The Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer Christmas television special has been broadcast since 1964

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The Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer Christmas television special has been broadcast since 1964

Rudolph and Hermey the Misfit Elf, voiced by Paul Soles, run away from Santa’s workshop to make their own way n the world. Other characters include Clarice the Reindeer, Yukon Cornelius, a prospector who searches for peppermint, and the Abominable Snowman, Bumble.

The island where broken and discarded toys go is called The Island of Misfit Toys. During the 1990s, action figures, plush toys and games were made from all the characters that live on the island. These included the island ruler, King Moonracer, who is a winged lion. A guard is a jack in the box called Charlie-in -the-Box and Misfit Elephant has polka dots and works as a valet. Misfit Doll is a rag doll and there is also a Misfit Cowboy who rides an ostrich. In addition to these, there are a train with square wheels, an airplane that can’t get off the ground, a toy boat that keeps sinking and a bear that rides a bike.

In 2001, a feature film version was released on video and DVD using computer generated animation. Called Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and the Island of Misfit Toys, it was a sequel to the Christmas Specials and some famous names supplied voices for the characters. The film featured old favorites to join Rudolph on his adventures, including Hermey, Yukon Cornelius and Bumble. Richard Dreyfuss voiced Scoop the Snowman, who narrates the story and Jamie Lee Curtis was the voice of Queen Camilla. Every story needs a villain and Rick Moranis was the voice of the Evil Toy Taker, who is stealing toys from the Misfit Toys island.

There is a lot of merchandise associated with the Misfit Toys. For people who like to sew, there is a book of patterns and instructions called Plush You, Misfit Toys to Sew and Stuff. This contains 15 patterns and there are also biographies of characters. Ready to buy plush toy characters are also available. An audio CD contains some of the well known Christmas songs from the show; great for family get together parties during the festive season. No doubt, the story will keep receiving an update with Rudolph as the hero.