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Arthur Rankin Jr.

Arthur Rankin Jr.

Producer, director and writer · Died January 30, 2014, aged 89 · New York City, New York, USA

Arthur Rankin, Jr. (July 19, 1924 - January 30, 2014) was an American-born, Bermudian director, producer and writer, mostly working in animation. The son of actor Arthur Rankin, in the early 1960s he founded the film production company Videocraft International (now called Rankin/Bass) with Jules Bass. The two worked closely together for many years, co-directing and producing a wide array of stop motion animated features and cartoons, perhaps most famously the holiday-themed TV specials, such as Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Santa Claus is Comin' to Town, Rudolph's Shiny New Year, The Year Without a Santa Claus, Frosty the Snowman, Twas the Night Before Christmas (1974 TV special), and Jack Frost. He is also credited with devising the story for many Rankin/Bass productions, including the featurefilms The Daydreamer and Mad Monster Party?. In 1977 Rankin and Bass produced a version of J. R. R. Tolkien's The Hobbit. The pair also teamed on a wide variety of animated TV series, including ThunderCats and Silverhawks. The pair last teamed on the 1987 TV special based on The Wind in the Willows. Rankin's last producing credit was on the 1999 animated version of The King and I, in which Bass was not involved, since Arthur was a supervising animator in The Fox and the Hound and The Black Cauldron. Rankin's grandfather was Harry Davenport, perhaps best known as Dr. Meade in Gone with the Wind (1939). Description above from the Wikipedia article Arthur Rankin, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

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Biography from TMDB.

Born
July 19, 1924
Died
January 30, 2014 (aged 89)
From
New York City, New York, USA
Works as
Producer, director and writer
Titles
34 on MovieCove · 70 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 38 days to Oct 27Down 16% in 30 days

What are Arthur Rankin Jr.'s films like?

Across their 34 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Society and Bonds.

Genres

Animation27 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 66th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Animation movies
Action3 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 30th percentile
: browse their Action movies

Their MovieCove films by primary genre. The badge is the typical Midcredits score of the genre's films, the median percentile; an up arrow marks a genre at or above their average across these genres.

Themes

share of theme weight
Society
22%
Bonds
20%
Self
19%
Morality
17%
Ideas
10%
Power
7%
Survival
5%
Community11 titles, browse their movies with this themeHope10 titles, browse their movies with this themeRedemption5 titles, browse their movies with this themeFriendship6 titles, browse their movies with this themeFamily bonds6 titles, browse their movies with this themeRomantic love4 titles, browse their movies with this themeFaith4 titles, browse their movies with this themeComing of age3 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 31 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Light: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their light movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

Light 22 · Serious 8 · Dark 1

Stylized: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their stylized movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

Grounded 1 · Stylized 17 · Heightened 13

Gentle: How hard the emotional peaks hit while you watch. Browse their gentle movies.
Feel · Intensity
gentleintense

Gentle 19 · Charged 10 · Intense 2

Steady: How much it swings between very different feelings. Browse their steady movies.
Feel · Swings
steadyswings

Steady 20 · Shifting 10 · Whiplash 1

Some laughs: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their some laughs movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

Straight-faced 8 · Some laughs 19 · Funny 4

Slow burn: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their slow burn movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

Slow burn 23 · Even-paced 8 · Relentless 0

Casual: How much focus it asks of you — look away and lose the thread? Browse their casual movies.
Demand · Attention
casualfull focus

Casual 26 · Engaged 4 · Full focus 1

Resolved: How much is left for you to interpret. Browse their resolved movies.
Demand · Resolution
resolvedambiguous

Resolved 31 · Open-ended 0 · Ambiguous 0

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Joyful
18
Hopeful
17
Warm
13
Melancholic
11
Thrilling
8
Other
25

How their films linger

Feel-good23 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHopeful24 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFun7 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteBittersweet7 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteWistful4 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteCozy2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end · 3 with a twist

  • Happy24
  • Bittersweet8
  • Tragic1
  • Ambiguous1

AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.

Where can I watch Arthur Rankin Jr.'s films?

As of October 24, 2026, 15 of their 34 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Prime Video (6).

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Arthur Rankin Jr.'s titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.

Filmography

70 credits, 34 with a MovieCove page.

  • The Rudolph, Frosty & Friends Sing Along (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2024)

    Director

  • Snarf: Butterfly Blues (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2011)

    Consulting Producer

  • ThunderCats(2011)

    Show 26 episodes · Consulting Producer

    Midcredits score: 84th percentile of all shows

  • Santa, Baby!(2001)

    Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 16th percentile of all films

  • The King and I(1999)

    Adaptation · Producer

    Midcredits score: 11th percentile of all films

  • TigerSharks (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1987)

    Show 26 episodes · Executive Producer

  • Silverhawks(1986)

    Show 65 episodes · Producer

    Midcredits score: 71st percentile of all shows

  • SilverHawks: The Origin Story (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1986)

    Director

  • The Life & Adventures of Santa Claus(1985)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 77th percentile of all films

  • Thundercats(1985)

    Show 130 episodes · Executive Producer · Producer

    Midcredits score: 88th percentile of all shows

  • The Wind in the Willows (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1983)

    Director · Producer

  • The Coneheads (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1983)

    Director · Producer

  • The Sins of Dorian Gray(1983)

    Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 32nd percentile of all films

  • The Last Unicorn(1982)

    Director · Producer · Production Design

    Midcredits score: 90th percentile of all films

  • The Flight of Dragons(1982)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 90th percentile of all films

  • The Leprechauns' Christmas Gold (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1981)

    Director · Producer

  • The Bushido Blade(1981)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 18th percentile of all films

  • Pinocchio's Christmas (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1980)

    Director · Producer

  • The Return of the King(1980)

    Director · Producer · Production Design

    Midcredits score: 38th percentile of all films

  • The Ivory Ape (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1980)

    Executive Producer · Producer · Writer

  • Jack Frost(1979)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 70th percentile of all films

  • Rudolph and Frosty's Christmas in July(1979)

    Director · Producer · Production Design

    Midcredits score: 50th percentile of all films

  • The Stingiest Man in Town(1978)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 51st percentile of all films

  • The Bermuda Depths (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1978)

    Producer · Story

  • Nestor, the Long-Eared Christmas Donkey(1977)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 64th percentile of all films

  • The Hobbit(1977)

    Director · Producer · Production Design

    Midcredits score: 70th percentile of all films

  • The Last Dinosaur(1977)

    Executive Producer

    Midcredits score: 31st percentile of all films

  • The Easter Bunny Is Comin' to Town(1977)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 68th percentile of all films

  • The Little Drummer Boy Book II(1976)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 57th percentile of all films

  • Rudolph's Shiny New Year(1976)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 60th percentile of all films

  • Frosty's Winter Wonderland(1976)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 66th percentile of all films

  • The First Easter Rabbit (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1976)

    Director · Producer

  • The First Christmas: The Story of the First Christmas Snow(1975)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 57th percentile of all films

  • The Year Without a Santa Claus(1974)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 93rd percentile of all films

  • 'Twas the Night Before Christmas(1974)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 82nd percentile of all films

  • Marco (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1973)

    Producer

  • Festival of Family Classics: Alice in Wonderland (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1973)

    Director

  • That Girl in Wonderland (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1973)

    Director

  • A Christmas Tree (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1972)

    Director

  • The Red Baron (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1972)

    Director · Producer

  • Jack O'Lantern (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1972)

    Director · Producer

  • Willie Mays and the Say-Hey Kid (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1972)

    Director · Producer

  • 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1972)

    Director · Producer

  • The Mad, Mad, Mad Monsters (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1972)

    Director · Producer

  • Festival of Family Classics (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1972)

    Show 1 episode · Director · Creator · Producer

  • The Osmonds (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1972)

    Show 17 episodes · Director · Producer

  • The Emperor's New Clothes (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1972)

    Director · Producer

  • Festival of Family Classics: Swiss Family Robinson (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1972)

    Cinematographer

  • The Jackson 5ive (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1971)

    Show 23 episodes · Director · Creator · Producer

  • Here Comes Peter Cottontail(1971)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 78th percentile of all films

  • Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town(1970)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 93rd percentile of all films

  • The Tomfoolery Show (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1970)

    Show 17 episodes · Director · Producer

  • The Mad, Mad, Mad Comedians (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1970)

    Director

  • Frosty the Snowman(1969)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 84th percentile of all films

  • The Smokey Bear Show (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1969)

    Show 51 episodes · Director · Creator · Producer

  • The Little Drummer Boy(1968)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 68th percentile of all films

  • The Mouse on the Mayflower (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1968)

    Director · Producer

  • Cricket on the Hearth(1967)

    Director · Producer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 20th percentile of all films

  • The Wacky World of Mother Goose (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1967)

    Producer · Story

  • King Kong Escapes(1967)

    Executive Producer · Technical Advisor

    Midcredits score: 30th percentile of all films

  • Mad Monster Party?(1967)

    Producer · Story

    Midcredits score: 66th percentile of all films

  • Ballad of Smokey the Bear (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1966)

    Producer

  • The King Kong Show (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1966)

    Show 73 episodes · Executive Producer

  • The Daydreamer(1966)

    Producer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 46th percentile of all films

  • Willy McBean and His Magic Machine(1965)

    Director · Producer · Writer

    Midcredits score: 34th percentile of all films

  • Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer(1964)

    Producer

    Midcredits score: 96th percentile of all films

  • Return to Oz (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1964)

    Producer

  • The New Adventures of Pinocchio (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1960)

    Show Creator

  • The Cisco Kid and the Lady (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1939)

    as Second Telegraph Operator

  • Finders Keepers (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1928)

    as Percy

Career shape

A full career of 70 titles from 1928 to 2024.

Biggest box office

The King and I (1999)

$12M worldwide

Highest rated

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964)

Midcredits 96th

Most popular right now

Thundercats (1985)

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting2 of 70: 2 only acting, 0 with another roleDirecting45 of 70: 6 only directing, 39 with another role · typical Midcredits score68thWriting8 of 70: 0 only writing, 8 with another role · typical Midcredits score34thProducing58 of 70: 14 only producing, 44 with another role · typical Midcredits score67thCinematography1 of 70: 1 only cinematography, 0 with another roleOther crew9 of 70: 1 only other crew, 8 with another role · typical Midcredits score50th

70 titles, 46 with more than one role — producing and directing overlap on 37 of them.

By decade

1920s1 · acting1930s1 · acting1960s15 · crew1970s33 · crew1980s15 · crew1990s1 · crew2000s1 · crew2010s2 · crew2020s1 · crew

Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored.

How do Arthur Rankin Jr.'s films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 64th percentile, the median of all 31; across their 31 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 57th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

57thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 31

Approval · how many liked their films

68thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 31

Reach · how many have seen their films

70thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 31

Midcredits score across 34 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up11
  • 50th to 74th13
  • 25th to 49th6
  • Below 25th4

Shape of the crowd

17 of their 34 titles are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Universally Loved7
  • Crowd Pleaser17
  • Mixed10

Most divisive · producer

Santa, Baby! (2001)

89th percentile spread · 45% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · producer

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964)

Midcredits 96th · 85% liked

Reviewers score the atmosphere 61/100 and the pacing 43/100 in their films, across 30 reviewed titles. The element that speaks to their work as a director.

Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.

Is Arthur Rankin Jr.'s work okay for kids?

Across up to 7 MovieCove titles with content scores, violence & gore, sex & nudity, profanity and alcohol & drugs run lighter than most films.

Their medianMedian of all filmsMiddle 80% of their titles
Violence & Gore6 titles8–41 · median 27 · mildlighter than most filmsMedian of all films: 44
Sex & Nudity6 titles0–33 · median 16 · mildlighter than most filmsMedian of all films: 32
Profanity6 titles1–25 · median 12 · minimallighter than most filmsMedian of all films: 36
Alcohol & Drugs6 titles10–29 · median 20 · mildlighter than most filmsMedian of all films: 33
Frightening / Intense7 titles23–51 · median 33 · mildnear the median of all filmsMedian of all films: 39

Severity 0–100 from the Content Guide. Categories with under 10 votes on a title are not counted. The band's colour is the severity of their median, named beside it.

Who does Arthur Rankin Jr. work with?

People who share at least 2 of Arthur Rankin Jr.'s MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Jules Bass shares the most, 31.

Directors

Writers

Actors

  • Paul Frees15 titles    See newest 12 of 15 shared titles with Paul Frees
  • Bob McFadden8 titles    See all 8 shared titles with Bob McFadden
  • Don Messick7 titles    See all 7 shared titles with Don Messick
  • Billie Mae Richards4 titles    See all 4 shared titles with Billie Mae Richards

Composers, cinematographers and editors

Producers