The Man With The 'ANIMAGICAL' Typewriter

December 25, 2011 8:11 AM

Romeo Muller wrote some of the most popular holiday (mostly Christmas) specials of all time for Rankin/Bass, including Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, The Little Drummer Boy, Santa Claus is Comin' to Town (bonus Justin Bieber version with Animagic!), Jack Frost, and Nestor the Long-Eared Christmas Donkey. The very last special he wrote was Noel, based on a story he told on the radio every year at Christmas. It aired just days before his death on December 30th, 1992. Another special, called The Twelve Days of Christmas, aired in 1993, and was based on a story by him, but was written by someone else.

Romeo is also known for writing the 1977 version of The Hobbit, and later The Return of the King, as well as episodes of many children's cartoons. He wrote and acted in a live-action Rankin/Bass production called Marco. It starred Desi Arnaz, Jr., and you can see Romeo, dressed as a Chinese man, yelling at the beginning of the film.

posted by Huck500 (6 comments total)

@Rickgoldschmidt is a Rankin/Bass historian and blogs here. His book Mad Monster Party is now available in paperback. (No idea why Amazon is listing it as out of print as I was previously able to order a copy.)
posted by cjorgensen at 8:37 AM on December 25, 2011

Noel had me at the moment when I saw the credit "Narrated by Charlton Heston"
posted by KingEdRa at 8:40 AM on December 25, 2011

Christmas specials updated for 2011
posted by homunculus at 10:27 AM on December 25, 2011

Mad Monster Party (the DVD) is so, so worth the $9.99. A friend of the family loaned it to my then five-year-old son in the midst of The Ongoing Halloween That Started Three Years Ago and Transcends Your Puny Grup Calendars, and it continues to entertain all of us.
posted by mph at 1:04 PM on December 25, 2011

at my advanced age, my eyes don't seem to be able to secrete the fluids I need to be comfortable. Sometimes blinking is agony. Like 60 grit under my eyelids. Little Drummer Boy fixes that right up for me, any time of year, with no strange chemical drops. Thank you, Mr. Muller
posted by Redhush at 8:11 PM on December 25, 2011

Who the hell is banging on that bleeding drum? Don't you realize there's a new born baby trying to sleep in here?
posted by PeterMcDermott at 4:19 AM on December 26, 2011