Rudolph Was Not A Happy Tale

[angrychair]

Its a great take on a Christmas classic that has always rubbed me the wrong way, even as a kid. Little king but a very good read.

Apparently what we wanted next was 55 minutes of Christmas-crushing despair: Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. For more than half a century, generations of children have taken the show, which debuted in 1964, into their hearts, and for just about as long, I’ve been trying to avoid it.

https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2020/12/rankin-bass-rudolph-the-red-nosed-reindeer/616932/

[Dark n Stormy Knight]

1. Wait, Rudolf was a little king?

[hlthe2b]

2. Meh.. I just watched for Burl Ive's snowman...

[zackymilly]

3. What reindeer poop. n/t

[Drahthaardogs]

4. What kind of over- privileged childhood

Let’s you be crushed by Rudolph’s issues? I was worried if the miners were going on strike and if we would even have a Christmas.

[andym]

5. Rankin Bass's Rudolf is full of hope and redemption

The outcasts/misfits are eventually the heroes, and they are recognized by those who formerly shunned them. This is a key reason it was so popular. There is more than just redemption, the misfits earn the respect of the powerful in their "society." The powerful admit that they were wrong.
The Atlantic writer didn't want to understand that the world is not perfect, but the oppressed in the world can sometimes triumph in unexpected ways.

[ChazII]

11. +100. When you look different, are asked

to leave restaurants, not come to the public swimming pool and are mocked 365 days of the year, this show brings hope. Trust me on this topic. My son was called freak, monster and was told to take off his mask because Halloween is over. As a junior life guard parents did NOT want their child with my son and the senior life guard.

Rudolph helped brighten his holidays because Rudolf was different.

[BlueSpot]

14. This is so correct.

It's my favorite Christmas special of all time. I never miss it.

By the way, it's on CBS on December 1. Seven pm my time but check your local listings.

[RobinA]

17. I Loved and Love

the damn thing. I watched the first one and for many years after that. I agree that the bullies got their comeuppance, including the Bumble, Donner, Santa and Dad Clarice. All the ostracized pulled together and defeated them all. Back in those days there was NO support for the different, so it was a very hopeful breath of fresh air.

[jimfields33]

6. Lol. Is nothing just a show? Is everything a negative in today's world?

[Hestia]

8. No joke. It's the "other sider-ism" of a children's story ad-promo. Burl Ives is the whole

reason for the season.

[soothsayer]

7. Wasn't it a Montgomery Wards advertising thingy?

Seems apt.

[rsdsharp]

27. Yes. Robert L May, a copy writer for Wards, was assigned

the task of writing a story to be given away by the stores for the 1939 Christmas season. It had nothing to do with the Rankin Bass TV show other than the title, as they didn’t have a copy of the original story.

May’s BiL was songwriter Johnny Marks, who wrote the Rudolph song ten years later. Gene Autry’s wife had to convince him to record it. Lucky for him she did, as it earned him a gold record.

[soothsayer]

28. Thank you

[Squinch]

9. Fairy tales were originally much gorier and scarier. The theory is that they allowed

children to face their fears through stories so they could deal with them when they really happened in a brutal world.

We all avail ourselves of this kind of coping mechanism. ID Discovery, all about murders and murderers, is one of the most popular TV channels around. Lifetime movies, about women in dire situations, are extremely popular. Gaming is full of wars and violence.

Why shouldn't kids be able to do the same?

And PS: anyway, I love Rudolph. Have never missed it since 1964. Seriously.

[RobinA]

18. Yes, I Was A Grimm's Fan

witches, one legged people, etc. My Uncle gave me a book of Russian fairy tales. Now those people can tell a dark tale. Baba Yaga! I loved it all. Can’t stand this mush we have now.

[Squinch]

19. Krampus! Man, that'll keep you off the "Naughty" list!!!

[3catwoman3]

31. You are so right about the fairy tales. I recently chucked out a very...

...old copy of Grimm's Fairy Tales that had been handed down from one of my grandmothers. Pretty horrific stuff. The 2 images that stand out in my memory after all there years (I'm now 69, so would last have read anything in that book well over 50 years ago), both involved creepy and cruel situations for little girls - may even have been the some little girl. In one, the child was tied to some large loaf of bread and lowered into a well or cavern and snakes were slithering over her feet. In the other, the little girl had to cut off one of her fingers so she could use the bones to make a key to unlock a door and rescue her brothers.

Grimm indeed.

Just Googled - the cutting off the finger story is from Grimm, and called The 7 Ravens. The other one is a Hans Christian Andersen and the title is The Girl Who Trod On The Loaf.

[Squinch]

32. Oh, man. But it is really fascinating that all those Grimm tales were told and retold for

generations. They serve some purpose for us.

But blech!

[RobinA]

34. Grimm Fan Here

You know, I remember that tale of the little girl cutting off her finger. As a child, that never struck me as gruesome. I was very young, but I remember thinking it would hurt, she was smart for thinking of it. It didn't bother me a bit.

[miyazaki]

10. Lame. Some people. nt

Last edited Mon Nov 30, 2020, 12:06 AM - Edit history (1)

Fire that idiot.

[ellie]

12. Yes, Rudolph

was terrible. His father, Santa, the coach and the other reindeer were dicks. My little brother absolutely hates that show. I do like Yukon Cornelius and his elf friend. Sorry, I can't remember all of their names.

[rsdsharp]

24. Hermie! Hermie, not Herbie, was the elf who wanted to be a dentist.

Donner was the father, although it should have been Donder, who is one of the eight reindeer in Clement Moore’s poem. Comet was the coach.

[ellie]

29. Thank you!

[rsdsharp]

30. You're welcome.

Sorry for running on. I’ve been a Rudolph freak since it first aired in 1964.

[Blue_true]

13. What bullshit!

The tale of Rudolph the Red-Noses Reindeer is about hope, acceptance and redemption. I still tear up at the ending of that movie and if I had kids, would have no issue with them watching it, in fact, I would encourage them to.

[ProfessorGAC]

21. It's Also About...

...courage & perseverance.
He didn't let the names get to him, in the end.
He had a gift none others had.
He came through in the clutch.
And had the courage to take the lead so others could follow.
I agree with your sentiment about the OP.

[Blue_true]

22. Good point on the two qualities that I missed. The movie had plenty of instances of

those qualities also.

[Sneederbunk]

15. Glad you are handling this so I don't have to.

[JDC]

16. Ammo for the war on Xmas BS

[Proud Liberal Dem]

20. I have always loved Rudoph

I grew up on a lot of "darker" movies with more mature themes like "The Secret of NIMH", Star Trek II-III and Rankin Bass' "The Hobbit", so I guess I was sort of unfazed by Rudolph.

[Raine]

23. Some people just have to try and suck the joy out of everything! 👎 nt

[StarfishSaver]

25. I don't care. I love Rudolph and always will

[MyNameGoesHere]

26. Someone watched Rudolph on a bad acid trip.

[Takket]

33. this is absurd........

kids have been watching this cartoon for generations. if you don't like it, turn it off. if you are traumatized by watching it there is probably an issue in your own life you need a therapist to help you deal with, and not a problem with Rudolph.