Rudolph, as illustrated by Richard Scarry (1958).
Rudolph, since his introduction in 1939 by Robert L. May, has remained one of the most beloved pop-cultural Christmas icons along with Santa Claus, Frosty the Snowman, and the Grinch.
The titular shy but sweet red-nosed reindeer is no stranger to getting adapted in animated media, books, or in songs.
Works starring Rudolph:
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Literature
- Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1939): The original story booklet created for Montgomery Ward stores, written by Robert L. May and illustrated by Denver Gillen. The story gained an audio adaptation in 1947 narrated by Paul Wing with music by George Kleinsinger and Russ Case.
- Rudolph Shines Again note (1954): Robert L. May's official follow-up to the 1939 story, illustrated by Marion Guild. The sequel would later get combined with the original 1939 story for Rudolph's 25th Anniversary in 1964
◊. A Little Golden Book version was released in 1982. - Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1958): A Little Golden Books picture book based on the song and very similar to the 1948 short. Richard Scarry did the illustrations for this version of the story. In 1976, the Little Golden Book version gained an audio read-along version by Disneyland Records.
- The Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer Book (1972): A Golden Shape Book adaptation written by Eileen Daly and illustrated by Milli Jancer. The book is similar to the 1958 version but notably shorter in length.
- Rudolph's Second Christmas (1992): Another story starring Rudolph that was discovered by Robert May's daughters and originally illustrated by Michael Emberley. It was later renamed to "Rudolph to the Rescue'' in 2006 with new illustrations by Lisa Papp. Prior to its official publication, an early version of the story was released as a LP Record in 1951 narrated by Paul Wing.
- Rudolph Saves the Sprites (1999): A sequel book to the 1998 feature film.
Comic Books
- Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1950–62): Yearly comics about Rudolph published by DC Comics.
Music
- "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" (1949): The classic song, written by Johnny Marks and first recorded by Gene Autry. In 1959, The Ray Conniff Singers made an extended version of the song with newer lyrics added.
- "Run Rudolph Run" (1958): The second song about Rudolph, written by Johnny Marks and (debatably) Marvin Brodie and first recorded by Chuck Berry, is is a Rock & Roll tune about Rudolph helping Santa on his annual Christmas Eve journey.
- "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" (1965): An LP record by RCA Camden with narrations by Walter Schuman, Paul Wing, Vaughn Monroe, Gisele MacKenzie, and Dale Evans. It includes a reading of the original "Rudolph" story, as well as "Frosty the Snowman", "The Night Before Christmas", "Rudolph's Second Christmas", and "Suzy Snowflake".
Film
- Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer: The Movie (1998): A feature film adaptation by GoodTimes Entertainment which is based more on the song but uses elements from the original story.
- Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and the Island of Misfit Toys (2001): An All-CGI Cartoon direct to video film that is made by GoodTimes Entertainment but uses the characters of the 1964 special. It acts as an unofficial sequel to the Rankin/Bass special.
Ride
- Rudolph 4D, also known as Rudolph's Movie Experience (2016): A 3-D Movie with in-theater effects that is shown at Busch Gardens, SeaWorld, and some amusement and theme parks across America during the Christmas season. It's a Shot-for-Shot Remake of the Rankin-Bass special but with more expressive character models (notably for Rudolph and Clarice) and smoother stop-motion animation.
Western Animation
- Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1948): Rudolph's animation debut, a 8-minute short film by Max Fleischer narrated by Paul Wing. It's a near-identical adaptation of the original booklet and actually predates the song. A 1951 reissue added in the song.
- Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964): The famous Rankin/Bass Productions special. It's less true-to-the-text than the 1948 short.
- Rudolph's Shiny New Year (1976): A follow up to the original special where Rudolph has to save Baby New Year (named "Happy") from Eon before the balls drop on New Years Eve.
- Rudolph and Frosty's Christmas in July (1979): A crossover movie with Frosty the Snowman by Rankin/Bass.
- Rudolph's Lessons for Life (1996): A
Direct-to-Video animated adaptation that was exclusively sold at Montgomery Ward Department stores with some edutainment in the mix. The video was produced by Duncan & Hill (a division of HA-LO Industries, Inc) while Joie Scott-Poster and Ted Kay directed this adaptation. This adaptation has two versions, one only focusing on the animated sections and the other has the animated section mixed with live-action actors (a female teacher and a group of children). Both versions are available on the same video.
Tropes appearing in works starring Rudolph:
- All of the Other Reindeer: The Trope Namer. Rudolph is ostracized by others for having a glowing, red nose instead of the normal black. Happily, the 1964 special (Clarice) alongside Rudolph's Lessons for Life (an unnamed female reindeer and penguin) and the 1998 movie (Zoey) does feature female reindeer not minding Rudolph's red nose.
- Animal Gender-Bender: Male caribou shed their antlers in the winter but Rudolph and the rest of Santa's reindeer don't.
- Civilized Animal: Since the story mainly takes places at the North Pole and an unknown location where Rudolph lives (implied to be miles away from Santa's Workshop and home), the only animals that are present are the reindeer, who all behave like humans and are able to talk. Santa's reindeer are seen eating while sitting like humans, complete with handkerchiefs, Rudolph is seen standing near his bed, and some are seen walking on both four legs and two legs. Reindeer acting more human-like is also seen in the 1948 Max Fleischer cartoon and the 1996 direct-to-video adaptation Rudolph's Lessons For Life. The original Denver Gillen illustrations show a male reindeer smoking a pipe and Santa passing by Rabbitville, where he is delivering presents to rabbits.
- Crying Critters: In all animated adaptations of the original story, Rudolph is seen crying after the other reindeer make fun of him for his red nose.
- Kid Hero: Rudolph is just a young buck who has barely grown in his antlers. Despite this, his glowing nose proves an asset to Santa and only he can help Santa fly in the snow. This is present in various adaptations of the story with exception being the 1964 Rankin/Bass special where Rudolph helped Santa out as a young buck. In Rudolph's Shiny New Year and Rudolph and Frosty's Christmas in July, he's reverted back to his younger self (similar to his original book appearances) to help out others during dangerous situations.
- Shrinking Violet: In all animated adaptations of the story, Rudolph is very timid, shy, and very quiet.
- White-Tailed Reindeer: The Trope Codifier. Rudolph and the other reindeer were depicted as generic-looking deer instead of realistic reindeer in the illustrations for the original pamphlet, and the design has stuck in every adaptation since, probably because it's easier to draw a glowing lightbulb-like nose on a regular deer than an actual reindeer. However, Rudolph and the other reindeer were depicted with light brown fur between a darker shade of brown in non-Rankin/Bass adaptations.
