THE TRUE STORY OF
RUDOLPH
A man named Bob
May, depressed and brokenhearted, stared out his drafty apartment window into the chilling December night. His 4-year-old daughter
Barbara sat on his lap quietly sobbing. Bob's wife, Evelyn, was dying of
cancer.
Little Barbara couldn't understand why her mommy could never come home. Barbara looked up into her dad's eyes and asked, "Why isn't Mommy just like everybody else's Mommy?" Bob's jaw tightened and his eyes welled with tears. Her question brought waves of grief, but also of anger. It had been the story of Bob's life. Life always had to be different for Bob.
Small when he was a kid, Bob was often bullied by other boys. He was too little at the time to compete in sports. He was often called names he'd rather not remember. From childhood, Bob was different and never seemed to fit in. Bob did complete college, married his loving wife and was grateful to get his job as a copywriter at Montgomery Ward during the Great Depression. Then he was blessed with his little girl. But it was all short-lived.
Little Barbara couldn't understand why her mommy could never come home. Barbara looked up into her dad's eyes and asked, "Why isn't Mommy just like everybody else's Mommy?" Bob's jaw tightened and his eyes welled with tears. Her question brought waves of grief, but also of anger. It had been the story of Bob's life. Life always had to be different for Bob.
Small when he was a kid, Bob was often bullied by other boys. He was too little at the time to compete in sports. He was often called names he'd rather not remember. From childhood, Bob was different and never seemed to fit in. Bob did complete college, married his loving wife and was grateful to get his job as a copywriter at Montgomery Ward during the Great Depression. Then he was blessed with his little girl. But it was all short-lived.
Evelyn's bout with
cancer stripped them of all their savings and now Bob and his daughter were
forced to live in a two-room apartment in the Chicagoslums. Evelyn died
just days before Christmas in 1938.
Bob struggled to give
hope to his child, for whom he couldn't even afford to buy a Christmas
gift. But if he couldn't buy a gift, he was determined to make one -
a storybook!
Bob had created an
animal character in his own mind and told the animal's story to little Barbara
to give her comfort and hope. Again and again Bob told the story, embellishing
it more with each telling.
Who was the character?
What was the story all about?
The story Bob May created
was his own autobiography in fable form. The character he created was a misfit outcast like he was. The name of the
character? A little reindeer named Rudolph, with a big shiny nose. Bob
finished the book just in time to give it to his little girl on Christmas Day.
But the story doesn't end there.
The general
manager of Montgomery Ward caught wind of the little storybook and offered
Bob May a nominal fee to purchase the rights to print the book. Wards went
on to print, “Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer” and distribute it to children visiting Santa Claus in their
stores.
By 1946 Wards had
printed and distributed more than six million copies of Rudolph. That same
year, a major publisher wanted to purchase the rights from Wards to
print an updated version of the book.
In an unprecedented gesture
of kindness, the CEO of Wards returned all rights back to Bob May. The book became a best seller. Many toy and marketing deals
followed and Bob May, now remarried with a growing family, became wealthy
from the story he created to comfort his grieving daughter. But the story
doesn't end there either.
Bob's brother-in-law, Johnny Marks, made a song adaptation to Rudolph. Though the song was turned down by such popular vocalists as Bing Crosby and DinahShore , it was recorded by the singing cowboy, Gene Autry. "Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer" was released in 1949 and became a phenomenal success, selling more records than any other Christmas song, with the exception of "White Christmas."
Bob's brother-in-law, Johnny Marks, made a song adaptation to Rudolph. Though the song was turned down by such popular vocalists as Bing Crosby and DinahShore , it was recorded by the singing cowboy, Gene Autry. "Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer" was released in 1949 and became a phenomenal success, selling more records than any other Christmas song, with the exception of "White Christmas."
The gift of love that
Bob May created for his daughter so long ago kept on returning back to
bless him again and again. And Bob May learned the lesson, just like his
dear friend Rudolph, that being different isn't so bad. In fact, being different can be
a blessing.
The story above is the one we'd all love it to be.
The real story is not that different, although it was a little more commercialised, what do you expect it is to do with Christmas after all!
Robert L May's wife did die of cancer in 1939 and a slightly different version can be found on this site,
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