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Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer is an essential part of Christmas
in the United States. Rudolph was created by a
copywriter who worked for Montgomery Ward's department store in Chicago.
In 1939, 34 year-old Robert L. May, who had a decided liking for
writing children's stores, was asked to come up with a Christmas
story that Montgomery Ward could give away to shoppers as a promotional gimmick.
Montgomery Ward distributed 2.4 million copies of the Rudolph booket in 1939,
and although wartime paper shortages curtailed printing for the next several years,
a total of 6 million copies had been given by the end of 1946.
Since Rudoph was created by May when he was an employee of Montgomery Ward,
they held the copyright and May received no royalties.
In January 1947, May persuaded Montgomery Ward's corporate president,
Sewell Avery, to turn the copyright over to him.
May's brother-in-law, songwriter Johnny Marks, developed the lyrics
and melody for the Rudolph song. Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer
was recorded by Gene Autry in 1949, it sold two million copies that year,
and it became one of the best selling Christmas songs of all time.
In 1964 Burl Ives narrated a TV special about Rudolph and
it remains a popular holiday favorite in the USA.
