Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964 TV Movie)

Burl Ives: Sam the Snowman

Photos 

Quotes 

• [first lines] 

  Sam the Snowman : If I live to be 100, I'll never forget that big snow storm a couple of years ago. The weather closed in and... well you might not believe it, but the world *almost* missed Christmas. Oh, excuse me, call me Sam. What's the matter? Haven't you ever seen a talking snowman before?

• Sam the Snowman : Well, time passed slowly. Rudolph existed as best he could.

  [voiceover] 

  Sam the Snowman : The snow monster kept him on the run, but once in a while, he would stop and make a friend - or two. But it wouldn't last long, and Rudolph would be on his own again. But during all that time, a strange and *wonderful* thing was happening... Rudolph was growing up. And growing up made Rudolph realize you *can't* run away from your *troubles*. And pretty soon he knew where he had to go: home.

• Sam the Snowman : [during "Silver and Gold"]  What's a Christmas tree without tinsel and pretty silver and gold decorations? Can't really call it a Christmas tree now, can you? And think of all the fun and joy that would be lost on Christmas morning, if all the young folks didn't get to see that sparkling, happy tree.

• Sam the Snowman : Ahh. I love this Christmasy time of year. Especially when everything is running happy and smooth, like it is this season. Nothing like that year of the big snow storms.

  [shivers] 

• Sam the Snowman : [voiceover]  Well, as good as everyone feels, this is no time for celebrating, because the next day is *Christmas Eve*, the biggest day of the year!

• Sam the Snowman : Now aside from the Abominable. Business goes on as usual.

  [voiceover] 

  Sam the Snowman : And soon, it is right before Christmas. And everybody's getting ready for that *big*, big sleigh ride on the night of the 24th, *Christmas Eve*. See, all the toys Santa brings are made by these elves. Seems elves have that certain knack for toy making, all except for this... this one misfit.

• Sam the Snowman : Well, for the first year, the Donners did a pretty fair job of hiding Rudolph's uh... nonconformity. Donner taught Rudolph all the ins and outs of being a reindeer: how to get food, how to fight off enemies, things like that. But most important... most important of all, he taught his son to beware of the Abominable Snow Monster of the North. He's mean. He's nasty. And he hates everything to do with Christmas.

• Sam the Snowman : [after Yukon and the Bumble tumble over the cliff and Hermey and Rudolph assume they're dead; voiceover]  Well, they are all very sad at the loss of their friend. But they realize that the best thing to do is to get the women back to Christmas Town. So they made it back, and when everybody hears their story, they start to realize maybe they were a little hard on the misfits. Maybe misfits have a place, too. Even Santa realizes that maybe - he was wrong.

• Sam the Snowman : Well now let me tell you about Rudolph. It all started a couple of years before the big snow.

  [fade to voiceover] 

  Sam the Snowman : It was springtime, and Santa's lead reindeer, Donner, had just become a proud papa.

• Sam the Snowman : Of course the number one citizens up here are the Clauses, Santa and the Missus. They live right over there. First castle on the left. Matter of fact, the *only* castle on the left.

  [chuckles briefly] 

• Sam the Snowman : And so, time passes. Christmas comes and goes on schedule, and soon it is April.

  [voiceover] 

  Sam the Snowman : That's when all the new fawns come out with their folks to meet the other new fawns, *and*, to be inspected by Santa.

  Donner : [to Rudolph, as they observe the other fawns mingling with each other]  Now don't worry about your nose, son. Just get out there and do your stuff.

  [affectionately] 

  Donner : Remember, you're my little buck.

• [last lines] 

  Sam the Snowman : Well, folks, as for the rest of the story, he went down in history!

  [the Rudolph theme song plays over the credits, and the sleigh proceeds with delivering the misfit toys] 

  Santa Claus : [to the audience after the credits and the song ends]  Merry Christmas! Merry Christmas!

  [He and the reindeer fly away to the distance] 

• Sam the Snowman : Ah, youth. Meanwhile, the elves are bustling with activity. Christmas is over, but they still keep busy with lessons in elf improvement.

• Sam the Snowman : Now don't any of you worry your heads about Santa; Mrs. Claus will have him plenty fattened up by Christmas Eve. It's always the same story.

• Sam the Snowman : I don't know what we would have done without Rudolph to pull us through. Anyway - uh, Rudolph? Huh, could it be that some of you are not acquainted with - the story of Rudolph?

  [nods briefly] 

  Sam the Snowman : Well, pull up an ice block and lend an ear. Now you know how Santa uses these flying reindeer to pull his sleigh.

  [music commences] 

  Sam the Snowman : You know Dasher... and Dancer, and Prancer, and Vixen; Comet, and Cupid, and Donner, and Blitzen.

• Sam the Snowman : Yes sir, our friends were really on their way, but not one of them knew where they were going.

  [fade to the Donners' cave] 

  Sam the Snowman : Now you can bet that old Donner felt pretty bad about the way he had treated Rudolph, and he knew that the only thing to do - was to go out and look for his little buck. Mrs. Donner wanted to go along, naturally, but Donner said...

  Donner : [sternly]  No. This is man's work.

  Sam the Snowman : And no sooner did the man of the house leave when Mrs. Donner and Clarice decided to set out on their own. Now they were really taking their chances, because you see, that little ice boat had run into a pack of mighty-weighted fog.

• Sam the Snowman : Like I said, the outside world is up to its ears in danger.

• Sam the Snowman : [laughs]  Silver and gold. Well, what do you think of our friend Cornelius? Seems all he thinks about is silver and gold.

• Sam the Snowman : Nice around here, isn't it? I call it Christmas Town, better known as the North Pole. A Christmas tree forest. Yep, here's where we grow 'em. Nice place to live, you know. Christmas seals.

• Sam the Snowman : Ah well, such is the life of an elf. Meanwhile, Rudolph is having his growing pains, too.

  [voiceover] 

  Sam the Snowman : Old Donner is determined to keep Rudolph's nose a secret.