Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer is a fictional reindeer created by Robert L. May. Rudolph is usually depicted as the ninth and youngest of Santa Claus’s reindeer, using his luminous red nose to lead the reindeer team and guide Santa’s sleigh on Christmas Eve. Though he initially receives ridicule for his nose as a fawn, the brightness of his nose is so powerful that it illuminates the team’s path through harsh winter weather. Ronald D. Lankford, Jr., described Rudolph’s story as “the fantasy story made to order for American children: each child has the need to express and receive approval for his or her individuality and/or special qualities. Rudolph’s story embodies the American Dream for the child, written large because of the cultural significance of Christmas.” Rudolph first appeared in a 1939 booklet written by May and published by Montgomery Ward, the department store. The story is owned by The Rudolph Company, LP and has been adapted into numerous forms including the song by Johnny Marks, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Rudolph’s Shiny New Year, and Rudolph and Frosty’s Christmas in July from Rankin/Bass Productions, as well as Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer: The Movie and Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and the Island of Misfit Toys from GoodTimes Entertainment.[5] Character Arts, LLC manages the licensing for the Rudolph Company, LP and DreamWorks Classics. In many countries, Rudolph has become a figure of Christmas folklore. 2014 marked the 75th anniversary of the character[6] and the 50th anniversary of the Rankin/Bass television special. A series of postage stamps featuring Rudolph was issued by the United States Postal Service on November 6, 2014. Robert L. May created Rudolph in 1939 as an assignment for Chicago-based Montgomery Ward. The retailer had been buying and giving away coloring books for Christmas every year and it was decided that creating their own book would save money. May considered naming the reindeer “Rollo” or “Reginald” before deciding upon using the name “Rudolph”. May said his daughter liked reindeer, and he said he was treated like Rudolph as a child. In its first year of publication, Montgomery Ward distributed 2.4 million copies of Rudolph’s story. The story is written as a poem in anapestic tetrameter, the same meter as “A Visit from St. Nicholas” (also known as “‘Twas the Night Before Christmas”). Publication and reprint rights for the book Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer are controlled by Pearson PLC. While May was pondering how best to craft a Christmas story about a reindeer, while staring out his office window in downtown Chicago, a thick fog from Lake Michigan blocked his view—giving him a flash of inspiration. “Suddenly I had it!” he recalled. “A nose! A bright red nose that would shine through fog like a spotlight.” The cultural significance of a red nose has changed since the story’s publication. In 1930s popular culture, a bright red nose was closely associated with chronic alcoholism and drunkards, so the story idea was initially rejected. May asked his illustrator friend at Montgomery Ward, Denver Gillen, to draw “cute reindeer”, using zoo deer as models. The alert, bouncy character Gillen developed convinced management to support the idea. Maxton Books published the first mass-market edition of Rudolph in 1947 and a sequel, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer Shines Again, in 1954.[citation needed] In 1992, Applewood Books published Rudolph’s Second Christmas, an unpublished sequel that Robert May wrote in 1947.[citation needed] In 2003, Penguin Books issued a reprint version of the original Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer with new artwork by Lisa Papp.[citation needed] Penguin also reprinted May’s sequels, Rudolph Shines Again and Rudolph’s Second Christmas (now retitled Rudolph to the Rescue). The story chronicles the experiences of Rudolph, a youthful reindeer buck (male) who possesses an unusual luminous red nose. Mocked and excluded by his peers because of this trait, Rudolph proves himself one Christmas Eve with poor visibility due to inclement weather. After Santa Claus catches sight of Rudolph’s nose and asks Rudolph to lead his sleigh for the evening, Rudolph agrees and is finally favored by his fellow reindeer for his heroism and accomplishment.