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Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964): 15 Weird Facts You Didn’t Know

Remember When | December 17, 2025



#rememberwhen Christmas didn’t really start until Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer hit the airwaves? The 1964 Rankin/Bass classic gave us Hermey the dental elf, Yukon Cornelius, the Bumble, and Burl Ives’ smooth-singing snowman — all in one gloriously jerky stop-motion package.
We’re unwrapping 15 things you probably didn’t know about TV’s longest-running Christmas special.

Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964): 15 Weird Facts You Didn’t Know

Chapters:
00:00 – Intro
01:04 – #15: Santa’s Tough Love
03:07 – #14: The Sad Toy Mystery
04:35 – #13: The Woman Behind Rudolph’s Voice — Billie Mae Richards
06:31 – #12: The Ending Kids Forced Them to Fix
08:08 – #11: Rudolph’s Department Store Origins — Robert L. May
09:22 – #10: The Forgotten First Rudolph Cartoon — Max Fleischer
11:34 – #9: The Soundtrack That Wouldn’t Quit — Burl Ives
13:13 – #8: The Star Behind the Snowman
14:46 – #7: Why the Animation Looks Jerky — Tadahito Mochinaga
17:06 – #6: The Writer Who Created the Rudolph Universe — Romeo Muller
18:45 – #5: The Sequels That Missed the Magic
21:07 – #4: The Network That Almost Said No
22:48 – #3: The Special That Never Skipped a Year
24:10 – #2: From Attic Junk to Auction Gold
26:00 – #1: The Unintentional Hero of the Story

Watch more holiday nostalgia here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLRZTUGHHqdh58fK-YDfl6NwOrCeokqvb2

#RudolphTheRedNosedReindeer #RankinBass #BurlIves #StopMotion #ClassicChristmas #1960sTV #TVHistory #ChristmasSpecials #RetroTV #TVNostalgia #RememberWhen

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Written by Remember When

Comments

This post currently has 24 comments.

  1. @karicastanza5216

    December 17, 2025 at 5:09 am

    Did anyone ever notice when the elf drops the toys from the sleigh that the bird that can only swim isn't given an umbrella?! It took me years to realize that! I love this Christmas special! It was my Mom's favorite before me! I miss watching it with her.

  3. @fayewitt9881

    December 17, 2025 at 5:09 am

    In spite of everything I still like this cartoon always have but I do think and I always have thought Rudolph was done pretty crappy until he proved useful to everyone especially Santa.

  4. @fayewitt9881

    December 17, 2025 at 5:09 am

    I agree! Santa was a bit of a jerk to Rudolph I mean all were except for his mother and Clarice and his elf friend the want-be-dentist but of course he had his problems too all the other elves thinking he was crazy for wanting to be a dentist but anyway I always liked this little cartoon, watched it every year till I got it on DVD now I watch it on DVD. So wheither I'm enjoying on TV or DVD I'm still enjoying it, have been for years.

  9. @ChaosAria

    December 17, 2025 at 5:09 am

    Another fun fact, Robert May's Brother in Law was Johnny Marks who wrote the original song as well as every song in that 1964 special. He managed to capture the Christmas Spirit.

  10. @MichaelSundberg

    December 17, 2025 at 5:09 am

    I can’t believe with all the information in this video you left out Johnny Marks who wrote all the songs in the special. Just like Rankin/Bass had to reissue a happy ending for the misfit toys I think you need to reissue this video and mention Johnny Marks. Cause otherwise it’s a classic.

  12. @cindyjohnston3134

    December 17, 2025 at 5:09 am

    I connected with Rudolph because I felt like a misfit 🙂 I love all the sequels also! what is sad is that only santa and rudolph characters survived…all the other characters are gone to the memory of history 🙁

  13. @simplesimon755

    December 17, 2025 at 5:09 am

    18:15 Romeo Mueller sure looked like Santa to me. What a great storyteller.
    It's funny, I'm a nearly 60 year old grump much of the time but watching this and being reminded of all those good memories melts my heart just as sure as Rudolph's nose cuts through a snow storm. Thanks for reminding me that Bumbles bounce!

  15. @amstaples7198

    December 17, 2025 at 5:09 am

    Christmas season started the Sunday after Thanksgiving when the Norelco rotary head razor shaved its way through the snow down a little mountain. On our black and white TV, from the fading ghost of that Norelco commercial came Burl Ives’ perfect introduction.

  22. @ferociousgumby

    December 17, 2025 at 5:09 am

    Back then, we had shows like this to look forward to every year (Rudolph, Frosty, Charlie Brown, The Grinch). They were only aired once a year, and the whole family gathered around the TV to watch them, even with some of the kids' friends. We'd make popcorn or have hot cocoa and Christmas cookies. Now, you can stream Christmas shows all year long. There are no "specials" anymore, because none of the new content is special. And a lot of families never sit down to eat together.

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