Despite Recent Criticism, “Rudolph The Red Nose Reindeer” Remains An American Christmas Favorite

Mike Norris, Co-Editor, The American Dossier

As is Christmas tradition, this holiday season “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” returned to television screens. Invented by Bob May, Rudolph has been a part of American holiday lore for generations.

In 1938, May was working as an advertising copywriter for Montgomery Ward’s, while simultaneously caring for his wife, who was dying of cancer.

One evening, May’s four-year-old daughter asked him “Why isn’t my mommy like everybody else’s mommy?” May struggled to answer his daughter’s question and remembered the pain of his own childhood.

Persistently sick as a child, May was frequently picked on and called names by his classmates. The story of the Ugly Duckling, which May later wrote, had always appealed to him.

May, like the ugly duckling, or Rudolph, was “shy” and “small” as a boy. He “had known what it was like to be an underdog.”

Because of his experiences, May wanted to give his daughter hope and teach her that being different was nothing to be ashamed of. May wrote a story for his daughter, about a reindeer with a bright red nose, who found a special place on Santa’s sleigh team.

His daughter loved the story so much that she made her father tell it every night before bedtime. As time went on, the tale grew more elaborate.

That Christmas, May could not afford to buy his daughter a Christmas gift, so he made her an elaborate book, featuring the story.

After May’s wife passed, he reluctantly attended the Montgomery Wards Christmas party. His co-workers encouraged him to share the story he had written.

After reading his story, May received a standing ovation from his co-workers. Everyone wanted a copy of his story for their own children.

In 1939, Montgomery Wards printed the story and distributed 2.4 million copies for free. Then, Maxton Publishing Co. offered to print it in hardcover.

The book became a best-seller. But, Rudolph’s story did not become world-famous until May’s brother-in-law Johnny Marks wrote the version sang by Gene Autry. In 1949, Autry’s “Rudolph” topped the charts.

The subsequent stop-motion animated version, which premiered in 1964, is the longest-running Christmas TV special. By 1985, the song had surpassed global sales of 150 million copies, in addition to 8 million copies of the sheet music.

The song was also a favorite in the Nixon White House, as the first Christmas song that first daughters Tricia and Julie learned to sing.

But this holiday season, some Huffington Post viewers find the film problematic, believing its message to no longer appropriate be appropriate for today’s children. “The holiday TV classic ‘Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer’ is seriously problematic,” reads a tweet from the site. The post goes on to list issues the liberal site takes with the film. The video has been viewed over 6 million times.

The tweet notes one instance in the film where Rudolph’s father, Donner, “verbally abuses him” when he tries to cover up Rudolph’s shiny nose. “There are more important things than comfort: self-respect,” Donner tells Rudolph after the reindeer complains about the nose cover-up.

The father of Rudolph’s love interest is also called a “bigot” for forbidding his daughter from being seen with Rudolph.

Some critics have also accused the cartoon of promoting sexism, based on Donner’s quick dismissal of Rudolph’s mom, after she offered to help search for their missing son. “No, this is man’s work,” Donner stated.

Despite the Huffington Post’s attempt to draw attention to the film’s flawed message, the tweet received tens of thousands of negative comments, most of them mocking the video.

“Oh look! Something people like and enjoy; let's go ruin it!” tweeted Rebeccah Heinrichs. “If you try hard enough you can find offence in almost anything,” Chloe Westley seconded.

Others pointed out that HuffPost misrepresented the moral of the cartoon, as the boorish characters learn their lesson in the end. “But... but... the bigoted characters learn they were wrong. It teaches a lesson. It doesn't endorse the problematic stuff,” tweeted Robby Soave.

At a time when the nation is reexamining its historical past, “Rudolph” is not the only holiday classic being viewed with a more critical eye.

In November, ABC’s “A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving,” which first aired in 1973, received criticism for seating Franklin, the series only African American, alone on one side of the table while all the white characters were seated on the other side of the table.

Earlier this month, listeners of a Cleveland radio station voted to remove the song “Baby, It’s Cold Outside,” from the holiday catalogue, according to the station. Some critics has categorized the lyrics as “a little rapey.”

On Sunday, one of the original voice actors from “Rudolph” attempted to set the record straight. Corinne Conley, the voice of “Dolly for Sue” who lived on the “Island of Misfit Toys,” said the film is more relevant now than ever given the increase in bullying incidents.

The special isn’t suffering from the recent controversy, however. A recent poll found that “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” was voted the most beloved Christmas movie, with 83% of participants finding it favorable.