12 Gleaming Facts About Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer

You're familiar with Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, and Vixen, and by now, Rudolph is also a well-known name. However, Rudolph wasn't always the spotlighted reindeer—he wasn't even created until 1939, while the other reindeer have been part of Santa's team since Clement Moore's 'Twas the Night Before Christmas, which was written in 1823. Here are 12 more facts you may not know about the world's most famous reindeer.

1. Rudolph was invented for Montgomery Ward.

In 1939, the team at Montgomery Ward department store decided they needed a mascot for the free coloring books they were giving to children who visited Santa. That mascot turned out to be Rudolph, who quickly became a favorite among kids. In fact, Montgomery Ward handed out 2.4 million copies of the Rudolph booklet in the first year alone.

2. The author who brought Rudolph to life was mourning the loss of his wife.

Robert May, a copywriter at Montgomery Ward’s mail-order catalog division, was given the task of crafting a story and designing a memorable character for the coloring book. May began the project in early 1939, but that summer, his wife passed away from cancer, leaving him as a widower with a young daughter. Despite his boss's offer to reassign the task, May insisted on completing it himself. “I needed Rudolph more than ever,” he later revealed. He finished the story in August. Even though Montgomery Ward could have kept the copyright, they transferred it to May in 1947, when he was facing financial hardship.

3. Rudolph might have been called Rollo or Reginald instead.

Other names were considered before May chose the one we know today. Rollo was discarded for sounding too cheerful and happy, while Reginald was deemed too formal. Romeo and Rodney were also among the options.

4. Robert May's original version of Rudolph's story differs slightly from the song.

In May's original tale from the coloring book, Santa discovers Rudolph while delivering gifts to the reindeer village. Santa struggles with his deliveries because no one remembers to leave lights on for him—and at Rudolph's house, Santa “trips on the rug, and falls flat on his back.” Upon finding Rudolph and his glowing nose, a light bulb goes off in Santa’s head, and he invites Rudolph to assist with the rest of the deliveries. Dutiful Rudolph leaves a note for his parents and helps save the day.

5. Rudolph nearly used a different method to guide Santa's sleigh.

Instead of using a red, glowing nose to cut through the fog, May initially thought of giving Rudolph large, headlight-like eyes to light the way. After careful thought, he decided that mean-spirited kids would likely tease a reindeer with large eyes more than one with a red nose.

6. In Finland, Rudolph is known as Petteri Punakuono.

Petteri is Rudolph's Finnish counterpart. In Finland, the legend of Santa Claus (known as Joulupukki) doesn't use the same reindeer names we do—Dasher, Dancer, Donner, and the rest—so the beginning of the song is different. Rather than listing the reindeer, the Finnish version translates to something like, "You remember Cinderella, Snow White, and Sleeping Beauty, Little Red Riding Hood and the Grey Wolf, but this reindeer is often forgotten."

7. Rudolph has a son named Robbie.

At least that's what the BBC claims. They created three cartoons centered around Rudolph's son, but the name of Robbie's famous father is never mentioned. The storyline reveals that the series' villain, Blitzen, can't stand hearing Rudolph's name. In reality, this is because the BBC either couldn't get permission to use it or didn't want to pay for it.

If you haven't watched the British version but still remember Robbie, that's because Fox Family aired the show for a few years in the early 2000s with redubbed voices, featuring Ben Stiller as Robbie, Hugh Grant as Blitzen, Britney Spears as Donner, and Brad Garrett as Prancer.

8. "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer," the song, was recorded a decade after the character was created.

It was May's brother-in-law, Johnny Marks, who penned the lyrics for the iconic song; Gene Autry recorded it. Autry almost passed on the song, but his wife encouraged him to give it a try. Since Autry’s recording, the song has sold over 150 million copies.

9. Johnny Marks, the songwriter, was known for his Christmas tunes.

He’s the genius behind Rudolph, of course, but also wrote "I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day," "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree," "Silver and Gold," and "A Holly Jolly Christmas" (along with a number of lesser-known holiday classics). The twist? Marks was Jewish.

10. Rankin/Bass wasn’t the first to bring Rudolph to the screen.

Although the 1964 Rankin/Bass stop-motion TV special holds the record as the longest-running holiday special ever, it wasn’t the first to feature Rudolph. That distinction belongs to Fleischer Studios, who copyrighted a 1948 cartoon, created primarily as an advertisement for Montgomery Ward.

11. The puppets from the Rankin/Bass TV special were lost, then rediscovered in 2006.

When they were found, it happened on Antiques Roadshow in 2006. Well, not all of them—only Santa and Rudolph. A woman who had worked for Rankin/Bass had kept them in her attic since at least the 1970s. Before that, her children had played with them. Rudolph had lost his red nose, and let's not even get started on how Santa's eyebrows disappeared. After their appearance on Antiques Roadshow, the puppets were fully restored and are now showcased at the Center for Puppetry Arts.

12. The song "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" is still under copyright.

Alongside "Jingle Bells," "Deck the Halls," and "Silent Night," “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” is a holiday classic. However, unlike those other three songs, “Rudolph” is still copyrighted and his image is trademarked. The creators of Rudolph’s Reserve ale learned this the hard way in 2003. They eventually changed the name to “Rude Elf’s Reserve.”