Minnesota School Of Music - December 2021

Rudolph, You’ll Go Down in History Behind the Evergreen Christmas Special

You know Dasher and Dancer, and you definitely know Rudolph. Everyone’s favorite red-nosed reindeer was first born as a 1939 short story, but he truly shot to fame when his tale was adapted into a song by Gene Autry in 1949. Rivaling even the song’s fame is the Rankin/Bass stop-motion special that airs like clockwork every year around Christmas. Generations have now grown up with Rudolph, so it may be surprising to learn that his journey to the small screen started as a General Electric promotion. The company had a running television special on NBC called the “GE Fantasy Hour,” which they used to market their products directly to viewers. The better the story they told, the more viewers they got — and the more toasters they could sell. The script introduced crucial new characters like Hermey the elf, Yukon Cornelius the prospector, and of course, Bumble the abominable snowman. GE hired innovative Japanese animators to create the film using stop-motion techniques that were highly advanced for the time. GE invested the modern equivalent of $4.5 million into the production of “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer,” and the special first aired in 1964.

Those who are familiar with the film know that it ends with Rudolph enlisting Santa to save the Misfit Toys from earlier in the movie — but it didn’t originally. The version that aired in 1964 concludes with Rudolph leading Santa’s sleigh but forgetting all about his homeless friends. The backlash was swift, and viewers wrote in to express displeasure at the heartless resolution. GE decided the special had to be corrected and played again with the proper ending in 1965. And so, a tradition of annual airings was born. Today, “Rudolph” is the longest-running Christmas special in history, and our favorite misfit deer shows no signs of slowing down after 57 years. The movie has transformed into a marketing bonanza, with new Christmas decorations, figurines, and toys being produced each year. Though it’s somewhat shocking to our modern sensibilities to see Santa bullying his reindeer employees and their children, fond childhood memories mean that parents continue to pass the special down to their kids. Even as we recognize its flaws, the dazzling animation and famous songs continue to bring joy and Christmas spirit to households around the country. Just as sure as Santa comes every year, so does Rudolph.

CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL PERFORMERS! BRAVO CONCERT SERIES EVENT

On Oct. 10, we were excited to return to a full in-person concert experience for our students. It was a big occasion, spanning six hours and five different events. A total of 135 students performed, filling the recital hall with joy and music.

We hope that all of our parents enjoyed attending this special event and that every student had a great time playing. We are looking forward to holding more of these concerts in the future to continue showing off what our kids can do!

The recital was open to students of all ages and experience levels, so we had many young students performing live in front of an audience for the first time. We’re so proud of every student who had the courage to take the stage. That’s no small feat, and they all deserve a shoutout for their dedication, hard work, and ability to overcome their nerves and share their talents with a room full of strangers.

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