Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
In 1938, as the Great Depression wound down and even as the prospect of better times loomed on the horizon, Bob May was looking toward another bleak Christmas. As an advertising copywriter for Montgomery Wards, May lived on a meager salary and was on the brink of bankruptcy and exhaustion. His wife, Evelyn was losing the battle after fighting cancer for two years, and as they stared into each other’s eyes, both knew that she wouldn’t last long.
On a cold December night, after visiting her bed-ridden mother, their four-year-old daughter, Barbara, climbed into her father’s lap and expressed her wish for her mommy to be like everybody else’s mommy. How could May explain to his young daughter how much her critically-ill mother wanted to play with Barbara, read her stories, and—more than anything in the world— wanted to be with her for every important moment in her life. Bob May held his daughter in his arms and struggled to answer his child’s simple question. Despite having a college degree, the country’s sorry
Despite having a college degree, the country’s sorry financial state had made it almost impossible for May to find any other job than the position at Wards that was far beneath his skill level. Yet when he found Evelyn and they fell in love and married, Bob suddenly felt like a king. Their daughter’s birth seemed to assure the couple that good times were just around the corner. But then Evelyn got sick and the cost of fighting the cancer stole not only his wife’s energy but the family’s savings as well. Bob sold everything of value, and they lived in what was no more than a slum. But on that cold, windy night, even with every reason
But on that cold, windy night, even with every reason to cry and complain, Bob wanted his daughter to somehow understand that there was hope, and that being different didn’t mean you had to be ashamed. Most importantly, he wanted his daughter to know she was loved. Thinking of his own life experiences, the copywriter made up a story about a reindeer with a large, bright red nose. And as little Barbara listened, May described in story form not only the pain felt by those who were different, but also the joy that can be found when someone discovers his special place in the world. The tale was a big hit with Barbara, and thereafter she demanded that her father tell it to her each night. With every new telling, the plot grew more elaborate, and the reindeer, Rudolph, became less a fictional character and more a member of the May family.
Unable to afford a gift for Barbara that Christmas, Bob decided to carefully craft his story about Rudolph into a homemade book, illustrating it as best he could. Many evenings after his wife and daughter had gone to sleep, Bob carefully worked to finish his unique present. But tragedy struck the May family before Christmas could arrive: Evelyn lost her battle with cancer. Though the last few pages of his gift book were stained with tears, Bob would not give up on Rudolph. He knew his daughter needed the uplifting story now more than ever, and he prayed for the strength to finish the present. On Christmas morning, a completed copy of “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” was waiting for Barbara on Christmas morning.
Though he hardly felt like celebrating, a few days later Bob was forced to attend a Montgomery Wards’ employee party. His coworkers in the ad department asked May to share his children’s story that night. At the end, they stood and gave May and his children’s tale a thunderous ovation. They all loved “Rudolph” and wanted copies of their own. For a modest sum, Stewell Avery, the chairman of the board of Mongomery Wards, bought all rights from the cash-strapped and debt-ridden May. Avery then had tens of thousands of copies of “Rudolph” printed and shipped to Wards stores across the nation in time for Christmas 1939. The response was so positive that for the next six years, every child who visited a Santa in a company store got a copy of May’s book. By 1946 Wards had given away six million copies of “Rudolph” and Stewell Avery was being hounded by offers from every major publishing house wanting to print a new version of the story. In one of the most generous decisions ever made by
In one of the most generous decisions ever made by the head of a large company, the CEO gave all rights back to Bob May. A year later the mass-market release of the book made the Wards copywriter a rich man. With the book a best-seller, numerous toy and product deals were soon cut and May’s entire life revolved around a story he had told to comfort a worried daughter. Remarried, and with a growing family, Bob couldn’t imagine anything else that could improve his wonderful life. Then his brother-in-law, Johnny Marks, decided to adapt the story into a song. And the rest, they say, is history.
Through books, records, television specials, and movies, for tens of millions of children of all ages, Rudoilph has become as much a symbol for the secular wonder of the Christmas season as Santa Claus. And while there are many lessons to be learned from this magical story—including that while it takes courage to be different, being different can be a blessing—there is an even greater lesson from this story and song that is now all but forgotten: When you give a sincere gift of love from the heart, that gift will come back to you magnified beyond all expectations and measures. It is a lesson that the fictional Rudolph and the very real May family are still living more than six decades after the story was first told.
(Excerpts from “Stories Behind the Best-Loved Songs of Christmas” by Ace Collins)
