Rudolph is #1

I'm in the habit of checking the This Day in History site (beware, a movie will play when you first start it, but you can pause it or click on any story other than the Lead Story to stop it). Today, I was surprised to find that on this day in 1947, the song Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer hit #1 on the popular music charts. Wouldn't you think that it would have been before Christmas or at least during the week between Christmas and New Year's Day? As with many things, though, I was wrong. You can find the story here. It's a nice story with a sort-of happy ending.

I've always enjoyed the TV special about Rudolph, too. I'm talking about the one done in stop motion animation that has its Internet Movie Database listing here. As you'll see if you read about the original story on This Day in History, the fellow who wrote the music for Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Johnny Marks, also wrote the music for the other songs in the TV movie like A Holly Jolly Christmas.

Would the song ever make it to #1 now if it had just been written? I doubt it. I think the only reason we hear it now is out of nostalgia. For one thing, singing cowboys don't usually get to the top of the popular music charts. They usually only show up on the country charts. Getting to hear this song every year around Christmas is a reminder to not forget some of the old things. If we forget them, we may never see their like again. The only reason we get to hear Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer or get to watch A Charlie Brown Christmas around Christmas now is that they were made at the only time they could have been made. If they wouldn't have been made then, I doubt they would have ever been made.