who wrote the original rudolph the red-nosed reindeer song

The original Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer song was written by Johnny Marks in 1949. It was inspired by a children's book of the same name written by Robert May in 1939. The song quickly became a Christmas classic, and it has been recorded by numerous artists over the years. It is now considered to be one of the most recognizable Christmas songs of all time.