• Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer celebrates its 60th anniversary on December 6th

• The Claymation Special was the first stop-motion Christmas film produced by Arthur Rankin Jr. and Jules Bass, who went on to make films like Claymation Santa Claus is coming to town And The year without Santa Claus

• Rankin/Bass historian Rick Goldschmidt explains how the special actually changed over its six decades on air, including a central shift surrounding the fate of the misfit toys

“But do you remember the most famous reindeer of all?”

These are the lyrics to “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer,” the classic Christmas song that inspired the 1964 TV special of the same name. Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer premiered on NBC on December 6, 1964 during the NBC broadcast General Electric Fantasy Hour. Its creators, Arthur Rankin Jr., who died in 2014, and Jules Bass, who died in 2022, assumed that the film would be largely forgotten after a few years. They were wrong.

Instead, Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer has aired on television every year since 1964, making it the longest continuously running Christmas television special in the United States.

The plot of the film revolves around Rudolph (Billie Mae Richards) and Hermy (Paul Soles), an elf who wants to become a dentist and feels like “outsiders”. As they escape the North Pole, they encounter characters such as gold prospector Yukon Cornelius (Larry Mann), the abominable snowman Bumble (Bernard Cowan), and the misfit toys. Burl Ives voices the narrator Sam the snowman. The film is based on the song, which was adapted from a 1930s poem.

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The special was Rankin and Bass’ first stop-motion film, although they called the animation process “Animagic”. But it wasn’t their last, and other popular Christmas specialties followed, including the one from 1968 The little drummer boy1970s Santa Claus is coming to town1974s The year without Santa Claus1976s Rudolph’s shiny new year and 1979s Jack Frost. The films had a huge influence on directors such as Tim Burton and Wes Anderson, who also made stop-motion films.

In 2018 Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer won a poll naming it the most popular Christmas movie of all time, and Rankin had some thoughts about why it was so popular. “I think all children are looking for direction. I think all kids feel a little inferior,” he told the TV Foundation in a 2005 interview about why kids identify so much with the film. “Children have problems, whatever they may be, and when they see other characters who also have problems, they can identify with them.”

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“Children love to see someone of their own kind, age or inferiority achieve something. It makes them feel good,” he continued. “I think that’s probably why these films take so long, because that happens in all of our films. The bad guy becomes the good guy, he’s reformed, and the underdog does his job.” He said the reward of any creative effort is “longevity,” and he’s glad so many of his specials have found it.

However, The Island of Misfit Toys caused some controversy when the special aired. In the original version of the story, when Rudolph and his friends leave the toys behind, he promises that Santa Claus will bring the toys to the children for Christmas, but the audience doesn’t actually see it. Rick Goldschmidt, a Rankin/Bass historian, told Patch in 2015 that children were so upset that their parents wrote to NBC asking them to change it and show that the toys had happy endings, too. Producers ultimately shot a new end credits sequence that shows the misfits finding a new home for Christmas.

Goldschmidt also told the outlet that other changes have been made to the special over the years. Rudolf There’s a long-running joke about Yukon Cornelius licking his pickaxe, but over time a scene where we learn he’s looking for a peppermint mine was cut. Beginning in 1965, Rudolph and Hermey’s song “We’re a Couple of Misfits” was replaced by “Fame and Fortune.” Although the original song was restored, Goldschmidt said that for a time, CBS – which took over airing the special in 1972 – superimposed the song “We’re a Couple of Misfits” over the animation of “Fame and Fortune.”

Related: ‘Rudolph’ Actor Says Bullying Plot Critics Miss the Point: ‘It’s More Relevant Now Than Ever’

Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer has also been the subject of some controversy, as not only the other young reindeer, but also Rudolph’s father Donner and Santa Claus can be downright cruel to Rudolph. Actress Corrine Conley, who voices characters such as Dolly for Sue in the film, responded to these allegations in 2018, saying: “I would say (the film) is more relevant today than ever before because there is so much bullying .” But I mean, with Rudolph it’s all unified, and people certainly wouldn’t love it as much – if it left a bullying response, it wouldn’t be so indelible in people’s hearts.”

Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer airs December 6th and 12th at 8pm ET on NBC.

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