What if DreamWorks Pictures/DreamWorks Animation was founded in 1934?/Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer is a 1964 stop-motion animated Christmas musical fantasy film produced produced by Videocraft International, Ltd. (later known as Rankin/Bass Productions) for DreamWorks Pictures, which was marked the studio's first stop-motion film and the first of the four animated films to be collaborated with Rankin/Bass. It first aired Sunday, December 6, 1964 in theaters in United States, and later November TBD, 1965 in other countries. The special was based on the Johnny Marks song "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" which was itself based on the poem of the same name written in 1939 by Marks' brother-in-law, Robert L. May. Since 1972, the film has rebroadcast on CBS, with the network unveiling a high-definition, digitally remastered version of the program in 2005. 2014 marked the 50th anniversary of the animated feature and a series of postage stamps featuring Rudolph was issued by the United States Postal Service on November 6, 2014.

The story revolves Rudolph, a reindeer fawn with red shiny nose, who never get on the reindeer games after he was picked on by other young reindeer, he then befriends with an elf named Hermey, who is desperate to become a dentist than making toys, and a prospector Yukon Cornelius, who has his hard attempts to find gold, who join with him to seek The Island of Misfit Toy for their stay. However, Rudolph later learns that what his red nose made him special.

It features the voice of Billie Mae Richards, Stan Francis, Paul Kligman, Paul Soles, Larry D. Mann, Peg Dixon, Carl Banas, and narrated by Burl Ives.

Plot
Sam the Snowman welcomes the viewers to Christmastown at the North Pole and introduces Santa and Mrs. Claus who live in a castle located north of the Christmas Tree Forest. Mrs. Claus fusses over Santa as she wants him to fatten up by Christmas Eve. Sam then recalls the year Christmas was almost cancelled due to a snowstorm and tells the story of how a very special reindeer saved the day.

Donner, Santa's lead reindeer, and his wife have given birth to their new baby fawn, Rudolph. Upon admiring him, they are surprised to see that Rudolph has been born with a glowing red nose. When Santa arrives, he warns Donner that Rudolph will not make the sleigh team because of his nose. Donner then decides to hide the nose by covering it with mud to allow Rudolph to fit in with all the other reindeer.

Over Rudolph's first year of life, Donner trains him in the basics of being a reindeer, including hiding from the Abominable Snow Monster of the North. Rudolph enters the reindeer games, competing against his fellow fawns and befriends a young buck named Fireball. During flight practice, Rudolph meets a doe named Clarice who tells him he is cute, and kisses him, which causes an elated Rudolph to fly higher and faster than everyone else. However, while celebrating with Fireball, Rudolph's nose cover pops off, and Fireball and the others react with fear, then scorn and finally rejection as Comet expels Rudolph from the Reindeer Games. Walking away, Rudolph walks with Clarice, who supports him, until her father firmly tells her to never have any more contact with a red-nosed reindeer. Then, Rudolph meets up with Hermey, an elf who ran away from Santa's workshop because he wanted to be a dentist instead of making toys, and they decide to run away together. The pair then meet a prospector named Yukon Cornelius, who has fruitlessly searched his whole life for silver and gold. After escaping the snow monster on an ice floe, the trio crash land on the Island of Misfit Toys where unloved or unwanted toys live with their ruler, a winged lion named King Moonracer. The king allows the group to stay one night on the island in exchange for returning to Christmastown to ask Santa to find homes for the unwanted toys. However, Rudolph leaves the island in the middle of the night on his own, fearing that his nose, which attracts the snow monster, will endanger his friends.

Time goes by and Rudolph grows into adulthood; he tries and fails to find a place to settle where he will be accepted despite his nose and eventually decides to return home. There, he finds that Fireball continues to bully him and that his parents and Clarice have been out looking for him for months; he sets out once again to find them, only to discover that the snow monster has captured them. Rudolph tries to save Clarice and his parents, but the monster hits him in the head with a stalactite, knocking him unconscious. Hermey and Yukon arrive, and discovering Rudolph's plight, they hatch a plan to save him: Hermey lures the monster out of his cave by posing as a pig, Yukon drops rocks on his head to knock him out, and Hermey then pulls out all the monster's teeth. When the monster awakens, it has also lost its confidence, and Yukon effortlessly scares the beast off a cliff, himself falling off with his pack of dogs in the process. Mourning Yukon's presumed death, Rudolph, Hermey, Clarice, and the Donners return home. After hearing the group's story, everyone apologizes to Rudolph and Hermey for their mistreatment, and Santa welcomes them back to Christmastown, promising that he will find homes for the Misfit Toys; in addition, Hermey opens his own dentist's office, and Donner apologizes for being so hard on Rudolph. Yukon then returns and shows the wary Christmastown residents that the now-tamed snow monster can be useful by having it trim a Christmas tree. Santa interrupts the celebration, grimly informing everyone that because of the storm, he is forced to cancel the Christmas trip. Santa is soon distracted by Rudolph's red nose and realizes that its light could cut through the storm. He asks Rudolph to lead the sleigh and Rudolph agrees. The team then flies off on their voyage.

Back at the Island of Misfit Toys, the toys sit around a campfire, fearing that Rudolph had gone back on his word; as they see Rudolph's nose approaching, they react with glee as Santa picks the toys up for delivery. The special ends with Santa wishing the viewers a merry Christmas as he and Rudolph fly off into the night.

Cast

 * Billie Mae Richards voices Rudolph, a reindeer of formidable acumen (he learns to speak shortly after birth) and physical strength who is shunned for his nonconforming red nose, but later saves Christmas.
 * Stan Francis voices:
 * Santa Claus, portrayed in the special as a moody, nervous and "skinny Santa" whose fears are only allayed when he conjures the idea of using Rudolph's nose to lead the sleigh.
 * King Moonracer, a winged lion who rules the entire Island of Misfit Toys. King Moonracer's voice uses a reverb effect to distinguish it from Santa Claus.
 * Paul Kligman voices:
 * Donner, Rudolph's father and Santa's most prized reindeer. While he loves and accepts Rudolph, he shows great concern that society will reject him for his nose and tries to protect him by creating a nose cover.
 * Comet, head coach of the Reindeer Games.
 * Clarice's unnamed father, who forbids Clarice from shaming the family by associating with a red-nosed reindeer.
 * Burl Ives voices Sam the Snowman, the narrator.
 * Paul Soles voices Hermey, an elf who dreams of pursuing a career in dentistry and "feels different" from the other elves. He eventually is forced out and runs off with Rudolph.
 * Janis Orenstein voices Clarice, a female reindeer who is the only one of Rudolph's age to not reject him. She later joins Rudolph's parents in the search party.
 * Larry D. Mann voices Yukon Cornelius, the "greatest prospector of the North" who joins Rudolph and Hermey on their journey but never finds the silver and gold he seeks.
 * Peg Dixon voices:
 * Mrs. Claus, a pushy wife who mocks her husband's lack of appetite.
 * Mrs. Donner, a loving and mostly submissive wife.
 * Carl Banas voices:
 * The Head Elf. For the Head Elf's voice, Banas uses a meek Bill Thompson-like voice when speaking in front of Santa Claus, but turns into a ruthless boss with a voice similar to Mel Blanc's Yosemite Sam or Cosmo Spacely when Santa is not around.
 * Various Misfit Toys, including a Spotted Elephant, King Moonracer's footman; a bird that swims, a cowboy who rides an ostrich, a train with square wheels on his caboose, two teddy bears (one on a bicycle and one with wings), a boat that doesn't float, a set of clown nesting dolls with a wind-up mouse as the last one, a water pistol that shoots jelly, a plane that can't fly, a toy car that only drives in reverse, and a scooter with two wheels in front and one in back.
 * Alfie Scopp voices:
 * Fireball, who introduces Rudolph to the opposite sex, but later snubs Rudolph when his red nose is revealed.
 * Charlie-In-The-Box, the island's sentry.
 * Corinne Conley voices Dolly, a seemingly normal girl rag doll on the Island of Misfit Toys. Her misfit problem is never explained on the special; many decades later, on NPR'sWait Wait… Don't Tell Me! news quiz show (broadcast December 8, 2007), Rudolph's producer, Arthur Rankin Jr., noted that Dolly's problem was psychological, caused by being abandoned by her owner (named as Sue in the special) and suffering depression from feeling uncared-for

Productions
In the 1960s, DreamWorks Studios made TBD year contract deal with Videocraft International, Ltd. (Rankin-Bass) to produce four animated films for them. TBD

Release
TBD

Television rebroadcasting
TBD

Home media
When Rudolph was first issued on VHS, Betamax, and LaserDisc by Family Home Entertainment and Broadway Video from 1989 to 1997 under the Christmas Classics Serieslabel, the 1965 rebroadcast print described above was used. All current video prints of Rudolph by Classic Media are a compendium of the two previous telecast versions of the special. All the footage in the current versions follow the original NBC airing (without the original GE commercials) up until the "Peppermint Mine" scene, followed by the final act of the 1965 edit (with the Island of Misfit Toys finale and the 1965 alternate credits in place of the original end credit sequence).

In 1998, the special was released by Sony Wonder on VHS. In 2000, it was released on DVD, and on Blu-ray Disc in 2010 (although the Blu-ray does not contain the bonus features from the previous DVD release.) This edit has been made available in original color form by former rights holders Classic Media, (which in 2012 got acquired by DreamWorks Studios to its DreamWorks Classics division, and finally in 2016, part of Universal Pictures) As previously mentioned, this is also the version currently airing on CBS, albeit in edited form to accommodate more commercial time. In November 2014, Classic Media released a 50th anniversary edition of the special on Blu-ray. Walmartreleased an exclusive 50th anniversary Blu-ray edition with a storybook.

Acquiring by different owners
In 1974, TBD

Original theatrical version
The original does not include Santa traveling to the Island of Misfit Toys, but does include a scene near the end of the special in which Yukon Cornelius discovers a peppermint mine near Santa's workshop. He can be seen throughout the special tossing his pickax into the air, sniffing, then licking the end that contacts the snow or ice. Deletion of the peppermint segment in 1965, to make room for Santa traveling to the Island of Misfit Toys, leaves audience to assume that Cornelius was attempting to find either silver or gold by taste alone.

Television broadcast version (1965-1997)
The 1965 broadcast also included a new duet between Rudolph and Hermey called "Fame and Fortune", which replaced a scene in which the same characters sang "We're a Couple of Misfits". Viewers of the 1964 special complained that Santa was not shown fulfilling his promise to the Misfit Toys (to include them in his annual toy delivery). In reaction, a new scene for subsequent rebroadcasts was produced with Santa making his first stop at the Island to pick up the toys. This is the ending that has been shown on all telecasts and video releases ever since. Until sometime in the 1970s the special aired without additional cuts, but eventually more commercial time was required by the network. In 1978, several sequences were deleted to make room for more advertising: the instrumental bridge from "We Are Santa's Elves" featuring the elf orchestra, additional dialogue by Burl Ives, and the "Peppermint Mine" scene resolving the fate of Yukon Cornelius.[6] The special's 1993 restoration saw "Misfits" returned to its original film context, and the 2004 DVD release showcases "Fame and Fortune" as a separate musical number.

1998– CBS telecasts
Most of the 1965 deletions were restored in 1998, and "Fame and Fortune" was replaced with the original "We're a Couple of Misfits" reprise. A short slide reading "Rankin/Bass Presents" was inserted at the beginning of the special to reflect the company's name change. The "Peppermint Mine" scene was not restored; it has not aired on CBS since the mid 70s.

Starting in 2005, CBS aired the video of the "Fame and Fortune" scene with the soundtrack replaced by an edited version of "We're a Couple of Misfits". The special has been edited to make more time for commercial advertising by shortening some musical numbers.

Home media
When Rudolph was first issued on VHS, Betamax, and LaserDisc by Family Home Entertainment and Broadway Video from 1989 to 1997 under the Christmas Classics Serieslabel, the 1965 rebroadcast print described above was used. All current video prints of Rudolph by Classic Media are a compendium of the two previous telecast versions of the special. All the footage in the current versions follow the original theatrical up until the "Peppermint Mine" scene, followed by the final act of the 1965 TV edit (with the Island of Misfit Toys finale and the 1965 alternate credits in place of the original end credit sequence).

In 1998, the special was released by Sony Wonder on VHS. In 2000, it was released on DVD, and on Blu-ray Disc in 2010 (although the Blu-ray does not contain the bonus features from the previous DVD release.) This edit has been made available in original color form by former rights holders Classic Media, (which in 2012 became the DreamWorks Classics division of DreamWorks Animation, and finally in 2016, part of Universal Pictures) As previously mentioned, this is also the version currently airing on CBS, albeit in edited form to accommodate more commercial time. In November 2014, Classic Media released a 50th anniversary edition of the film on Blu-ray. Walmart released an exclusive 50th anniversary Blu-ray edition with a storybook.

Soundtrack
The songs and incidental music were all written by Johnny Marks, with Maury Laws supervising. In addition to the songs previously mentioned, the score also includes the film's love theme "There's Always Tomorrow", sung by Clarice after Rudolph is kicked out of the reindeer games. Marks' holiday standard "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" appears as instrumental background music when Rudolph first arrives at the Reindeer Games. Also included in the soundtrack is an instrumental version of Marks' setting of the Christmas hymn "I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day."

In 1964, an LP record of the soundtrack was released on Decca Records. It contained all the original songs performed as they are in the special, with the exception of Burl Ives' material, which has been re-recorded. MCA Special Products released the soundtrack on CD in June 1995. It is an exact duplication of the original LP released in 1964. Tracks 1-9 are the original soundtrack selections while tracks 10-19 are the same songs performed by the Decca Concert Orchestra. The song "Fame and Fortune" is not contained on either release. On November 30, 2004 the soundtrack was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America for selling over 500,000 copies.

Ives re-recorded "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" and "A Holly Jolly Christmas", with different arrangements, for his own album Have a Holly Jolly Christmas in 1965.

Songs
TBD

Merchandise
Books and other items related to the show have in some cases misspelled "Hermey" as "Herbie". Rich Goldschmidt, who wrote Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer: The Making of the Rankin/Bass Holiday Classic, says the scripts by Romeo Muller show the spelling to be "Hermey".

The film also mentioned in the book Before the Ogre, a audiology book of DreamWorks history.

A Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer video game was released on November 9, 2010. The adaptation was published by Red Wagon Games for the Wii and Nintendo DS, and was developed by High Voltage Software and Glyphic Entertainment respectively. The Wii version was received poorly, and garnered extremely negative reviews from sites such as IGN giving it a 1.5/10.

Reception
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer received an approval rating of 92% on review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, based on thirteen reviews.

Sequels
The DreamWorks/Rankin/Bass film, which currently airs on CBS, inspired numerous television sequels made by the same studio:
 * Rudolph's Shiny New Year (1976), a special that first aired on ABC and is still aired annually on both ABC and Freeform.
 * Rudolph and Frosty's Christmas in July (1979), a feature-length special that paired Rudolph with the song-inspired character Frosty the Snowman.
 * Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and the Island of Misfit Toys (2001), a direct-to-video computer-animated film. Released by a team that produced an unrelated Rudolphmovie in 1998, neither Rankin/Bass nor its descendant companies had any involvement in its produciton.
 * "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer - 4D Attraction" (2016), A faithful, 10-minute stop motion story adaptation in the form of a 4D film for SimEx-Iwerks;] produced by Bent Image Lab and directed by Chel White.

In popular culture
TBD

Copyright issues
TBD