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''Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer'' is a 1964 Christmas stop motion animated television special produced by Videocraft International, Ltd. (later known as
Rankin/Bass Productions Rankin/Bass Animated Entertainment (founded and formerly known as Videocraft International, Ltd. and Rankin/Bass Productions, Inc.) was an American production company located in New York City, and known for its seasonal television specials, usual ...
) and currently distributed by NBCUniversal Television Distribution (later known as
NBCUniversal Syndication Studios NBCUniversal Syndication Studios (a.k.a. NUSS), formerly known as NBCUniversal Television Distribution (a.k.a. NUTD), Universal Domestic Television, Studios USA Television Distribution and MCA TV, is the television syndication division of NBCUnive ...
). It first aired December 6, 1964, on the NBC television network in the United States and was sponsored by General Electric under the umbrella title of ''The General Electric Fantasy Hour''. The special was based on the 1949 Johnny Marks song " Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" which was itself based on the poem of the same name written in 1939 by Marks' brother-in-law,
Robert L. May Robert L. May (July 27, 1905 – August 11, 1976) was an American retailer. He was best known for creating the fictional character Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. Early life Robert Lewis May was born in Arverne, Long Island, New York, and grew ...
. Since 1972, the special has aired on CBS; the network unveiled a high-definition, digitally remastered version of the program in 2005, re-scanned frame-by-frame from the original 35 mm film elements. As with ''
A Charlie Brown Christmas ''A Charlie Brown Christmas'' is a 1965 animated television special. It is the first TV special based on the comic strip ''Peanuts'', by Charles M. Schulz. Produced by Lee Mendelson and directed by Bill Melendez, the program made its debut on C ...
'' and '' How the Grinch Stole Christmas'', ''Rudolph'' no longer airs just once annually but several times during the Christmas and holiday season. It has been telecast every year since 1964, making it the longest continuously running Christmas TV special in the United States. The 50th anniversary of the television special was marked in 2014, and a series of postage stamps featuring Rudolph was issued by the United States Postal Service on November 6, 2014. A special exhibit was also mounted at the Masterworks Museum in Bermuda where the original puppets are held. In 2019, Freeform (formerly ABC Family) started airing the special as part of its 25 Days of Christmas/Rankin-Bass Christmas holiday programming block.


Plot

Donner, Santa's lead reindeer, and his wife have a new fawn named Rudolph. They are surprised to find out he was born with a glowing red nose. Donner attempts to first cover Rudolph's nose with mud, and later uses a fake nose, so Rudolph will fit in with the other reindeer. The following spring, Rudolph goes out for the reindeer games, where the new fawns learn to fly and are scouted by Santa for future sleigh duty. Rudolph meets a doe named Clarice, who tells him he is cute, making Rudolph fly. While he celebrates with the other bucks, Rudolph's fake nose pops off, causing the other reindeer to mock him and Coach Comet to expel him. Rudolph meets and joins Hermey, a misfit elf who left Santa's workshop because he wants to be a
dentist A dentist, also known as a dental surgeon, is a health care professional who specializes in dentistry (the diagnosis, prevention, management, and treatment of diseases and conditions of the mouth, oral cavity and other aspects of the craniofaci ...
, and Yukon Cornelius, a prospector who has spent his life searching for silver and gold. After escaping the Abominable Snow Monster, all three land on the Island of Misfit Toys. It is a place where unloved or unwanted toys reside with their ruler, a winged lion named King Moonracer, who brings the toys to the island until he can find homes and children who will love them. The king allows them to stay one night on the island and asks them to ask Santa to find homes for them. Rudolph leaves on his own, worried that his nose will endanger his friends. Time passes and Rudolph, now a young stag, returns home to find that his parents and Clarice have been searching for him. He then travels to the Abominable's cave, where they are being held captive. Rudolph attempts to rescue Clarice until the monster knocks him down with a stalactite. Hermey and Yukon eventually show up with a plan to help out Rudolph. Hermey lures the monster out of the cave by imitating the sound of a pig and pulls out the Abominable's teeth after Yukon knocks him out. Yukon drives the toothless monster back over a cliff and falls with it. Rudolph, Hermey, Clarice, and the Donners return home where everyone apologizes to them. Yukon returns with a tamed Abominable, now trained to trim a Christmas tree, explaining that the monster's bouncing ability saved both of their lives. Christmas Eve comes and while everybody is celebrating, Santa announces that a big snowstorm is approaching, forcing him to cancel Christmas. Blinded by Rudolph's bright nose, he changes his mind and asks Rudolph to lead the sleigh. Rudolph accepts, and their first stop is the Island of Misfit Toys, where Santa delivers the toys to children.


Cast

* Burl Ives as Sam the Snowman * Billie Mae Richards as Rudolph * Paul Soles as Hermey *
Larry Mann Larry Mann (born Lawrence Zuckerman; April 3, 1924 – September 14, 1952) was an American stock car driver born in Yonkers, New York. Mann was the first driver to be killed in a NASCAR Grand National race; he died from a pulmonary hemorrhag ...
as Yukon Cornelius * Stan Francis as
Santa Claus Santa Claus, also known as Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Kris Kringle, or simply Santa, is a Legend, legendary figure originating in Western Christianity, Western Christian culture who is said to Christmas gift-bringer, bring ...
and King Moonracer *
Alfie Scopp Alfred Scopp (15 September 1919 – 24 July 2021) was a Canadian actor who worked mostly in television series, including as a voice actor. He also worked in theatre, radio, and films. He was part of the voice cast for the 1964 Christmas special ...
as Fireball, Charlie-in-the-Box, and various male elves * Janis Orenstein as Clarice *
Paul Kligman Paul Kligman (21 January 1923 – 29 August 1985) was a Canadian actor. Biography Born in Romania, he emigrated to Canada where he spent his youth in Winnipeg and studied at the University of Manitoba. He moved to Toronto in 1950 and estab ...
as Donner and Coach Comet * Carl Banas as Head Elf, the Misfit Elephant, and various Misfit Toys * Corinne Conley as Dolly for Sue *
Peg Dixon Melissa Dixon (29 August 1923 – 26 October 2015), credited as Peg Dixon, was a Canadian actress. She was best known for her voice acting in '' Spider-Man''. She was married to Ed McNamara Ed McNamara (21 June 1921 – 11 October 1986) was a ...
as
Mrs. Claus Mrs. Claus (also known as Mrs. Santa Claus or Mrs. Santa) is the legendary wife of Santa Claus, the Christmas gift-bringer in Western Christmas tradition. She is known for making cookies with the elves, caring for the reindeer, and preparing toy ...
and Mrs. Donner * Bernard Cowan as Bumble and Clarice's father (uncredited)


Production

The TV special, with the teleplay by Romeo Muller, introduced several new characters inspired by the song's lyrics. Muller told an interviewer shortly before his death that he would have preferred to base the teleplay on May's original book, but could not find a copy. Other than Burl Ives, all characters were portrayed by Canadian actors recorded at RCA studios in Toronto under the supervision of Bernard Cowan. Rankin and Bass chose Canadian voice actors for two reasons. First, while the last radio dramas in the U.S. had ended production a few years previously, many were still being produced in Canada, giving the producers a large talent pool to choose from. Second, Rankin and Bass, financially stretched while making '' Tales of the Wizard of Oz'' a few years earlier, had been able to complete that series only due to the lower labor costs in Canada. Ives' parts were recorded later. He and his character were added to the cast just before the end of production, after NBC and General Electric, the show's sponsor, asked Rankin and Bass to add a name familiar to audiences to the cast. Character designer Antony Peters intentionally made the Sam the Snowman character resemble Ives. After the script, concept designs and storyboards for ''Rudolph'' were done by
Arthur Rankin, Jr. Arthur Gardner Rankin Jr. (July 19, 1924 – January 30, 2014) was an American director, producer and writer, who mostly worked in animation. Co-creator of Rankin/Bass Productions with his friend Jules Bass, he created stop-motion animation ...
and his staff of artists at Rankin/Bass in New York City. The company's trademark stop motion animation process, known as "Animagic", was filmed at MOM Productions in Tokyo with supervision by
Tadahito Mochinaga was a pioneer Japanese stop-motion animator. Having done many stop motion films/shorts in Japan, he is best known as the animator for Rankin/Bass' "Animagic" productions at his MOM Studio in Tokyo throughout the 1960s. He did this work in asso ...
and associate direction by Kizo Nagashima. Besides ''Rudolph'', Mochinaga and the rest of the Japanese puppet animation staff are also known for their partnership with Rankin/Bass on their other Animagic productions almost throughout the 1960s, from '' The New Adventures of Pinocchio'', to '' Willy McBean and his Magic Machine'', to '' The Daydreamer'' and '' Mad Monster Party?'' In the original production Billie Mae Richards, who voiced Rudolph, was credited as "Billy Richards" since Rankin and Bass did not want to disclose that a woman had done the part. Antony Peters' name was also misspelled, as was the year of the copyright notice (which used
Roman numerals Roman numerals are a numeral system that originated in ancient Rome and remained the usual way of writing numbers throughout Europe well into the Late Middle Ages. Numbers are written with combinations of letters from the Latin alphabet, eac ...
), listing it as MCLXIV (year 1164) and not MCMLXIV, potentially weakening the copyright.


Aftermath

Since those involved with the production had no idea of the future value of the stop-motion puppet figures used in the production, many were not preserved. Rankin claimed in 2007 to be in possession of an original Rudolph figure. Nine other puppets—including Santa and young Rudolph—were given to a secretary, who gave them to family members. Eventually seven were discarded. In 2005, the remaining two puppets of Rudolph and Santa were appraised on '' Antiques Roadshow''; the episode aired in 2006 on PBS. At that time, their appraised value was between $8,000 and $10,000. The puppets had been damaged through years of rough handling by children and storage in an attic. Toy aficionado Kevin Kriess bought Santa and Rudolph in 2005; in 2007, he had both puppets restored by
Screen Novelties Screen Novelties is an American animation studio, specializing in stop motion animation. It was founded by Mark Caballero, Seamus Walsh, and Chris Finnegan. Overview Their work fuses classic cartoon sensibilities with mixed-media elements such ...
, a Los Angeles-based collective of film directors specializing in stop-motion animation, with puppet fabricator Robin Walsh leading the project. The figures have been shown at conventions since then. They were sold at auction on November 13, 2020. netting a $368,000 sale price, doubling the expected return. On December 22, 2020, they were donated to the
Center for Puppetry Arts The Center for Puppetry Arts, located in Atlanta, is the United States' largest organization dedicated to the art form of puppetry. The center focuses on three areas: performance, education and museum. It is one of the few puppet museums in the ...
in Atlanta, Georgia. Ives, and his
estate Estate or The Estate may refer to: Law * Estate (law), a term in common law for a person's property, entitlements and obligations * Estates of the realm, a broad social category in the histories of certain countries. ** The Estates, representat ...
since his 1995 death, received annual residuals from the show, the only actor in it to do so. "This business of residuals was new to our union, which was not quite as strong as
SAG SAG, SAg, or sag may refer to: Land formations * Sag (geology), or ''trough'', a depressed, persistent, low area * Sag pond, a body of water collected in the lowest parts of a depression People * Ivan Sag (1949–2013), American linguist ...
or others in the States", Soles recalled in 2014. He, Richards and the other main cast voices received only a thousand dollars over the three years after the special's original airing; it has in some years since made $100 million. While Richards said in 2000 that her compensation was a "sore subject" for her, she had no complaints about the work itself. "I feel so lucky to have something that has made such an impact on people, and it's because of the story first and foremost."


Songs

# "Jingle, Jingle, Jingle" - Santa Claus # "We Are Santa's Elves" - Elves # "There's Always Tomorrow" - Clarice # "We're a Couple of Misfits" - Rudolph and Hermey # " Silver and Gold" - Sam the Snowman # "The Most Wonderful Day of the Year" - Misfit Toys # " A Holly Jolly Christmas" - Sam the Snowman # " Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" - Sam the Snowman


Versions


Original 1964 NBC broadcast edit

This version has the NBC "living color" peacock at the introduction. It includes the original end credits, where an elf drops presents that list all the technical credits. It also includes commercials that were exclusively for GE small appliances with some of the same animated elves from the main program introducing each of the products, and closing NBC network bumpers, including promos for the following week's episodes of '' GE College Bowl'' and '' Meet the Press'', which were presumably pre-empted that Sunday for the inaugural 5:30 p.m. (EST) telecast. The ''College Bowl'' quiz show was also sponsored by GE. The original does not include Santa traveling to the Island of Misfit Toys, but does include a scene near the end of the special in which Yukon Cornelius discovers a peppermint mine near Santa's workshop. He can be seen throughout the special tossing his pickax into the air, sniffing, then licking the end that contacts the snow or ice. Deletion of the peppermint segment in 1965, to make room for Santa traveling to the Island of Misfit Toys, leaves the audience to assume that Cornelius was attempting to find either silver or gold by taste alone.


1965–1997 telecasts

The 1965 broadcast also included a new duet between Rudolph and Hermey called "Fame and Fortune", which replaced a scene in which the same characters sang "We're a Couple of Misfits". Viewers of the 1964 special complained that Santa was not shown fulfilling his promise to the Misfit Toys (to include them in his annual toy delivery). In reaction, a new scene for subsequent rebroadcasts was produced with Santa making his first stop at the Island to pick up the toys. This is the ending that has been shown on all telecasts and video releases ever since. Until sometime in the 1970s, the special aired without additional cuts, but eventually more commercial time was required by the network. In 1978, several sequences were deleted to make room for more advertising: the instrumental bridge from "We Are Santa's Elves" featuring the elf orchestra, additional dialogue by Burl Ives, and the "Peppermint Mine" scene resolving the fate of Yukon Cornelius. The special's 1993 restoration saw "Misfits" returned to its original film context, and the 2004 DVD release showcases "Fame and Fortune" as a separate musical number.


1998–2004 CBS telecasts

Most of the 1965 deletions were restored in 1998, and "Fame and Fortune" was replaced with the original "We're a Couple of Misfits" reprise. A short slide reading "Rankin/Bass Presents" was inserted at the beginning of the special to reflect the company's name change.


2005–present telecasts

Starting in 2005, CBS re-inserted the "Fame and Fortune" scene, albeit with the soundtrack replaced by a rather hastily edited version of "We're a Couple of Misfits". The special has also been edited to make more time for commercial advertising.


2019–present Freeform broadcast edit

In May 2019, it was announced that Freeform would air the special as part of their annual
25 Days of Christmas Freeform's 25 Days of Christmas is an American annual seasonal event of Christmas programming broadcast during the month of December by the U.S. cable network Freeform. The event was first held in 1996, and has been an annual fixture of the chann ...
line-up for the first time, alongside '' Frosty the Snowman''. The agreement was later revealed not to be an exclusive rights agreement, as CBS retained their broadcast rights to air the special twice under a separate license with Classic Media/Universal. CBS still shows the version they have had since 2005, while Freeform's airings reinsert much of the material deleted or changed from CBS's broadcasts, such as the original version of "We're a Couple of Misfits" as well as the "Peppermint Mine" scene, making it the first time that the latter scene has been seen on television since the original broadcast. Freeform's print of the special also has the 2012 Universal Pictures logo preceding the special, due to their purchase of Classic Media's owner,
DreamWorks Animation DreamWorks Animation LLC (DWA, also known as DreamWorks Animation Studios and simply known as DreamWorks) is an American animation studio that produces animated films and television programs and is a subsidiary of Universal Pictures, a division ...
in 2016.


Home media

When ''Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer'' was first released on VHS and
LaserDisc The LaserDisc (LD) is a home video format and the first commercial optical disc storage medium, initially licensed, sold and marketed as DiscoVision, MCA DiscoVision (also known simply as "DiscoVision") in the United States in 1978. Its diam ...
by Family Home Entertainment under license from Broadway Video from 1989 to 1996 under the ''Christmas Classics Series'' label, the 1965 rebroadcast print described above was used. It got re-released in 1997 by Family Home Entertainment under license from
Golden Books Family Entertainment ''Family Entertainment'' is the second album by the British progressive rock band Family, released in March 1969. The cover of the album was a takeoff from the sleeve of the Doors' second album, '' Strange Days'', as Family admitted. Backgrou ...
. It used the same print, but with the GBFE logo at the end instead of the Broadway Video logo. All current video prints of ''Rudolph'' by Classic Media are a compendium of the two previous telecast versions of the special. All the footage in the current versions follow the original 1964 NBC broadcast (without the original GE commercials) up until the "Peppermint Mine" scene, followed by the final act of the 1965 edit (with the Island of Misfit Toys finale and the 1965 alternate credits in place of the original end credit sequence). In 1998, the special was re-released on VHS by Sony Wonder under license from
Golden Books Family Entertainment ''Family Entertainment'' is the second album by the British progressive rock band Family, released in March 1969. The cover of the album was a takeoff from the sleeve of the Doors' second album, '' Strange Days'', as Family admitted. Backgrou ...
. In 1999, the special was released for the first time on DVD by the two companies. In 2010, the special was released for the first time on Blu-ray by Vivendi Entertainment. This edit has been made available in original color form by former rights holders Classic Media, (which in 2012 became the DreamWorks Classics division of
DreamWorks Animation DreamWorks Animation LLC (DWA, also known as DreamWorks Animation Studios and simply known as DreamWorks) is an American animation studio that produces animated films and television programs and is a subsidiary of Universal Pictures, a division ...
, and finally in 2016, part of Universal Pictures) As previously mentioned, this is also the version that had previously aired on CBS, albeit in edited form to accommodate more commercial time. On November 4, 2014, they re-released the special on a 50th anniversary edition on Blu-ray and DVD. The same 50th anniversary Blu-ray edition was released with an exclusive storybook; this was only sold at Walmart. Universal Pictures Home Entertainment re-released the special again on DVD and Blu-ray in 2018.


Soundtrack

The songs were written by Johnny Marks, with musical director Maury Laws composing the incidental score. In addition to songs written specifically for the film, several of Marks' other holiday standards populate the instrumental score, among them " Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" and " I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day". Many of the songs are utilized in the score as musical themes for recurring characters and ideas, such as "Silver and Gold" (for Yukon Cornelius, sung by Burl Ives), "Jingle, Jingle, Jingle" (Santa, sung by Stan Francis) and "There's Always Tomorrow" (Clarice, sung by Janis Orenstein). Some of these themes are modified for dramatic purposes, particularly those of the Abominable Snow Monster, who has several interwoven themes; a primary motif, indicated by brass and an F minor key; a modulating chase theme led by tack piano; a tritonal attack theme combining the latter two; and finally the deleted song "The Abominable Snow Monster", which is alluded to melodically during a scene in the Abominable's cave. None of the film's original score has ever been released. In 1964, an
LP record The LP (from "long playing" or "long play") is an analog sound storage medium, a phonograph record format characterized by: a speed of  rpm; a 12- or 10-inch (30- or 25-cm) diameter; use of the "microgroove" groove specification; and a ...
of the soundtrack was released on
Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934 by Lewis, Jack Kapp, American Decca's first president, and Milton Rackmil, who later became American ...
. It contained different mixes of the original songs performed as they are in the special, with the exception of Burl Ives' material, which has been re-recorded. MCA Special Products released the soundtrack on CD in June 1995. It is an exact duplication of the original LP released in 1964. Tracks 1-9 are the remixed soundtrack selections while tracks 10-19 are the same songs performed by the Decca Concert Orchestra. The song "Fame and Fortune" is not contained on either release. On November 30, 2004, the soundtrack was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America for selling over 500,000 copies. Ives re-recorded "A Holly Jolly Christmas", with different arrangements, for the song's 1964 single release. This version, along with a similarly newly recorded version of "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer", was released the following year on his 1965 album ''
Have a Holly Jolly Christmas ''Have a Holly Jolly Christmas'' is a Christmas album by American folk singer Burl Ives, first released by Decca Records in October 1965 (recorded in November 1964). It peaked at #32 on '' Billboards Best Bets For Christmas album chart on Decem ...
''.


Merchandise

Books and other items related to the show have in some cases misspelled "Hermey" as "Herbie". Rick Goldschmidt, who wrote ''Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer: The Making of the Rankin/Bass Holiday Classic'', says the scripts by Romeo Muller show the spelling to be "Hermey". A ''Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer'' video game was released on November 9, 2010. The adaptation was published by Red Wagon Games for the
Wii The Wii ( ) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Nintendo. It was released on November 19, 2006, in North America and in December 2006 for most other Regional lockout, regions of the world. It is Nintendo's fifth major ho ...
and
Nintendo DS The is a handheld game console produced by Nintendo, released globally across 2004 and 2005. The DS, an initialism for "Developers' System" or "Dual Screen", introduced distinctive new features to handheld games: two LCD screens working in tan ...
, and was developed by High Voltage Software and Glyphic Entertainment respectively. The Wii version was received poorly, and garnered extremely negative reviews from sites such as
IGN ''IGN'' (formerly ''Imagine Games Network'') is an American video game and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa distri ...
giving it a 1.5/10.


Dolly for Sue mystery

Dolly for Sue, a supporting character from the special, has sparked speculation since her debut. Being a seemingly normal-looking rag doll, fans and critics pondered over the truth behind Dolly's reasoning for being on the Island of Misfit Toys for nearly fifty years. For some time, it was debated that it had to do with her physical appearance, particularly her missing a nose. Other speculations were raised, and many believed Dolly was only created because the rest of the toys on the island were “boys,” so they created a “girl” toy to balance the cast. In the early 2000s, during an interview with Television Academy, Arthur Rankin Jr. revealed that the reason she stands out from all the other misfit toys is because she was a last-minute addition to the cast, and hinted at the possibly of it being due to psychological reasons. On December 8, 2007, during a trivia game on '' Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!'', the mystery was seemingly put to rest as Rankin himself admitted in a recent interview: "she was cast off by her mistress and was clinically depressed." The reasoning behind her being on the island was due to being abandoned by her owner, causing her to feel abandoned with a backstory similar to characters in Pixar’s '' Toy Story''.


Reception

''Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer'' received an approval rating of 95% on review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, based on thirteen reviews, with an average rating of 9.37/10. The site's critical consensus reads: "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer is a yule-tide gem that bursts with eye-popping iconography, a spirited soundtrack, and a heart-warming celebration of difference." In December 2018, a ''
Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Hollywood film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade paper, and in 2010 switched to a weekly larg ...
''/''
Morning Consult Morning Consult is a global decision intelligence company established in 2014. It was named one of the fastest growing technology companies in North America by Deloitte in both 2018 and 2019 and was valued at more than one billion dollars in Jun ...
'' poll which surveyed 2,200 adults from Nov. 15–18, 2018, named ''Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer'' the most beloved holiday film, with 83 percent of respondents having a generally favorable response to the title.


Sequels

The Rankin/Bass special inspired numerous television sequels made by the same studio: * '' Rudolph's Shiny New Year'' (1976), a special that first aired on
ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...
and is still aired annually on both ABC and Freeform. * '' Rudolph and Frosty's Christmas in July'' (1979), a feature-length special that paired Rudolph with the song-inspired character Frosty the Snowman. * ''
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and the Island of Misfit Toys ''Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and the Island of Misfit Toys'' is a 2001 computer-animated Christmas film adventure musical film directed by Bill Kowalchuk for GoodTimes Entertainment. It was released on VHS and DVD on October 30, 2001. The film ...
'' (2001), a direct-to-video computer-animated film. Released by a team that produced an unrelated ''Rudolph'' movie in 1998, neither Rankin/Bass or its descendant companies had any involvement in its production. * ''Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer - 4D Attraction'' (2016), 10-minute stop motion story adaptation in the form of a
4D film 4D film is a high technology multisensory presentation system combining motion pictures with physical effects that are synchronized and occur in the theatre. Effects simulated in 4D films include motion, vibration, scent, rain, mist, bubbles, fo ...
for SimEx-Iwerks; produced by Bent Image Lab and directed by
Chel White Chel White (born May 30, 1959) is an Americans, American film director, composer, screenwriter and visual effects artist. In his independent films and music videos, White is known for his stylized, often experimental use of images, animation and ...
. * ''T.E.A.M. Rudolph and the Reindeer Games'' (2018), a short film adaptation of the book of the same name was featured on the original film's 2018 Blu-ray release.


In popular culture

The television special's familiarity to American audiences through its annual rebroadcasts, along with its stop-motion animation that is easy to recreate with modern technology and the special's ambiguous copyright status, has lent itself to numerous parodies and homages over the years.


Films by Corky Quakenbush

Animator
Corky Quakenbush Corky Quakenbush (c. 1958, age 62) is an American worker in motion pictures and TV series in a wide variety of different jobs, including camera work, writing, and production. One of his specialties is in stop-motion animation. Also, Quakenbush w ...
has produced parodies of ''Rudolph'' for several American television shows: * In its December 16, 1995 episode, the Fox Network's comedy series '' MADtv'' aired " Raging Rudolph", which also parodied Martin Scorsese's films. In it, Sam The Snowman narrates in a Joe Pesci-like voice how Rudolph and Hermey got violent Mafia-style revenge on their tormentors. This was followed by two sequels: " The Reinfather", spoofing '' The Godfather'' trilogy and "A Pack of Gifts Now", spoofing '' Apocalypse Now''. * A 2001 episode of '' That '70s Show'', titled "An Eric Forman Christmas", featured a subplot where Kelso was taunted by his friends for still watching "kiddie shows" like Rudolph even though he was in high school. A dream sequence produced and directed by Quakenbush, Kelso himself appears in stop-motion form with Rudolph and Santa who encourage him to continue watching their show. * In December 2005, the '' George Lopez'' Show featured an animated segment in which Lopez sees a stop-motion version of himself on television in a ''Rudolph''-style special mirroring the theme of the holiday episode. * In the stop-motion animated film '' The Nightmare Before Christmas'' (1993), Jack looks through a book version of ''Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer'' to find a logical answer to explain Christmas to the other citizens of Halloween Town. Later, Zero, the ghost dog, has a magnificently glowing pumpkin nose, which is bright enough to break through the fog that Sally has conjured up. Jack lets Zero go to the head of his skeleton reindeer team and light the way for him. *
Chel White Chel White (born May 30, 1959) is an Americans, American film director, composer, screenwriter and visual effects artist. In his independent films and music videos, White is known for his stylized, often experimental use of images, animation and ...
, of Bent Image Lab, directed two parodies that played on '' Saturday Night Live, on
Robert Smigel Robert Smigel (born February 7, 1960) is an American actor, comedian, writer, director, producer, and puppeteer, known for his ''Saturday Night Live'' " TV Funhouse" cartoon shorts and as the puppeteer and voice behind Triumph the Insult Comic D ...
's ''
TV Funhouse ''Saturday TV Funhouse'' is a segment on NBC's ''Saturday Night Live'' featuring cartoons created by ''SNL'' writer Robert Smigel. 101 "TV Funhouse" segments aired on ''SNL'' between 1996 and 2008, with one further segment airing in 2011. It also ...
'': ** In a 2001 ''TV Funhouse'' episode, Sam the Snowman refuses to narrate the story because of the
September 11, 2001 attacks The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial ...
(even finding the fear of Bumble to be trivial in comparison to America fighting a war in Afghanistan). He then takes two children to Ground Zero at New York City, but Santa Claus convinces him to narrate the story, because people need comforting stories like ''Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.'' Sam decided to narrate the tale, but was immediately interrupted by a special news report. The sketch ends with a silently-furious Sam smashing his banjo over his head. ** In 2004, ''TV Funhouse'' referenced the Red state-blue state divide. In the segment, Santa hangs out with liberal celebrities
Natalie Merchant Natalie Anne Merchant (born October 26, 1963) is an American alternative rock singer-songwriter. She joined the band 10,000 Maniacs in 1981 and was lead vocalist and primary lyricist for the group. She remained with the group for their first se ...
, Margaret Cho, Al Franken, and
Moby Richard Melville Hall (born September 11, 1965), known professionally as Moby, is an American musician, songwriter, singer, producer, and animal rights activist. He has sold 20 million records worldwide. AllMusic considers him to be "among the ...
while skipping over the Red states ("screw the red states, voting for that dumbass president just because of that moral values crap. I don't want any part of them!"). Rudolph's red nose turns blue. * In 2004, for ''Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeers 40th
anniversary An anniversary is the date on which an event took place or an institution was founded in a previous year, and may also refer to the commemoration or celebration of that event. The word was first used for Catholic feasts to commemorate saints ...
, CBS produced stop motion promos for their programming line-up, done in the style of Rankin/Bass animation. Appearing as elves in the CBS promos were puppet versions of CBS stars
Jeff Probst Jeff Probst (; born November 4, 1961) is an American reality show host and executive producer. He is best known as the Emmy Award-winning host of the U.S. version of the reality television show '' Survivor'' since 2000. He was also the host of ' ...
from ''
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'', Ray Romano and Doris Roberts from '' Everybody Loves Raymond'', William Petersen and Marg Helgenberger from '' CSI'', Charlie Sheen from '' Two and a Half Men'', Phil Simms and Greg Gumbel from ''The NFL on CBS'', and late-night talk show host
David Letterman David Michael Letterman (born April 12, 1947) is an American television host, comedian, writer and producer. He hosted late night television talk shows for 33 years, beginning with the February 1, 1982 debut of ''Late Night with David Letterman' ...
. A new stop-motion animation featuring Rudolph and Santa meeting even more CBS network stars was also aired in 2005. * ''
Mystery Science Theater 3000 ''Mystery Science Theater 3000'' (abbreviated as ''MST3K'') is an American science fiction comedy film review television series created by Joel Hodgson. The show premiered on KTMA-TV (now WUCW) in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on November 24, 1988. ...
'' made numerous references to the special in their movie hecklings, such as Rudolph's line "I'm cute!! I'm cuute!! She said I'm ''cuuuuuutte!!!!''". In episode 321, which screened ''
Santa Claus Conquers the Martians ''Santa Claus Conquers the Martians'' is a 1964 American science fiction comedy film directed by Nicholas Webster, produced and written by Paul L. Jacobson, based on a story by Glenville Mareth, that stars John Call as Santa Claus. It also feat ...
'', the MST3K cast had their own ideas for potential residents on the Island of Misfit Toys including Toaster Dolls, Patrick Swayze's '' Roadhouse'' board game, the EZ Bake Foundry, and Mr. Mashed Potato Head.


Uses in advertising

* In 1964, Rankin & Bass produced several commercials for the General Electric-sponsored broadcast. * In November 2007, the Aflac insurance company released a commercial that featured Rudolph, who has a cold but does not want to miss work. All his friends say he will be unable to pay for his expenses. Santa then tells them about Aflac. Charlie wonders what will happen if Rudolph is not better by Christmas, but Rudolph thinks the Aflac duck can do the work. Rudolph gets better in a week, but Blitzen is sick, so the Aflac duck fills in for him. * In 2009, Verizon began showing a commercial of the Misfit Toys with an AT&T phone. The characters wonder why it is there with all of its features but soon discover why, when the phone shows a map of where it has 3G coverage. (Verizon's ad campaign touts its much wider 3G coverage compared to AT&T's.) The toy airplane replies: "You're gonna fit ''right in'' here!" and falls on the ground laughing. * Starting in 2011, there have been several
Bing.com Microsoft Bing (commonly known as Bing) is a web search engine owned and operated by Microsoft. The service has its origins in Microsoft's previous search engines: MSN Search, Windows Live Search and later Live Search. Bing provides a variety ...
commercials, filmed to look like the same stop-motion style as the special, which feature several characters including Rudolph, Yukon Cornelius, Hermey, the Bumble, and the Misfit Toys. * A 2012 commercial for Windows phone features Bumble the Abominable Snowman (with his full set of teeth), speed-dating and getting advice from friends through Live Tiles. A follow-up features Bumble at Santa's North Pole pool party, and Santa using Live Tiles on his new Windows Phone to help him give his elves the holiday-season toy production directives. * A 2013 commercial for
Nissan , trade name, trading as Nissan Motor Corporation and often shortened to Nissan, is a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automobile manufacturer headquartered in Nishi-ku, Yokohama, Japan. The company sells ...
shows a woman in a dealership briefly entering a fantasy, wherein Santa's Elves, including Boss Elf and Hermey, have expanded their manufacturing line to include Nissan cars. Furthermore, the Bumble makes an appearance test driving one to his obvious approval. * CBS celebrated the special's 50th anniversary in 2014 with Rudolph and Sam the Snowman celebrating with cast members from '' The Big Bang Theory'' and ''
NCIS NCIS or N.C.I.S. may refer to: Law enforcement * National Criminal Intelligence Service, the predecessor to the Serious Organised Crime Agency of the United Kingdom * Naval Criminal Investigative Service, a United States law enforcement and intelli ...
'' while passing by their studio lots. * In 2014, the United States Postal Service used four characters (Rudolph, Hermey, Yukon Cornelius, and Bumble) for the year's "Contemporary Christmas" stamp issue. * In 2015, the Rudolph characters began appearing in commercials for AT&T with a stop-motion version of spokes-character Lily Adams.


Other references

* The 2003 live-action Will Ferrell comedy '' Elf'' pays homage to the ''Rudolph'' special with similar stop-motion animation characters interacting with live actors, with Leon ( Leon Redbone) appearing in place of Sam the Snowman. The elves also wear the same distinctive red, blue, and green costume design with cone-shaped hats. * In 2010, the comedy website CollegeHumor made a short parody video called "Rudolph The Regular Reindeer", depicting what the special would've been like if Rudolph's nose had been surgically fixed as an infant. * In the sci-fi/comedy series '' The Orville'', during the 2017 episode "About a Girl", the character of Bortus is shown ''Rudolph'' by other crew members to make him reconsider his plans to arrange gender reassignment surgery for his newborn daughter. (Bortus's species, the Moclans, are a single-gender species who statistically produce only one female every seventy-five years, with females having no place in their society) ''Rudolph'' demonstrates to Bortus how unconventional people can accomplish great things, although Bortus humorously misinterprets part of the film's story as suggesting that Rudolph's father may have considered euthanizing his child as an anomaly.


See also

* * List of animated feature films * List of Christmas television specials * List of stop-motion films * ''Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer'' (video game) * List of Rankin/Bass Productions films


Explanatory notes


References


External links

* *
Character Arts' official licensee site for Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer licensing
{{Authority control 1964 animated films 1964 in American television 1964 television specials 1960s American television specials American annual television specials 1960s animated television specials Musical television specials Films about bullying CBS television specials Christmas television specials Films about elves Films scored by Johnny Marks General Electric sponsorships NBC television specials Rankin/Bass Productions television specials Stop-motion animated television shows Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer Santa Claus in film Santa Claus in television Sentient toys in fiction Stop-motion animated short films Television shows written by Romeo Muller American Christmas television specials Animated Christmas television specials 1960s American films