Merry Christmas! Here are ten fcts about Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer.
Rudolph is usually depicted as the youngest of Santa's Reindeer. The story goes that the other reindeer would make fun of his Red nose, until Santa discovered that Rudolph’s red nose would guide his sleigh through Fog. Although in his first appearance, Rudolph’s nose is used to light the way in dark houses, so Santa won’t trip over the carpet and fall on his bottom!
The character was created by Robert May, a copywriter for Montgomery Ward. He was given the job, in early 1939, of coming up with the story for the annual Colouring leaflet handed out to kids who came to visit Santa. That summer, his wife died from cancer, leaving him a widower with a 4-year-old daughter. May insisted on finishing the project even though his boss suggested giving it to someone else. May would later say that working on Rudolph helped him through a difficult time. The store even gave him the copyright in 1947 when he was having financial troubles.
The inspiration for Rudolph came from the reindeer that May’s daughter loved to visit at the zoo. While staring out of his window trying to come up with a story, a thick fog rolled in and the idea was born.
He almost had glowing red Eyes instead of a red nose, but May ultimately decided a red nose was funnier. Rudolph could have been called Rollo, Reginald, Romeo or Rodney. Rollo was rejected for sounding too sunny and happy; Reginald for sounding too British!
At first, the red nose story didn’t go down too well. In those days, having a red nose usually signified that a person was a drunk. When management rejected the idea, May asked his illustrator friend at Montgomery Ward, Denver Gillen, to draw a "cute reindeer" which went a long way towards changing their minds.
The song wasn’t written until 1949. It was written by May's brother-in-law, Johnny Marks, who was also the composer of several other Christmas songs, including I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day, Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree, Silver and Gold, and A Holly Jolly Christmas. Marks, however, was Jewish and didn’t even celebrate Christmas. Gene Autry was the first to record it, although he nearly turned it down; he only made the recording because his wife persuaded him.
According to the BBC in 1999, Rudolph has fauns of his own, including one called Robbie, who was a victim of Blitzen’s jealousy. It’s never explicitly stated that Robbie is Rudolph’s son because Rudolph is still under copyright and either the BBC couldn’t get permission to use the name or they were too tight to pay for it. This had changed by 2014 when a Doctor Who Christmas special featured a live-action Rudolph who Santa could park like a car and turn his nose off.
He has been the subject of an academic paper. In 2015, Nathaniel Dominy, an anthropology professor at Dartmouth College, which incidentally is the same one Robert May attended, published a paper explaining how Rudolph’s nose could guide a sleigh through fog. Dominy noted that reindeer eyes can perceive shorter wavelengths of light than humans, allowing them to see ultraviolet light, but when it’s foggy, ultraviolet light is scattered which would temporarily blind the reindeer. Rudolph's red nose emits longer-wavelength red light, and penetrates the fog more easily.
A series of Postage stamps featuring Rudolph was issued by the United States Postal Service in 2014.
He’s even starred in a comic book. The company that would become DC Comics published a series of 13 annuals titled Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer from 1950-1962.
A Very Variant Christmas
Last year, Jade and Gloria were embroiled in a bitter conflict to win back their throne and their ancestral home. This year, Queen Jade and Princess Gloria want to host the biggest and best Christmas party ever in their palace. They invite all their friends to come and bring guests. Not even the birth of Jade's heir just before Christmas will stop them.
The guest list includes most of Britain's complement of super-powered crime-fighters, their families and friends. What could possibly go wrong?
Gatecrashers, unexpected arrivals, exploding Christmas crackers and a kidnapping, for starters.
Far away in space, the Constellations, a cosmic peacekeeping force, have suffered a tragic loss. They need to recruit a new member to replace their dead colleague. The two top candidates are both at Jade and Gloria's party. The arrival of the recruitment delegation on Christmas Eve is a surprise for everyone; but their visit means one guest now faces a life-changing decision.
Meanwhile, an alliance of the enemies of various guests at the party has infiltrated the palace; they hide in the dungeon, plotting how best to get rid of the crime-fighters and the royal family once and for all. Problem is, they all have their own agendas and differences of opinion on how to achieve their aims.
Not to mention that this year, the ghosts who walk the corridors of the palace on Christmas Eve will be as surprised by the living as the living are by them.
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