Rudolph is the main protagonist of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.
Rudolph was born one spring to Donner and Mrs. Donner, but moments after his birth, his nose lights up much to the shock and dismay of his parents. Shortly after, Donner's boss Santa Claus arrives to see Rudolph and also sees his nose light up and says he hopes it will stop if Rudolph wants to join the sleigh team. Wanting his son to look normal for Santa, Donner puts mud on Rudolph's nose, but it doesn't stay on. Donner said he’ll get used to it, Rudolph went to cuddle against his father, Donner blushed and Mrs. Donner kisses his nose wiping it off.
One year later, Donner again places a fake nose over Rudolph's nose, that makes it look normal, but unfortunately makes him talk in a odd voice. Rudolph goes to take part in The Reindeer Games with the other yearlings where he befriends a young buck named Fireballand falls in love with a beautiful and kind doe named Clarice. After being told by Clarice that she thinks he's cute, Rudolph leaps high in the air with joy which impresses Donner, the coach Comet and Santa. However after a playful tussle with Fireball, Rudolph's fake nose falls off, revealing his red one, which causes him to be ridiculed by Fireball and the other yearling bucks and banned from the rest of the games by Comet. Rudolph runs off, but Clarice (who doesn't mind Rudolph's red nose) catches up with him and sings "There's Always Tomorrow" to him, but then Clarice's father arrives and tells Clarice to come home as he doesn't want her to be seen with "a red-nosed reindeer" which she reluctantly does.
After Clarice and her father have left, Rudolph meets and befriends an elf named Hermey, who has left his job at Santa's workshop to become a dentist and is himself also A misfit after he got scolded by the Elf Foreman. So the two decide to run away together. However, Rudolph's nose attracts a Snow Monster named the Bumble and the two and hide from him and are found by Yukon Cornelius who helps them escape the Bumble. The trio arrive at The Island Of Misfit Toys and asks the island's ruler King Moonracer if they can stay. Moonracer says that only misfit toys can stay but lets them stay the night and asks Rudolph to ask Santa to find homes for the misfit toys. That night, while Hermey and Yukon are asleep, Rudolph leaves, not wanting to allow his nose to get them in terrible danger again. Rudolph goes off.
8 months later, Rudolph, now a teen-aged young buck, decides to return home, but is laughed at by three other bucks. Rudolph returns to his cave and finds it empty and learns from Santa that his parents and Clarice had left to look for him. Rudolph leaves to look for them and finds them being held hostage by Bumble and battles him, but is knocked unconscious by the Snow Monster. Luckily, Hermey and Yukon arrive and knock out the Bumble before Hermey pulls out his teeth. After regaining consciousness, the Bumble still tries to attack the group but Yukon sacrifices himself by knocking the Bumble off a cliffside, taking himself with him.
Rudolph, his parents, Clarice, and Hermey arrive at Santa's workshop where they are happily welcomed by the other reindeer and elves. After hearing his harrowing tale, the others, including Santa, finally realized that they had treated Rudolph unfairly, and many apologize, including Cupid. Keeping his word with King Moonracer, Rudolph tells Santa to find the misfit toys homes and Santa agrees to do just that. Yukon, who was thought to be dead, arrives at the door, with a now-tame Bumble in tow. The next day, Christmas Eve, Santa says he won't be able to deliver the presents because of the snow storm. But after seeing Rudolph's nose light up, he asks him to guide his sleigh to which the reindeer agrees. During the song "Holly Jolly Christmas", Rudolph kisses Clarice on the cheek under the mistletoe. Rudolph and the other sleigh team members guide the sleigh off into the night whilst being watched by Donner, Mrs. Donner, Clarice, Hermey, Yukon, and the other reindeer and elves.