Rankin-Bass Rudolph puppets - re-creations?

BrundelFly · Dec 24, 2008

My BEST estimate was TWO inches.

TREADWELL didnt agree. It CANT be less than 1.5

Im probably going with two inches for the head.

exoray · Dec 24, 2008

BrundelFly said:
My BEST estimate was TWO inches.

TREADWELL didnt agree. It CANT be less than 1.5

Im probably going with two inches for the head.

2" is probably close... I would probably lean a little heavier as I don't believe the ruler is that much out of scale in the photo even though it's in the background...

BrundelFly · Dec 24, 2008

My Finger is 23mm at the same spot as I see here. That puts his head at 55 mm or 2 and 3/16th of an inch.

So Im going with 2. minimum. My daughter has had me watch that video so many times...I might as well!

exoray · Dec 24, 2008

BrundelFly said:
My Finger is 23mm at the same spot as I see here. That puts his head at 55 mm or 2 and 3/16th of an inch.

That number I can agree upon, I actually did the same thing with my finger, not an exact science but is gets close...

BrundelFly · Dec 24, 2008

Pumpernickel · Dec 24, 2008

BrundelFly said:
Ok.

I downloaded every pics i could find.

Im making a RUDOLPH for my Daughter.

;-)

I even ordered the Felt!

Look forward to seeing the final product. Were you able to find accurate felt? It appears to be multi-colored. Here's another pic I took (with flash).

Pumpernickel

BrundelFly · Dec 24, 2008

Damn thats a great shot! where did ya get it?

Pumpernickel · Dec 24, 2008

BrundelFly said:
Damn thats a great shot! where did ya get it?

I took it when the puppets were on display at Atlanta's Puppetry museum (Center for Puppetry Arts). PM me your email and I'll send you some large pix of Rudolph. (Please note that my online time will be spotty the next couple of days due to the holidays.)

Pumpernickel

Treadwell · Dec 26, 2008

BrundelFly said:
My BEST estimate was TWO inches.

TREADWELL didnt agree. It CANT be less than 1.5

Im probably going with two inches for the head.

I don't have a strong opinion on the size. You folks are doing fine working that out.

(thanks for noticing the avatar, JB! I did have to crop it more than I like to get it below 75k)

DarkHelmet · Dec 27, 2008

If you guys can hold on for a couple of days or less, I sent an email to Kevin, the guy who owns the original Rudolph. Hopefully he'll provide accurate measurements.

BrundelFly · Dec 27, 2008

DarkHelmet said:
If you guys can hold on for a couple of days or less, I sent an email to Kevin, the guy who owns the original Rudolph. Hopefully he'll provide accurate measurements.

Yeah I wrote him too..and sent the above picture.

No reply yet.

I have been researching it a bit..and ofcourse watching the movie.
There were at least two different Rudolphs. The younger one, then the bigger one.

The MAKING OF BOOK says Hermie was 140 mm. And he is taller than Rudolph, so either my measures are WAY off, or there were several sizes.

The book is really awesome. There is even a diagram showing how the deer were constructed.

Frank

Pumpernickel · Dec 27, 2008

BrundelFly said:
I have been researching it a bit..and ofcourse watching the movie.
There were at least two different Rudolphs. The younger one, then the bigger one.

Frank

Actually, there are three Rudolphs in the show---newborn Rudolph, adolescent Rudolph (this version is seen in a majority of the show and is the puppet that has surfaced), and young adult Rudolph with full antlers.

Pumpernickel

BrundelFly · Dec 27, 2008

Pumpernickel said:
Actually, there are three Rudolphs in the show---newborn Rudolph, adolescent Rudolph (this version is seen in a majority of the show and is the puppet that has surfaced), and young adult Rudolph with full antlers.

Pumpernickel

I dont doubt it.
Young Rudolph looked about the same size to me. Which made me wonder if the ANTLERS were removable.

Cleverlilminx · Dec 28, 2008

Pumpernickel said:
Look forward to seeing the final product. Were you able to find accurate felt? It appears to be multi-colored. Here's another pic I took (with flash).

Pumpernickel

I would be curious to see the found felt as well for this since in this photo, to me anyway, it looks like several different colors of wool were felted together to make this. Given the time period I would not discount that hand made felt was used instead of using pre-made felt.

As a hobby, I make felt so I am very curious what is found out about this felt covering. I am now considering make a few Rudolph dolls as well for gifts next year too.

BrundelFly · Dec 28, 2008

He wrote back.

Im waiting for more info as we speak.

According to the book, the felt was dyed by hand.

Who here is serious about making one?

Pumpernickel · Dec 28, 2008

BrundelFly said:
Who here is serious about making one?

At this point, I don't feel I have the talent/know-how to attempt.

I'm following this thread closely and looking forward to seeing the results of the more talented than me. If anyone is serious about making a puppet, I'm available for encouragement and resources (e.g., photos, etc.).

Pumpernickel

Pumpernickel · Dec 29, 2008

BrundelFly said:
The MAKING OF BOOK says Hermie was 140 mm. And he is taller than Rudolph, so either my measures are WAY off, or there were several sizes.
Frank

If the main Hermey puppet was only 140mm (5.51 inches), maybe Rudolph was closer to 5 inches? Look at this photo of the Rudolph puppet, compared to the hand holding it.

But you are correct, smaller versions of the puppets were used in a few short scenes. Specifically, when the puppets were shown with Bumbles (in long shots), smaller puppets were used.

Pumpernickel

SFPROPS · Dec 29, 2008

The felt doesn't look multi-hued normally. It looks like it's an even tan. If it's hand dyed, then I don't think it could be multi-hued. It's possible that with age, the felt has discolored slightly in places. Between light bleaching in some places and darker fibers due to dirt, it could have lots of variance from how it originally looked back in the 60's.

Cleverlilminx · Dec 29, 2008

You can dye different lots of wool different colors, then run all the different colors together through a carder to make a blended combination of colors. Then take the wool and make felt. So it is not too hard to achieve what it looks like multi-colored felt.

I'm not saying that is what they used but it is not hard to recreate what we see now.

LordVdr · Dec 30, 2008

This is an AWESOME thread...

Rankin-Bass Rudolph puppets - re-creations?

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