Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (universe)

Rudolph the Red–Nosed Reindeer is a Christmas television special produced in stop-motion animation by Rankin/Bass, and the company's first Christmas special. It originally aired on NBC on December 6, 1964, and is the longest-running and highest-rated television special of all time. It is based on the song of the same name by Johnny Marks, which in turn was based on the 1939 poem of the same title, written by Marks' brother-in-law, Robert L. May, who was an advertising copywriter for Montgomery Ward. Marks also wrote the music and lyrics for the songs in this special, and the background soundtrack includes two more songs he made famous - "I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day" and "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree".

The special was broadcast on NBC from its premiere in 1964 until 1971. CBS acquired the broadcast rights to Rudolph the following year and has aired it every year since.

In 1988, Rankin-Bass sold many of the pre-1973 specials and series (including this special) to Broadway Video, headed by Lorne Michaels of Saturday Night Live fame. Broadway Video's children's division was then sold several years later to Golden Books Family Entertainment. Golden Books Family Entertainment later spun off into Classic Media, which was part of the Entertainment Rights group in the United Kingdom until 2009, when the company was bought by Classic Media's successor, Boomerang Media. In July 2012, DreamWorks Animation SKG purchased Classic Media, and currently holds those rights under the DreamWorks Classics banner.