Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer

The Lord of Misrule's Christmas Guide
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Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer

Famed throughout the English-speaking world and beyond, Rudolph was born in 1939 from the pen of an advertising executive who wrote for a chain store in the USA called the Montgomery Ward Stores.

Penned by Robert May and drawn by Denver Gillen as a freebie Christmas marketing story, Rudolph has been a part of Christmas ever since. The reindeer was originally to be called Rollo or Reginald, though managers at Montgomery Ward rejected both names as being inappropriate. It was May’s 4-year-old daughter, Barbara, who apparently christened the reindeer Rudolph.

Originally written as a poem in rhyming couplets, the bosses at Montgomery Ward were initially reluctant to endorse a story which had a central character supporting a red nose for fear that the image was too greatly associated with drunks and alcohol abuse. It was Gillen’s cheery illustrations that eventually convinced May’s bosses that they had nothing to worry about.

The story of Rudolph has parallels with The Ugly Duckling: Rudolph is seen as a bit of an oddity and an outcast by all the other reindeer save for his loving family. One Christmas Eve, Santa is struggling to deliver presents because of the fog and snow making it hard for him to see where he is going. Whilst delivering presents to Rudolph’s house, Santa spies the glow from Rudolph’s nose and recruits him to lead the sleigh for the rest of the night - thereby saving Christmas and getting all the gifts delivered on time.

In 1949, Gene Autry sang a musical version of the poem which made the story of Rudolph spread even further ensuring that he quickly became a worldwide phenomenon and a part of the modern-day Christmas tradition.

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