite as bad as Ebenezer, but the fact that you have a second chance to make up for your past wrongs is very appealing,” Landon said.

And who could forget the old somersault-into-the-hat trick? Landon’s missed the hat only once, during his first year as Scrooge, and he marched back, without any hesitation, to give it another try. His perseverance again served him well the two times he broke his small toe while performing.

Omead says he has learned determination from Landon, who encourages him to “try again” if he makes a mistake.

Landon’s humility should also be noted. Meeting him, one would never suspect he was a theatrical star, nor that he has acted in numerous Hollywood movies and prime time television shows.

One of his students at South Coast Repertory admitted to being star struck the first time she took his class.

“I thought, ‘That’s Ted’s dad!’ ” Leena Lamber said, referring to Landon’s role as Capt. Logan in the 1989 film “Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure.”

Though he is glad to ring in the holiday season with audiences and fellow cast members, Landon has only one complaint about playing Ebenezer Scrooge in “A Christmas Carol” every year.

“The only negative aspect of the part is that it takes me away from time to celebrate the holidays with my own family,” he said.