The 2nd-most-famous reindeer of all Do you recall? No one does. Help us give him another shot at going down in history
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer is a Christmas celebrity. He has his own classic holiday TV show, his own song and a line of toys, clothing and home decor.
Then there’s Richard the Sharp-Eared Reindeer.
Never heard of him? Neither had we, until a staff member discovered a 1981 children’s record telling his story. While Rudolph has captured the attention of the masses with his freakish nose, the legend of another mutant reindeer was nearly lost to history, but now here it is.
This isn’t the story told on the record, which is fairly boring. This is our much more exciting version with a twist -- we want you to write the ending.
We’re not asking for a novel, a few sentences will do. We’ll publish the best endings in our Dec. 21 edition. Maybe this is the start of a new classic and next year we’ll be selling Richard the Sharp-Eared Reindeer T-shirts.
You can send us your ending one of three ways. The author of the best entry will receive two free movie tickets:
1. Write it in the comments section below (where you can find a link to hear the actual record).
2. Email it to contests@inland360.com.
3. Mail it to Inland 360, PO Box 957, Lewiston, ID 83501 or drop entries off at the offices of the Lewiston Tribune or Moscow-Pullman Daily News.
Entries are due by 9 a.m. Tuesday, Dec. 19. Please include your name and address, and we’ll send you an Inland 360 sticker.
THE UNTOLD STORY OF RICHARD THE SHARP-EARED REINDEER
It was Christmas Eve, and Richard the Sharp-Eared Reindeer was sad. Once again he’d been left behind.
Santa did not want him on his team. His razor-like ears were as long and sharp as samurai swords, a hazard to the other flying reindeer, Santa said. The only safe place for Richard was at the front of the line, and that was Rudolph’s spot. That’s why every Dec. 24th, Richard was left behind to cut out cookies for the Christmas Eve after-party and shred wish lists for recycling, a painful chore that left him with thousands of paper cuts. Just one Christmas he wanted to see the world.
He was in the midst of shredding his 4,079th list when he heard something strange.
“What’s that I hear,” asked Richard, his candy cane-striped tie waving in the wind.
Besides having ears sharp enough to cut rocks, Richard had amazing hearing, and at this moment he heard Santa cry out somewhere over Bolivia.
Without a thought, Richard bolted into the sky, torpedoing through the night toward the southern hemisphere. He arrived just in time to see Santa disappear into the impenetrable wilderness of the Amazon. There was just one thing stopping Richard from diving into the jungle to save Santa. It was another reindeer ...
What happens next? You tell us...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-L1cqMOB-6k
