President Obama and Nancy Reagan are very famous Chicagoans. However, the most famous Chicagoan of all is a youth who overcame adversity to become an international leader.
Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer's story was first told by Robert Lewis May in 1939. The Montgomery Ward Company commissioned May to do a children’s storybook. The book was an instant hit. Montgomery Ward distributed 2.4 million free copies in 1939 and another 3.6 million in 1946. You may view a copy of the 1939 edition, which is slightly different from modern editions, in our Special Collections Division.
Robert May’s brother-in-law, Johnny Marks, set the poem to music. Gene Autry sang it. The 1949 recording was another mega-hit.
May wrote two sequels, Rudolph Shines Again and Rudolph's Second Christmas. Rudolph, playing himself, has starred in a number of short movies.
Even though Rudolph is not considered a security risk, NORAD tracks him whenever he gets close to U.S. or Canadian airspace.
So far nobody seems to have written a biography of May, but you may read more about the creation of Rudolph by searching Google for Robert Lewis May. Newspapers and magazines at Chicago Public Library also have articles about May and Rudolph's Chicago history.
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