In the classic 1964 Rankin/Bass TV special Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer , Rudolph’s parents are Donner and Mrs. Donner.

Parents in the TV special

In that stop-motion special, Donner is one of Santa’s reindeer and is explicitly identified as Rudolph’s father, while his unnamed wife, usually called Mrs. Donner, is shown as his mother. Later materials and fan sources sometimes refer to Mrs. Donner by the name Mitzi, but this name comes from a later 1998 film adaptation rather than the original 1964 special.

Other versions of Rudolph

The original 1939 booklet written for Montgomery Ward did not clearly specify Rudolph’s parents, so those family details come mainly from later screen adaptations. Some later spin-offs and fandom wikis also mention a generic “Rudolph’s mother” character in other shorts, but the best-known depiction still uses Donner and Mrs. Donner as his parents.