The Hobbit is a 1977 American animated musical television special created by Rankin/Bass and animated by Topcraft. The film is an adaptation of the 1937 book of the same name by J. R. R. Tolkien; it was first broadcast on NBC in the United States on Sunday, November 27, 1977. The teleplay won a Peabody Award; the film received a Christopher Award.

Rankin/Bass Animated Entertainment was an American production company located in New York City, and known for its seasonal television specials, usually done in stop motion animation. Rankin/Bass's stop-motion productions are recognizable by their visual style of doll-like characters with spheroid body parts and ubiquitous powdery snow using an animation technique called Animagic.