For several years, the Chicago-based Montgomery Ward department stores had purchased and given away coloring books as a promotional gimmick during the Christmas season. Then, in 1939, company executives decided that they wanted something that would both reduce costs and, at the same time, be new and different. To help with this, they turned to Robert L. May, a 34 year-old Montgomery Ward copywriter who was known to dabble in children’s limericks and stories.
May was up to the challenge. Based upon The Ugly Duckling and his own childhood when he was often taunted by his peers because of his small size, the advertising man created the now famous story of a young reindeer who becomes a hero because of his physical aberration, a large shiny nose. Searching for a name for his creation, May rejected Rollo (too humorous) and Reginald (too British) before settling, with the help of his four year-old daughter, on Rudolph.
The Original Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer Story
May's creation was a short story written in rhyming verse and differed from the version known today. The original Rudolph lived in the woods with his loving parents far from the North Pole. Although he was lonely because he was ostracized by the other little reindeer, he was an optimist who wanted to help others.
On Christmas Eve, Santa arrives at Rudolph’s house just as a heavy fog is moving in. Concerned with the rest of his flight and noticing the little reindeer’s luminous nose, he asks Rudolph for his help in leading his sleigh. Following a successful flight, the story ends with the grateful Santa saying to Rudolph, "By YOU last night's journey was actually bossed. Without you, I'm certain we'd all have been lost!"
Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer Becomes a Tradition
May’s story became somewhat of an immediate success. Montgomery Ward gave away 2.4 million copies of the story in 1939 and by 1946, despite wartime paper shortages, over 6 million had been distributed. Then a series of fortuitous events occurred that would make Rudolph a part of Christmas lore.
In 1947, May, faced with large medical bills because of his wife’s long battle with terminal cancer, asked Montgomery Ward officials if he could have the copyright to Rudolph turned over to him. The company agreed to do so and that same year the story was published commercially with the creator receiving all the royalties. Later, that same year, producer Max Fleischer, primarily known for his Popeye and Superman cartoons, released a seven minute animated version of the story.
May also asked his brother-in-law, songwriter Johnny Marks, to adapt his basic story idea to music. When Marks was done, one singer after another, including Bing Crosby, declined to record the song. Finally in 1949, Gene Autry, then best known as a “singing cowboy” in B-Western movies, accepted and Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer shot to the top of the charts. Autry’s version is now the second best selling Christmas song of all time, surpassed only by Crosby’s White Christmas.
Rudolph Continues to Grow
In 1964, a forty-seven minute animated adaptation of Rudolph, narrated by folksinger/actor Burl Ives, first appeared on television and has appeared as an annual holiday special ever since. In 1998, a full length animated movie was released to mixed reviews. In many countries and regions such as Britain, France, Germany, and Scandinavia, whose own lore helped to create the Santa Claus legend, Rudolph has become a part of their holiday festivities.
Robert L. May died in 1976. He lived long enough to know that his creation has, indeed, “gone down in history.”
Source: Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
John K. Davis - John is a retired teacher/librarian and has also been doing freelance writing since the late 1970s. Over this period of time, he has had ...
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