It wasn't the same when my own children was growing up because we had it all on VHS tapes and could watch whenever we wanted. But in those days, that was your only chance to see it.
The "stop-motion" form of animation is very fascinating. Not many people realize that everything you see on "Rudolph" is real. Puppets were created and placed on a mini-stage set and then moved around in tiny increments and then photographed to create the "action" you see in the film. All the stills were played together rapidly to achieve the motion picture effect.
Below is the Rudolph puppet close up with the scenery in the background. The snow was essentially a white tablecloth.
