A Charlie Brown Christmas
Encyclopedia
A Charlie Brown Christmas is the first prime-time animated
TV special
based upon the comic strip
Peanuts
, by Charles M. Schulz
. It was produced and directed by former Warner Bros.
and UPA
animator Bill Melendez
, who also supplied the voice for the character of Snoopy
. Initially sponsored by Coca-Cola
, the special debuted on CBS
in 1965, and has been aired during the Christmas season
every year since: on CBS through 2000, and on ABC
since 2001. Long an annual telecast, the special is now shown at least twice during the weeks leading up to Christmas. The special has been honored with both an Emmy
and Peabody Award
. Since its original airdate, the special has become a classic to watch during the Christmas
season.
confides in Linus
that even though Christmas is approaching he still feels depressed, despite all the presents, cards and tree decorating, due to the over-commercialization of Christmas. His depression and aggravation only get exacerbated by the goings-on in the neighborhood. Though his mailbox is empty, he tries sarcastically to thank Violet
for the card she "sent" him, though Violet says she did not send him a card.
Ultimately, Charlie Brown visits Lucy
in her psychiatric booth. On her advice, he gets involved in directing a school play about the Nativity
.
On the way to the auditorium, Charlie Brown stops by Snoopy's doghouse, only to find him frantically busy decorating it. After Charlie Brown demands an explanation, Snoopy hands him a flyer about a neighborhood lights and display contest which upsets Charlie Brown because even his own dog has gone commercial. En route to the rehearsals, he runs into his sister Sally, who asks him to write her letter to Santa Claus
; her telling him to put in a request for large sums of money ("tens
and twenties
," the rough equivalent to $50
and $100
bills in 2011 dollars) causes Charlie Brown to become even more dismayed.
Charlie Brown arrives at the rehearsals, but try as he might, he cannot seem to get control of the situation as the uncooperative kids are more interested in modernizing the play with dancing and lively music. Charlie Brown, on the other hand, is determined not to let the play become commercial and to focus on the traditional side of the story.
Thinking the play requires "the proper mood", Charlie Brown decides they need a Christmas tree. So Lucy takes over the crowd and dispatches Charlie Brown to get a "big, shiny aluminum tree
". With Linus in tow, Charlie Brown sets off on his quest. But when they get to the tree market, Charlie Brown zeroes in on a small baby tree which, ironically as well as symbolically, is the only real tree on the lot.
Linus is reluctant about Charlie Brown's choice, but Charlie Brown is convinced that after decorating it, it will be just right for the play. They return to the school auditorium with the tree and everybody laughs at Charlie Brown, especially Lucy, about his choice. Second guessing himself, Charlie Brown begins to wonder if he really knows what Christmas is all about, loudly asking the question in despair. Linus quietly says he can tell him, and walks to center stage to make his point. Under a spotlight, Linus quotes the second chapter of the Gospel according to Luke, verses 8 through 14 from the King James Version.
Charlie Brown now realizes he does not have to let commercialism ruin his Christmas. With a newly found sense of inspiration, he quietly picks up the little tree and walks out of the auditorium, intending to take the tree home to decorate and show the others it will work in the play.
On the way, he stops at Snoopy's decorated doghouse, which now sports a first prize blue ribbon for winning the display contest. He puts an ornamental ball on the top of his tree; the branch, with the ball still on it, promptly flops over to one side instead of remaining upright, prompting him to declare "I've killed it" and run off in disgust at his perpetual failure.
Unbeknownst to Charlie Brown; the rest of the gang, having also heard Linus's recitation, began to realize they were a little too rough on Charlie Brown and have quietly followed him from the auditorium. Linus goes up to the little tree and gently props the drooping branch back to its upright position, ornament and all; and wraps his security blanket around the tree. After they add the remaining decorations from Snoopy's doghouse to the tree, the kids then start humming the Christmas carol
, "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing
." When Charlie Brown sees what they have done with the tree, he cannot believe his eyes, and the kids give him a rousing "Merry Christmas, Charlie Brown!" before singing "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing" as the end credits roll.
and secularism
of Christmas, and serves to remind viewers of the true meaning of Christmas: the birth of Jesus
Christ
, continuing a theme explored by satirists
such as Stan Freberg
and Tom Lehrer
during the 1950s.
, presented the CBS network with an idea for a Christmas television special starring Schulz's characters in 1964.
The production was done on a shoestring budget, resulting in a somewhat choppy animation style
and, from a technical standpoint, poorly mixed
sound. With the exception of the actors who voiced Charlie Brown (Peter Robbins
), Linus (Christopher Shea), and Lucy (Tracy Stratford), none of the children had any experience doing voice work. This was especially challenging for Kathy Steinberg, who voiced Sally
: she was too young to read and Mendelson recalls that she needed to be cued "one line at a time" during the soundtrack recording. The technical issues are in evidence on the show's audio track, which to some may seem noticeably choppy and poorly enunciated
. One of the more noticeable quirks in the special includes a shot in which Schroeder
abruptly stops playing the piano, but several of the characters continue dancing for a couple of seconds. Melendez said he remained somewhat embarrassed to see the show repeated every year with all its problems, but Schulz vetoed his idea of "fixing" the program years later.
Network executives were not at all keen on several aspects of the show, forcing Schulz and Melendez to wage some serious battles to preserve their vision. The executives did not want to have Linus reciting the story of the birth of Christ from the Gospel of Luke; the network orthodoxy of the time assumed that viewers would not want to sit through passages of the King James Version of the Bible. A story reported on the Whoopi Goldberg
-hosted version of the making of the program (see below) that Charles Schulz was adamant about keeping this scene in, remarking, "If we don't tell the true meaning of Christmas, who will?"
Another complaint was the absence of a laugh track
, a common element of children's cartoons at the time. Schulz maintained that the audience should be able to enjoy the show at their own pace, without being cued when to laugh. (CBS did create a version of the show with the laugh track added, just in case Schulz changed his mind. This version remains unavailable, though unauthorized copies have appeared on YouTube
.)
A third complaint was the use of children to do the voice acting
, instead of employing adult actors. Finally, the executives thought that the jazz
soundtrack by Vince Guaraldi
would not work well for a children's program. When executives saw the final product, they were horrified and believed the special would be a complete flop. CBS programmers were equally pessimistic, informing the production team, “We will, of course, air it next week, but I’m afraid we won’t be ordering any more.” Mendelson and Melendez said to themselves, "We've just ruined Charlie Brown."
The half-hour special first aired on Thursday, December 9, 1965, preempting The Munsters
and following the Gilligan's Island
episode "Don't Bug the Mosquitoes". To the surprise of the executives, it was both a critical and commercial hit. None of the special's technical problems detracted from the show's appeal; to the contrary, it is thought that these so-called quirks, along with several other choices, are what lent the show such an innovative, authentic and sincere feeling.
For instance, Linus's recitation was hailed by critics such as Harriet Van Horne
of the New York World-Telegram
who said, "Linus' reading of the story of the Nativity was, quite simply, the dramatic highlight of the season."
A total of 50% of the televisions in the United States were tuned to the first broadcast. A Charlie Brown Christmas won an Emmy and a Peabody
award, and is today considered to be one of the most beloved animated holiday specials of all time. The success of the animated special, A Charlie Brown Christmas, has given rise to numerous other Peanuts specials (including ten others that are also holiday-themed), a miniseries devoted to America (This Is America, Charlie Brown
), a Saturday morning cartoon (The Charlie Brown and Snoopy Show
), and four full-length Peanuts feature films.
In January 2000, one month before Schulz's death, the broadcast rights were acquired by ABC (as part of a deal between the network and Schulz), which is where the special currently airs (and has aired there since CBS's final airing of the special on December 25, 2000). On September 12, 2000, the special was released to DVD
[it had previously been released on VHS through Shell Oil for sale at their gas stations]. The show enjoyed its 40th anniversary with its broadcast of Tuesday, December 6, 2005. This broadcast had the highest ratings
in its time slot.
On December 6, 2000, a half-hour documentary
on the special entitled The Making of "A Charlie Brown Christmas" (hosted by Whoopi Goldberg) aired on ABC. In 2002, it was replaced by Charlie Brown's Christmas Tales
. This documentary was released (along with the special Charlie Brown's Christmas Tales) as a bonus feature with the special I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown
on October 26, 2004.
, the show's original sponsor. Specific, acknowledged cuts are:
Although the FCC
eventually imposed rules preventing sponsor references in the context of a story (especially in children's programming
), this had no effect upon the decision to impose these edits. The Coca-Cola product placement
elements were removed when the company ceased being the sole sponsor, replaced in 1968 by Dolly Madison
snack products, who continued to sponsor the Peanuts specials through the 1980s, along with McDonald's
.
When CBS aired the special in the 1990s, the network made further cuts to the special, including standardizing closing credits (removing the closing carol outright in the process), trimming out a series of scenes where the characters belittle Charlie Brown for picking a small Christmas tree (cutting straight to laughter), and removing references to commercialism
. These cuts were made ostensibly to fit the special into the 30-minute time slot; commercial time per half-hour had increased by approximately 2 minutes between 1965 and the late 1990s. ABC, upon acquiring the rights to the special in 2000, restored all of these cuts, increasing the length of the special to 32 minutes including commercials, which required ABC to either commission or adjust existing programming to fit into the extra 28 minutes of the hour. ABC, however, has chosen to insert its commercials into different places in the program than were originally intended (fade-outs and fade-ins where the commercials are supposed to go are clearly evident), resulting in the commercials being haphazardly inserted in the middle of musical numbers or even dialogue.
Several scenes were cut from the first airing in December 2009 on ABC to make room for the new special Prep & Landing., including:
, maker of the Baby Songs
videos, has also released A Charlie Brown Christmas on VHS. A laser disc was released by Paramount (distributed by Pioneer) in 1996; Side 2 contained the 1979 special You're the Greatest, Charlie Brown
.
In September 2000 it was released on DVD. Bonus features included the 1992 special It's Christmastime Again, Charlie Brown
. On September 23, 2008, Warner Home Video (to which the rights to the Peanuts specials reverted earlier in the year, due to Melendez's connections to WB) released a "remastered" DVD. Bonus features include a restored version of Christmastime Again and a new documentary titled "A Christmas Miracle: The Making of A Charlie Brown Christmas". It is also available in a 4-disc box set with It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown
and A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving
, also including an audio CD of Charlie Brown holiday music. It was yet again released by Warner Home Video on July 7, 2009 in a 2-disc box set called Peanuts 1960's Collection which featured all the Peanuts TV specials of the 1960s.
In the UK it was released along with "I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown
"
Since off-network rights to this special have been transferred to Warner Home Video
, this has become available as a download on the iTunes Store and the PlayStation Network's video store, and includes It's Christmastime Again, Charlie Brown and It's Flashbeagle, Charlie Brown
. It is also available on high definition Blu-ray Disc
from Warner in remastered Dolby 5.1 surround sound. This disc also contains It's Christmastime Again, A Christmas Miracle, a DVD of the special, and a Digital Copy
.
, by jazz composer Vince Guaraldi
, has become as well-known as the story itself. In particular, the instrumental "Linus and Lucy
" has come to be regarded as the signature musical theme of the Peanuts specials. Additionally "Christmas Time is Here" has become a popular Christmas tune. A soundtrack album for the special was released by Fantasy Records
and remains a perennial best-seller. (While the soundtrack contains some music that does not appear in the TV special, it also fails to include two musical themes which appear in the special. Both of those missing themes are, however, available on another album by the Vince Guaraldi Trio entitled Charlie Brown's Holiday Hits.)
2004
The popularity of the special is said to have practically eliminated the popularity of the aluminum Christmas tree
, which was a popular fad
between 1958 and 1965, but because of the negative publicity the trees received in A Charlie Brown Christmas, quickly fell out of favor. By 1967, just two years after the special first aired, they were no longer being regularly manufactured.
While not true sequels, several other Charlie Brown holiday season specials were produced: 1966's It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown
, 1973's A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving
, and Happy New Year, Charlie Brown!
, among several others. All three of those mentioned still receive airplay on ABC to this day, with the first two having aired on a near-continuous basis since their debuts.
In 2003, a parody called "A Charlie Brown Kwanzaa
" became famous over the internet and caused many sequels; it led to the website, Most Offensive Video (see under external links).
Animation
Animation is the rapid display of a sequence of images of 2-D or 3-D artwork or model positions in order to create an illusion of movement. The effect is an optical illusion of motion due to the phenomenon of persistence of vision, and can be created and demonstrated in several ways...
TV special
Television special
A television special is a television program which interrupts or temporarily replaces programming normally scheduled for a given time slot. Sometimes, however, the term is given to a telecast of a theatrical film, such as The Wizard of Oz or The Ten Commandments, which is not part of a regular...
based upon the comic strip
Comic strip
A comic strip is a sequence of drawings arranged in interrelated panels to display brief humor or form a narrative, often serialized, with text in balloons and captions....
Peanuts
Peanuts
Peanuts is a syndicated daily and Sunday American comic strip written and illustrated by Charles M. Schulz, which ran from October 2, 1950, to February 13, 2000, continuing in reruns afterward...
, by Charles M. Schulz
Charles M. Schulz
Charles Monroe "Sparky" Schulz was an American cartoonist, whose comic strip Peanuts proved one of the most popular and influential in the history of the medium, and is still widely reprinted on a daily basis.-Early life and education:Born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Schulz grew up in Saint Paul...
. It was produced and directed by former Warner Bros.
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...
and UPA
United Productions of America
United Productions of America, better known as UPA, was an American animation studio of the 1940s through present day, beginning with industrial films and World War II training films. In the late 1940s, UPA produced theatrical shorts for Columbia Pictures, most notably the Mr. Magoo series. In...
animator Bill Melendez
Bill Melendez
José Cuauhtémoc "Bill" Meléndez was a Mexican-American character animator, film director, voice artist and producer, known for his cartoons for Warner Brothers, UPA and the Peanuts series...
, who also supplied the voice for the character of Snoopy
Snoopy
Snoopy is an fictional character in the long-running comic strip Peanuts, by Charles M. Schulz. He is Charlie Brown's pet beagle. Snoopy began his life in the strip as a fairly conventional dog, but eventually evolved into perhaps the strip's most dynamic character—and among the most recognizable...
. Initially sponsored by Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola is a carbonated soft drink sold in stores, restaurants, and vending machines in more than 200 countries. It is produced by The Coca-Cola Company of Atlanta, Georgia, and is often referred to simply as Coke...
, the special debuted on CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
in 1965, and has been aired during the Christmas season
Christmas season
Christmastide is one of the seasons of the liturgical year of most Christian churches. It tends to be defined as the period from Christmas Eve to the evening of 5 January, the day before Epiphany...
every year since: on CBS through 2000, and on ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
since 2001. Long an annual telecast, the special is now shown at least twice during the weeks leading up to Christmas. The special has been honored with both an Emmy
Emmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
and Peabody Award
Peabody Award
The George Foster Peabody Awards recognize distinguished and meritorious public service by radio and television stations, networks, producing organizations and individuals. In 1939, the National Association of Broadcasters formed a committee to recognize outstanding achievement in radio broadcasting...
. Since its original airdate, the special has become a classic to watch during the Christmas
Christmas
Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
season.
Plot
On their way to join the rest of the Peanuts gang all skating on a frozen pond, Charlie BrownCharlie Brown
Charles "Charlie" Brown is the protagonist in the comic strip Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz.Charlie Brown and his creator have a common connection in that they are both the sons of barbers, but whereas Schulz's work is described as the "most shining example of the American success story", Charlie...
confides in Linus
Linus van Pelt
Linus van Pelt is a character in Charles M. Schulz's comic strip Peanuts. The best friend of Charlie Brown, Linus is also the younger brother of Lucy van Pelt and older brother of Rerun van Pelt. He first appeared on September 19, 1952; however, he was not mentioned by name until three days later....
that even though Christmas is approaching he still feels depressed, despite all the presents, cards and tree decorating, due to the over-commercialization of Christmas. His depression and aggravation only get exacerbated by the goings-on in the neighborhood. Though his mailbox is empty, he tries sarcastically to thank Violet
Violet (Peanuts)
Violet Gray is a fictional character in the comic strip Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz.Violet has shoulder-length dark hair, and she frequently wears green dresses...
for the card she "sent" him, though Violet says she did not send him a card.
Ultimately, Charlie Brown visits Lucy
Lucy van Pelt
Lucille "Lucy" van Pelt is a fictional character in the syndicated comic strip :Peanuts, written and drawn by Charles Schulz. She is the main bully and the older sister of Linus and Rerun. Lucy is a crabby and cynical eight-year old girl, and often bullies the other characters in the strip,...
in her psychiatric booth. On her advice, he gets involved in directing a school play about the Nativity
Nativity of Jesus
The Nativity of Jesus, or simply The Nativity, refers to the accounts of the birth of Jesus in two of the Canonical gospels and in various apocryphal texts....
.
On the way to the auditorium, Charlie Brown stops by Snoopy's doghouse, only to find him frantically busy decorating it. After Charlie Brown demands an explanation, Snoopy hands him a flyer about a neighborhood lights and display contest which upsets Charlie Brown because even his own dog has gone commercial. En route to the rehearsals, he runs into his sister Sally, who asks him to write her letter to Santa Claus
Santa Claus
Santa Claus is a folklore figure in various cultures who distributes gifts to children, normally on Christmas Eve. Each name is a variation of Saint Nicholas, but refers to Santa Claus...
; her telling him to put in a request for large sums of money ("tens
United States ten-dollar bill
The United States ten-dollar bill is a denomination of United States currency. The first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury, Alexander Hamilton, is currently featured on the obverse of the bill, while the U.S. Treasury is featured on the reverse. The United States ten-dollar bill ($10) is a...
and twenties
United States twenty-dollar bill
The United States twenty-dollar bill is a denomination of United States currency. U.S. President Andrew Jackson is currently featured on the front side of the bill, which is why the twenty-dollar bill is often called a "Jackson," while the White House is featured on the reverse side.The...
," the rough equivalent to $50
United States fifty-dollar bill
The United States fifty-dollar bill is a denomination of United States currency. Ulysses S. Grant is currently featured on the obverse, while the U.S. Capitol is featured on the reverse. All current-issue $50 bills are Federal Reserve Notes....
and $100
United States one hundred-dollar bill
The United States one hundred-dollar bill is a denomination of United States currency. U.S. statesman, inventor and diplomat Benjamin Franklin is currently featured on the obverse of the bill. On the reverse of the banknote is an image of Independence Hall. The time on the clock according to the...
bills in 2011 dollars) causes Charlie Brown to become even more dismayed.
Charlie Brown arrives at the rehearsals, but try as he might, he cannot seem to get control of the situation as the uncooperative kids are more interested in modernizing the play with dancing and lively music. Charlie Brown, on the other hand, is determined not to let the play become commercial and to focus on the traditional side of the story.
Thinking the play requires "the proper mood", Charlie Brown decides they need a Christmas tree. So Lucy takes over the crowd and dispatches Charlie Brown to get a "big, shiny aluminum tree
Aluminum Christmas tree
An aluminum Christmas tree is a type of artificial Christmas tree that was popular in the United States from 1958 until about the mid-1960s. As its name suggests, the tree is made of aluminum, featuring foil needles and illumination from below via a rotating color wheel.-History:Aluminum Christmas...
". With Linus in tow, Charlie Brown sets off on his quest. But when they get to the tree market, Charlie Brown zeroes in on a small baby tree which, ironically as well as symbolically, is the only real tree on the lot.
Linus is reluctant about Charlie Brown's choice, but Charlie Brown is convinced that after decorating it, it will be just right for the play. They return to the school auditorium with the tree and everybody laughs at Charlie Brown, especially Lucy, about his choice. Second guessing himself, Charlie Brown begins to wonder if he really knows what Christmas is all about, loudly asking the question in despair. Linus quietly says he can tell him, and walks to center stage to make his point. Under a spotlight, Linus quotes the second chapter of the Gospel according to Luke, verses 8 through 14 from the King James Version.
"'8And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.
9And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.
10And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.
11For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord.
12And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.
13And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,
14Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace and goodwill towards men.'"
"...And that's what Christmas is all about, Charlie Brown."
Charlie Brown now realizes he does not have to let commercialism ruin his Christmas. With a newly found sense of inspiration, he quietly picks up the little tree and walks out of the auditorium, intending to take the tree home to decorate and show the others it will work in the play.
On the way, he stops at Snoopy's decorated doghouse, which now sports a first prize blue ribbon for winning the display contest. He puts an ornamental ball on the top of his tree; the branch, with the ball still on it, promptly flops over to one side instead of remaining upright, prompting him to declare "I've killed it" and run off in disgust at his perpetual failure.
Unbeknownst to Charlie Brown; the rest of the gang, having also heard Linus's recitation, began to realize they were a little too rough on Charlie Brown and have quietly followed him from the auditorium. Linus goes up to the little tree and gently props the drooping branch back to its upright position, ornament and all; and wraps his security blanket around the tree. After they add the remaining decorations from Snoopy's doghouse to the tree, the kids then start humming the Christmas carol
Christmas carol
A Christmas carol is a carol whose lyrics are on the theme of Christmas or the winter season in general and which are traditionally sung in the period before Christmas.-History:...
, "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing
Hark! The Herald Angels Sing
“Hark! The Herald Angels Sing” is a Christmas carol that first appeared in 1739 in the collection Hymns and Sacred Poems, having been written by Charles Wesley. This is not the version widely known today. A sombre man, Wesley had requested and received slow and solemn music for his lyrics, not the...
." When Charlie Brown sees what they have done with the tree, he cannot believe his eyes, and the kids give him a rousing "Merry Christmas, Charlie Brown!" before singing "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing" as the end credits roll.
Themes
The story touches on the over-commercializationCommercialization
Commercialization is the process or cycle of introducing a new product or production method into the market. The actual launch of a new product is the final stage of new product development, and the one where the most money will have to be spent for advertising, sales promotion, and other marketing...
and secularism
Secularism
Secularism is the principle of separation between government institutions and the persons mandated to represent the State from religious institutions and religious dignitaries...
of Christmas, and serves to remind viewers of the true meaning of Christmas: the birth of Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
Christ
Christ
Christ is the English term for the Greek meaning "the anointed one". It is a translation of the Hebrew , usually transliterated into English as Messiah or Mashiach...
, continuing a theme explored by satirists
Satire
Satire is primarily a literary genre or form, although in practice it can also be found in the graphic and performing arts. In satire, vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, ideally with the intent of shaming individuals, and society itself, into improvement...
such as Stan Freberg
Stan Freberg
Stanley Victor "Stan" Freberg is an American author, recording artist, animation voice actor, comedian, radio personality, puppeteer, and advertising creative director whose career began in 1944...
and Tom Lehrer
Tom Lehrer
Thomas Andrew "Tom" Lehrer is an American singer-songwriter, satirist, pianist, mathematician and polymath. He has lectured on mathematics and musical theater...
during the 1950s.
Production and reception
Bringing the Peanuts characters to television was not an easy task. The strip's creators, with funding from sponsor Coca-ColaCoca-Cola
Coca-Cola is a carbonated soft drink sold in stores, restaurants, and vending machines in more than 200 countries. It is produced by The Coca-Cola Company of Atlanta, Georgia, and is often referred to simply as Coke...
, presented the CBS network with an idea for a Christmas television special starring Schulz's characters in 1964.
The production was done on a shoestring budget, resulting in a somewhat choppy animation style
Limited animation
Limited animation is a process of making animated cartoons that does not redraw entire frames but variably reuses common parts between frames. One of its major trademarks is the stylized design in all forms and shapes, which in the early days was referred to as modern design...
and, from a technical standpoint, poorly mixed
Audio mixing (film and television)
Audio mixing for film and television is a process during the post-production stage of a moving image program by which a multitude of recorded sounds are combined into one or more channels...
sound. With the exception of the actors who voiced Charlie Brown (Peter Robbins
Peter Robbins (actor)
Peter Robbins is a former child actor best known for his voice-over work as Charlie Brown in the 1960s.-The original Charlie Brown:...
), Linus (Christopher Shea), and Lucy (Tracy Stratford), none of the children had any experience doing voice work. This was especially challenging for Kathy Steinberg, who voiced Sally
Sally Brown
Sally Brown is the younger sister of Charlie Brown in the comic strip Peanuts by Charles Schulz. She was first mentioned in early 1959 and throughout a long series of strips before her first appearance in August 1959.-Appearance:...
: she was too young to read and Mendelson recalls that she needed to be cued "one line at a time" during the soundtrack recording. The technical issues are in evidence on the show's audio track, which to some may seem noticeably choppy and poorly enunciated
Enunciation
In phonetics, enunciation is the act of speaking. Good enunciation is the act of speaking clearly and concisely. The opposite of good enunciation is mumbling or slurring. See also pronunciation which is a component of enunciation. Pronunciation is to pronounce sounds of words correctly....
. One of the more noticeable quirks in the special includes a shot in which Schroeder
Schroeder (Peanuts)
Schroeder is a fictional character in the long-running comic strip Peanuts, created by Charles M. Schulz. He is distinguished by his precocious skill at playing the toy piano, as well as by his love of classical music and the composer Ludwig van Beethoven in particular...
abruptly stops playing the piano, but several of the characters continue dancing for a couple of seconds. Melendez said he remained somewhat embarrassed to see the show repeated every year with all its problems, but Schulz vetoed his idea of "fixing" the program years later.
Network executives were not at all keen on several aspects of the show, forcing Schulz and Melendez to wage some serious battles to preserve their vision. The executives did not want to have Linus reciting the story of the birth of Christ from the Gospel of Luke; the network orthodoxy of the time assumed that viewers would not want to sit through passages of the King James Version of the Bible. A story reported on the Whoopi Goldberg
Whoopi Goldberg
Whoopi Goldberg is an American comedian, actress, singer-songwriter, political activist, author and talk show host.Goldberg made her film debut in The Color Purple playing Celie, a mistreated black woman in the Deep South. She received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress and won...
-hosted version of the making of the program (see below) that Charles Schulz was adamant about keeping this scene in, remarking, "If we don't tell the true meaning of Christmas, who will?"
Another complaint was the absence of a laugh track
Laugh track
A laugh track is a separate soundtrack invented by Charles "Charley" Douglass, with the artificial sound of audience laughter, made to be inserted into television programming of comedy shows and sitcoms.The term "laugh track" does not apply to the genuine audience laughter on shows that shoot in...
, a common element of children's cartoons at the time. Schulz maintained that the audience should be able to enjoy the show at their own pace, without being cued when to laugh. (CBS did create a version of the show with the laugh track added, just in case Schulz changed his mind. This version remains unavailable, though unauthorized copies have appeared on YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
.)
A third complaint was the use of children to do the voice acting
Voice acting
Voice acting is the art of providing voices for animated characters and radio and audio dramas and comedy, as well as doing voice-overs in radio and television commercials, audio dramas, dubbed foreign language films, video games, puppet shows, and amusement rides.Performers are called...
, instead of employing adult actors. Finally, the executives thought that the jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
soundtrack by Vince Guaraldi
Vince Guaraldi
Vincent Anthony "Vince" Guaraldi was an Italian American jazz musician and pianist noted for his innovative compositions and arrangements and for composing music for animated adaptations of the Peanuts comic strip...
would not work well for a children's program. When executives saw the final product, they were horrified and believed the special would be a complete flop. CBS programmers were equally pessimistic, informing the production team, “We will, of course, air it next week, but I’m afraid we won’t be ordering any more.” Mendelson and Melendez said to themselves, "We've just ruined Charlie Brown."
The half-hour special first aired on Thursday, December 9, 1965, preempting The Munsters
The Munsters
The Munsters is a 1960s American family television sitcom depicting the home life of a family of monsters. It starred Fred Gwynne as Herman Munster and Yvonne De Carlo as his wife, Lily Munster. The series was a satire of both traditional monster movies and popular family entertainment of the era,...
and following the Gilligan's Island
Gilligan's Island
Gilligan's Island is an American television series created and produced by Sherwood Schwartz and originally produced by United Artists Television. The situation comedy series featured Bob Denver; Alan Hale, Jr.; Jim Backus; Natalie Schafer; Tina Louise; Russell Johnson; and Dawn Wells. It aired for...
episode "Don't Bug the Mosquitoes". To the surprise of the executives, it was both a critical and commercial hit. None of the special's technical problems detracted from the show's appeal; to the contrary, it is thought that these so-called quirks, along with several other choices, are what lent the show such an innovative, authentic and sincere feeling.
For instance, Linus's recitation was hailed by critics such as Harriet Van Horne
Harriet Van Horne
Harriet Van Horne was an American newspaper columnist and film/television critic. She was a writer for many years at the New York World-Telegram and its successors.-Life and career:...
of the New York World-Telegram
New York World-Telegram
The New York World-Telegram, later known as the New York World-Telegram and Sun, was a New York City newspaper from 1931 to 1966.-History:...
who said, "Linus' reading of the story of the Nativity was, quite simply, the dramatic highlight of the season."
A total of 50% of the televisions in the United States were tuned to the first broadcast. A Charlie Brown Christmas won an Emmy and a Peabody
Peabody Award
The George Foster Peabody Awards recognize distinguished and meritorious public service by radio and television stations, networks, producing organizations and individuals. In 1939, the National Association of Broadcasters formed a committee to recognize outstanding achievement in radio broadcasting...
award, and is today considered to be one of the most beloved animated holiday specials of all time. The success of the animated special, A Charlie Brown Christmas, has given rise to numerous other Peanuts specials (including ten others that are also holiday-themed), a miniseries devoted to America (This Is America, Charlie Brown
This Is America, Charlie Brown
This is America, Charlie Brown was an eight-part animated TV mini-series, depicting events in American history with characters from the Charles M. Schulz comic strip Peanuts. It aired from 1988 to 1989 on CBS. These eight episodes, originally released singly on videocassette, were released in a...
), a Saturday morning cartoon (The Charlie Brown and Snoopy Show
The Charlie Brown and Snoopy Show
The Charlie Brown and Snoopy Show is an animated television series featuring characters and storylines from the Charles M. Schulz comic strip Peanuts. It aired Saturday mornings on the CBS network from 1983 to 1985. It re-aired on The Disney Channel and Nickelodeon in the 1990s...
), and four full-length Peanuts feature films.
In January 2000, one month before Schulz's death, the broadcast rights were acquired by ABC (as part of a deal between the network and Schulz), which is where the special currently airs (and has aired there since CBS's final airing of the special on December 25, 2000). On September 12, 2000, the special was released to DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
[it had previously been released on VHS through Shell Oil for sale at their gas stations]. The show enjoyed its 40th anniversary with its broadcast of Tuesday, December 6, 2005. This broadcast had the highest ratings
Nielsen Ratings
Nielsen ratings are the audience measurement systems developed by Nielsen Media Research, in an effort to determine the audience size and composition of television programming in the United States...
in its time slot.
On December 6, 2000, a half-hour documentary
Documentary film
Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
on the special entitled The Making of "A Charlie Brown Christmas" (hosted by Whoopi Goldberg) aired on ABC. In 2002, it was replaced by Charlie Brown's Christmas Tales
Charlie Brown's Christmas Tales
Charlie Brown's Christmas Tales is one of many prime-time animated TV specials based on characters from the Charles M. Schulz comic strip Peanuts. It originally aired on the ABC network in 2002.-Synopsis:...
. This documentary was released (along with the special Charlie Brown's Christmas Tales) as a bonus feature with the special I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown
I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown
I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown is one of the Peanuts made-for-television specials. The hour-long special first aired on ABC on December 9, 2003...
on October 26, 2004.
Live versions
Live theatrical versions of A Charlie Brown Christmas have been staged, notably by church groups who appreciate the biblical references. Actual children are used most often to play the parts and recite the lines, especially Linus' recitation of the Nativity story from the Gospel of Luke.Versions
The special has not been seen in its original, uncut form since the first three telecasts in 1965, 1966 and 1967. Much of this is due to the opening and closing credits containing references to Coca-ColaCoca-Cola
Coca-Cola is a carbonated soft drink sold in stores, restaurants, and vending machines in more than 200 countries. It is produced by The Coca-Cola Company of Atlanta, Georgia, and is often referred to simply as Coke...
, the show's original sponsor. Specific, acknowledged cuts are:
- The main titles have LinusLinus van PeltLinus van Pelt is a character in Charles M. Schulz's comic strip Peanuts. The best friend of Charlie Brown, Linus is also the younger brother of Lucy van Pelt and older brother of Rerun van Pelt. He first appeared on September 19, 1952; however, he was not mentioned by name until three days later....
crashing into a Coca-Cola sign (complete with the main titles and the creator of this cartoon) after SnoopySnoopySnoopy is an fictional character in the long-running comic strip Peanuts, by Charles M. Schulz. He is Charlie Brown's pet beagle. Snoopy began his life in the strip as a fairly conventional dog, but eventually evolved into perhaps the strip's most dynamic character—and among the most recognizable...
has spun both him and Charlie Brown around with Linus's blanket. In the versions currently available, the viewer never sees where Linus's trajectory lands him. Instead, they see Charlie Brown landing towards a pine tree which causes more snow to fall on top of him. The removed clip of Linus crashing into a Coca-Cola sign is seen in a 1965 promo for the film. - In the "fence" scene, where several of the Peanuts gang are attempting to knock cans off a fence with snowballs, Linus is seen knocking down a can with his blanket. In the original airing, this was a Coke can, but it was later replaced with a nondescript can.
- The final end credit originally had a voice-over saying, "Brought to you by the people in your town who bottle Coca-Cola." This is why the "Hark!" chorus sung at the end trails off oddly before the song would normally end, as an announcer originally did a voice over at this point in the credits to repeat and reemphasize the local bottler's well wishes to the TV audience (watch clip here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Th1GdWQiYPM). This edit was never changed, but in newer versions, a quick fade-out and fade-in revealed the "THE END" screen, in order to make the audio-fade seem more natural.
Although the FCC
Federal Communications Commission
The Federal Communications Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, created, Congressional statute , and with the majority of its commissioners appointed by the current President. The FCC works towards six goals in the areas of broadband, competition, the spectrum, the...
eventually imposed rules preventing sponsor references in the context of a story (especially in children's programming
Children's television series
Children's television series, are commercial television programs designed for, and marketed to children, normally scheduled for broadcast during the morning and afternoon when children are awake. They can sometimes run in the early evening, for the children that go to school...
), this had no effect upon the decision to impose these edits. The Coca-Cola product placement
Product placement
Product placement, or embedded marketing, is a form of advertisement, where branded goods or services are placed in a context usually devoid of ads, such as movies, music videos, the story line of television shows, or news programs. The product placement is often not disclosed at the time that the...
elements were removed when the company ceased being the sole sponsor, replaced in 1968 by Dolly Madison
Dolly Madison
Dolly Madison is a U.S. bakery brand owned by Hostess Brands, marketing pre-packaged baked snack foods. Bakeries are located throughout the U.S.- Marketing :...
snack products, who continued to sponsor the Peanuts specials through the 1980s, along with McDonald's
McDonald's
McDonald's Corporation is the world's largest chain of hamburger fast food restaurants, serving around 64 million customers daily in 119 countries. Headquartered in the United States, the company began in 1940 as a barbecue restaurant operated by the eponymous Richard and Maurice McDonald; in 1948...
.
When CBS aired the special in the 1990s, the network made further cuts to the special, including standardizing closing credits (removing the closing carol outright in the process), trimming out a series of scenes where the characters belittle Charlie Brown for picking a small Christmas tree (cutting straight to laughter), and removing references to commercialism
Commercialism
Commercialism, in its original meaning, is the practices, methods, aims, and spirit of commerce or business. Today, however, it primarily refers to the tendency within open-market capitalism to turn everything into objects, images, and services sold for the purpose of generating profit...
. These cuts were made ostensibly to fit the special into the 30-minute time slot; commercial time per half-hour had increased by approximately 2 minutes between 1965 and the late 1990s. ABC, upon acquiring the rights to the special in 2000, restored all of these cuts, increasing the length of the special to 32 minutes including commercials, which required ABC to either commission or adjust existing programming to fit into the extra 28 minutes of the hour. ABC, however, has chosen to insert its commercials into different places in the program than were originally intended (fade-outs and fade-ins where the commercials are supposed to go are clearly evident), resulting in the commercials being haphazardly inserted in the middle of musical numbers or even dialogue.
Several scenes were cut from the first airing in December 2009 on ABC to make room for the new special Prep & Landing., including:
- Sally asking Charlie Brown to help her write a letter to Santa Claus.
- Snoopy eating a stack of bones while reading a newspaper on top of his doghouse.
- While Pig-PenPig-Pen"Pig-Pen" is a character in the comic strip Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz. He is a young boy who is, except on very rare occasions, very dirty.-History:"Pig-Pen" is a nickname, invariably written in quotation marks in the strip...
is building a snowman, Charlie Brown approaches and comments on the dust cloud kicked up in the snowstorm. - Several of the kids trying to catch snowflakes on their tongues.
- Lucy, Schroeder, and Linus throwing snowballs at a can on a fence.
- ShermyShermy (Peanuts)Shermy was a character in the comic strip Peanuts, by Charles Schulz. Schulz named him after a friend from high school. When Peanuts made its debut on October 2, 1950, Shermy had the first line of dialogue in the series. As Peanuts matured, however, Shermy became an extraneous character who was...
's only line after being informed by Lucy that he will be playing a shepherd in the Christmas play. - Lucy asking Schroeder to play a simple version of Jingle BellsJingle Bells"Jingle Bells" is one of the best-known and commonly sung winter songs in the world. It was written by James Lord Pierpont and published under the title "One Horse Open Sleigh" in the autumn of 1857...
, only to hear him play three of them (conventional piano, Hammond organHammond organThe Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond in 1934 and manufactured by the Hammond Organ Company. While the Hammond organ was originally sold to churches as a lower-cost alternative to the wind-driven pipe organ, in the 1960s and 1970s it became a standard keyboard...
, and toy pianoToy pianoThe toy piano, also known as the kinderklavier , is a small piano-like musical instrument. The present form of the toy piano was invented in Philadelphia by a 17-year-old German immigrant named Albert Schoenhut. He worked as a repairman at Wanamaker's department store, repairing broken glass...
on one finger).
Home video releases
In 1992, the special was released for a limited time on VHS through Shell Oil for sale at their gas stations. In September 1994 the special was released by Paramount on VHS. Hi-Tops VideoHi-Tops Video
Hi-Tops Video was a children's home video sublabel of Media Home Entertainment and Kartes Video Communications , active from 1985 until 1992...
, maker of the Baby Songs
Baby Songs
Baby Songs is one of the first, and longest-running, American, independent children's home video series. Since 1985, more than 4 million copies of Baby Songs have been sold. The series is still sold at retail and online locations.-History:...
videos, has also released A Charlie Brown Christmas on VHS. A laser disc was released by Paramount (distributed by Pioneer) in 1996; Side 2 contained the 1979 special You're the Greatest, Charlie Brown
You're the Greatest, Charlie Brown
You're the Greatest, Charlie Brown is the 18th prime-time animated TV special based upon the popular comic strip Peanuts, by Charles M. Schulz. It was originally aired on the CBS network in March 1979, making it the last Peanuts TV special of the 1970s. It has been released to DVD by Warner Home...
.
In September 2000 it was released on DVD. Bonus features included the 1992 special It's Christmastime Again, Charlie Brown
It's Christmastime Again, Charlie Brown
It's Christmastime Again, Charlie Brown is the 36th prime-time animated TV special based on the popular comic strip Peanuts, by Charles M. Schulz. It originally aired on the CBS network on November 27, 1992. It was the first Christmas-themed Peanuts special since the inaugural A Charlie Brown...
. On September 23, 2008, Warner Home Video (to which the rights to the Peanuts specials reverted earlier in the year, due to Melendez's connections to WB) released a "remastered" DVD. Bonus features include a restored version of Christmastime Again and a new documentary titled "A Christmas Miracle: The Making of A Charlie Brown Christmas". It is also available in a 4-disc box set with It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown
It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown
It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown is a 1966 American prime time animated television special based on the comic strip Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz....
and A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving
A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving
A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving is the tenth prime-time animated TV special based upon the popular comic strip Peanuts, by Charles M. Schulz. It was originally aired on the CBS network on November 20, 1973, and won an Emmy Award the following year...
, also including an audio CD of Charlie Brown holiday music. It was yet again released by Warner Home Video on July 7, 2009 in a 2-disc box set called Peanuts 1960's Collection which featured all the Peanuts TV specials of the 1960s.
In the UK it was released along with "I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown
I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown
I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown is one of the Peanuts made-for-television specials. The hour-long special first aired on ABC on December 9, 2003...
"
Since off-network rights to this special have been transferred to Warner Home Video
Warner Home Video
Warner Home Video is the home video unit of Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., itself part of Time Warner. It was founded in 1978 as WCI Home Video . The company launched in the United States with twenty films on VHS and Betamax videocassettes in late 1979...
, this has become available as a download on the iTunes Store and the PlayStation Network's video store, and includes It's Christmastime Again, Charlie Brown and It's Flashbeagle, Charlie Brown
It's Flashbeagle, Charlie Brown
It's Flashbeagle, Charlie Brown is the 27th prime-time animated television special based upon the comic strip Peanuts, by Charles M. Schulz. The show is presented as an original musical which features parodies of the early 1980s breakdancing craze, the movies Saturday Night Fever and Flashdance,...
. It is also available on high definition Blu-ray Disc
Blu-ray Disc
Blu-ray Disc is an optical disc storage medium designed to supersede the DVD format. The plastic disc is 120 mm in diameter and 1.2 mm thick, the same size as DVDs and CDs. Blu-ray Discs contain 25 GB per layer, with dual layer discs being the norm for feature-length video discs...
from Warner in remastered Dolby 5.1 surround sound. This disc also contains It's Christmastime Again, A Christmas Miracle, a DVD of the special, and a Digital Copy
Digital copy
Digital Copy provides consumers who purchase a film on DVD or Blu-ray Disc with an additional, digital copy of the movie for devices capable of operating with a file in contrast to a DVD.-Features:...
.
Recording
- According to Bill Meléndez, some of the child actors could not read, so were given their lines to recite one at a time. Long lines sometimes had to be spliced together in the studio after the recording session was over. This led to the now-familiar Peanuts delivery style.
Voice cast
- Peter RobbinsPeter Robbins (actor)Peter Robbins is a former child actor best known for his voice-over work as Charlie Brown in the 1960s.-The original Charlie Brown:...
: Charlie BrownCharlie BrownCharles "Charlie" Brown is the protagonist in the comic strip Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz.Charlie Brown and his creator have a common connection in that they are both the sons of barbers, but whereas Schulz's work is described as the "most shining example of the American success story", Charlie...
and Pig-PenPig-Pen"Pig-Pen" is a character in the comic strip Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz. He is a young boy who is, except on very rare occasions, very dirty.-History:"Pig-Pen" is a nickname, invariably written in quotation marks in the strip... - Chris Shea: Linus van PeltLinus van PeltLinus van Pelt is a character in Charles M. Schulz's comic strip Peanuts. The best friend of Charlie Brown, Linus is also the younger brother of Lucy van Pelt and older brother of Rerun van Pelt. He first appeared on September 19, 1952; however, he was not mentioned by name until three days later....
- Tracy Stratford: Lucille "Lucy" van PeltLucy van PeltLucille "Lucy" van Pelt is a fictional character in the syndicated comic strip :Peanuts, written and drawn by Charles Schulz. She is the main bully and the older sister of Linus and Rerun. Lucy is a crabby and cynical eight-year old girl, and often bullies the other characters in the strip,...
- Kathy Steinberg: Sally BrownSally BrownSally Brown is the younger sister of Charlie Brown in the comic strip Peanuts by Charles Schulz. She was first mentioned in early 1959 and throughout a long series of strips before her first appearance in August 1959.-Appearance:...
Additional voices
- Chris Doran: SchroederSchroeder (Peanuts)Schroeder is a fictional character in the long-running comic strip Peanuts, created by Charles M. Schulz. He is distinguished by his precocious skill at playing the toy piano, as well as by his love of classical music and the composer Ludwig van Beethoven in particular...
and ShermyShermy (Peanuts)Shermy was a character in the comic strip Peanuts, by Charles Schulz. Schulz named him after a friend from high school. When Peanuts made its debut on October 2, 1950, Shermy had the first line of dialogue in the series. As Peanuts matured, however, Shermy became an extraneous character who was... - Karen Mendelson: PattyPatty (Peanuts)Patty is a character in the comic strip Peanuts, created by Charles M. Schulz . Her closest friend is Violet...
- Sally DryerSally DryerSally Dryer is a former child actor best known for her voice-over work in the 1960s.-Career:...
: Violet Gray - Ann Altieri: FriedaFrieda (Peanuts)Frieda is a character in the comic strip Peanuts by Charles Schulz. According to Schulz, Frieda's character was inspired by his longtime friend Frieda Rich, a local artist whom he met while taking classes at the Art Instruction Schools in Minneapolis, Minnesota...
- Bill Melendez: SnoopySnoopySnoopy is an fictional character in the long-running comic strip Peanuts, by Charles M. Schulz. He is Charlie Brown's pet beagle. Snoopy began his life in the strip as a fairly conventional dog, but eventually evolved into perhaps the strip's most dynamic character—and among the most recognizable...
Film credits
- A CHARLIE BROWN CHRISTMAS
- Adapted for Television by: Charles M. SchulzCharles M. SchulzCharles Monroe "Sparky" Schulz was an American cartoonist, whose comic strip Peanuts proved one of the most popular and influential in the history of the medium, and is still widely reprinted on a daily basis.-Early life and education:Born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Schulz grew up in Saint Paul...
- Brought to you by the people in your town who bottle: Coca-ColaCoca-ColaCoca-Cola is a carbonated soft drink sold in stores, restaurants, and vending machines in more than 200 countries. It is produced by The Coca-Cola Company of Atlanta, Georgia, and is often referred to simply as Coke...
- And by the folks who bake: Dolly MadisonDolly MadisonDolly Madison is a U.S. bakery brand owned by Hostess Brands, marketing pre-packaged baked snack foods. Bakeries are located throughout the U.S.- Marketing :...
- Written by: Charles M. SchulzCharles M. SchulzCharles Monroe "Sparky" Schulz was an American cartoonist, whose comic strip Peanuts proved one of the most popular and influential in the history of the medium, and is still widely reprinted on a daily basis.-Early life and education:Born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Schulz grew up in Saint Paul...
- Story: Larry Spiegel, John Barrett, John W. DunnJohn W. DunnJohn W. Dunn was a Scottish writer and animator for animated cartoons from 1955 to 1983.Dunn began his career at the Walt Disney cartoon studio, where his first story credit—Man in Space—received an Oscar nomination...
, Tedd PierceTedd PierceTedd Pierce , was an American animated cartoon writer, animator and artist. Pierce spent the majority of his career as a writer for the Warner Bros. "Termite Terrace" animation studio, working alongside fellow luminaries such as Chuck Jones and Michael Maltese. Pierce also worked as a writer at... - Directed by: Bill MelendezBill MelendezJosé Cuauhtémoc "Bill" Meléndez was a Mexican-American character animator, film director, voice artist and producer, known for his cartoons for Warner Brothers, UPA and the Peanuts series...
, Hawley PrattHawley PrattHawley Pratt was an American film director, animator, and illustrator. He is best known for his work during the heyday of Warner Bros. Cartoons and as the right-hand man of director Friz Freleng as a layout artist and later as a director...
, Gerry ChiniquyGerry ChiniquyGermain Adolph "Gerry" Chiniquy was an American animator. He is best known for his work with Friz Freleng, at both Warner Bros. and DePatie-Freleng Enterprises.... - Executive Producer: Lee MendelsonLee MendelsonLee Mendelson is an American television producer. He is best known as the executive producer of the many Peanuts animated specials....
- Original Score Composed and Conducted by: Vince GuaraldiVince GuaraldiVincent Anthony "Vince" Guaraldi was an Italian American jazz musician and pianist noted for his innovative compositions and arrangements and for composing music for animated adaptations of the Peanuts comic strip...
- Design: Ed Levitt, Bernard GruverBernard GruverBernard Gruver was best known as one of the original animators of the Peanuts cartoon series. He also was an animation professor at the University of Southern California School of Cinema. He was killed in a car crash in Los Angeles in 1985.-External links:*...
, Ruth Kissane, Dean Spille, Frank SmithFrank Smith (animator)Frank A. Smith was an American cartoon animator and film director. He was the father of actor Charles Martin Smith, and the brother of animator/director Paul J. Smith and animator Hank Smith....
, Roy Morita, Dick Ung - Storyboard: Charlie Hayward, Bob RichardsonBob Richardson (animator)Bob Richardson is a film animator and producer. Richardson has 7 Emmy Award nominations and has won 5 times for the following projects.* Tutenstein - Outstanding Special Class Animated Program - 2004...
- Backgrounds: Richard H. Thomas, Mary O'Loughlin
- Animation: Bob Carlson, Rudy Zamora, Bill Littlejohn, Alan ZasloveAlan ZasloveAlan Zaslove is a producer and director of animated series. He co-created Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers. He shared Daytime Emmy Award nominations for that and work on Darkwing Duck.- References :...
, Ruben Timmins, Herman CohenHerman CohenHerman Cohen was a producer of B-movies during the 1950s, who helped to popularize the teen horror movie genre with films like the cult classic I Was a Teenage Werewolf....
, Robert BentleyRobert Bentley (animator)Robert Bentley was an animator. He is noted for his contribution to such animated cartoons as Star Trek: The Animated Series , Spider-Man and Max Fleischer's Gulliver's Travels .-1937:...
, Manuel Perez, Russ Von Nedia, John WalkerJohn Walker (animator)John Walker is an animator and director. His first credit was The Dick Tracy Show.-External links:...
, Bob Matz, John Freeman, John Gibbs, Tom RayTom RayThomas Archer Ray was an American animator.-Career:Ray was born in Williams, Arizona. He began work at Warner Bros. Cartoons in 1937. Over the first two decades of his career, he was a junior animator who received no screen credit until Destination Earth in 1956. In 1958, he became a master...
, Ken WalkerKen WalkerKenneth McInnes Walker was an Australian rules footballer who played with St Kilda in the VFL.Walker was a key position player and a dual Best and fairest winner at St Kilda, with back to back wins in 1942 and 1943. In the fall of 1944, Walker was hit by a truck, while driving home from a party...
, Jim Davis, Norm McCabe, Art Leonardi, Bob RichardsonBob Richardson (animator)Bob Richardson is a film animator and producer. Richardson has 7 Emmy Award nominations and has won 5 times for the following projects.* Tutenstein - Outstanding Special Class Animated Program - 2004...
, Don WilliamsDon WilliamsDon Williams , is an American country singer, songwriter and a 2010 inductee to the Country Music Hall of Fame. He grew up in Portland, Texas, and graduated in 1958 from Gregory-Portland High School. After seven years with the folk-pop group Pozo-Seco Singers, he began his solo career in 1971,...
, Bob Bransford, Glenn Schmitz - Painting: Beverly Robbins, Eleanor Warren
- Editing: Roger Donley, Robert T. Gillis, Allan Potter, Joe Siracusa, Rick Steward
- In Charge of Production: Lee GuntherLee GuntherLee Gunther was a film editor on more than 85 animated shorts in all.-Career:...
- Sound: Producers' Sound Service
- Camera: John Burton Jr., Larry Hogan, Ray Lee
- Production Mixer: Steve Orr
- A LEE MENDELSON-BILL MELENDEZ PRODUCTION
- In Cooperation With United Feature Syndicate, Inc.
- "A Charlie Brown Christmas"
- THE END
- © 1965 United Feature Syndicate, Inc.
Influence
The musical soundtrack to A Charlie Brown ChristmasA Charlie Brown Christmas (album)
A Charlie Brown Christmas is an album by the Vince Guaraldi Trio, released in 1965 as the soundtrack to the CBS Christmas television special of the same name. It is among the most popular Christmas music albums of all time...
, by jazz composer Vince Guaraldi
Vince Guaraldi
Vincent Anthony "Vince" Guaraldi was an Italian American jazz musician and pianist noted for his innovative compositions and arrangements and for composing music for animated adaptations of the Peanuts comic strip...
, has become as well-known as the story itself. In particular, the instrumental "Linus and Lucy
Linus and Lucy
"Linus and Lucy" is a popular jazz piano tune written by Vince Guaraldi appearing in many of the Peanuts animated television specials. Named for the fictional siblings Linus and Lucy van Pelt, it was released in 1964 on the Vince Guaraldi Trio's album Jazz Impressions of a Boy Named Charlie Brown...
" has come to be regarded as the signature musical theme of the Peanuts specials. Additionally "Christmas Time is Here" has become a popular Christmas tune. A soundtrack album for the special was released by Fantasy Records
Fantasy Records
Fantasy Records is a United States-based record label that was founded by Max and Sol Weiss in 1949 in San Francisco, California. They had previously operated a record-pressing plant called Circle Record Company before forming the Fantasy label...
and remains a perennial best-seller. (While the soundtrack contains some music that does not appear in the TV special, it also fails to include two musical themes which appear in the special. Both of those missing themes are, however, available on another album by the Vince Guaraldi Trio entitled Charlie Brown's Holiday Hits.)
2004
The popularity of the special is said to have practically eliminated the popularity of the aluminum Christmas tree
Aluminum Christmas tree
An aluminum Christmas tree is a type of artificial Christmas tree that was popular in the United States from 1958 until about the mid-1960s. As its name suggests, the tree is made of aluminum, featuring foil needles and illumination from below via a rotating color wheel.-History:Aluminum Christmas...
, which was a popular fad
FAD
In biochemistry, flavin adenine dinucleotide is a redox cofactor involved in several important reactions in metabolism. FAD can exist in two different redox states, which it converts between by accepting or donating electrons. The molecule consists of a riboflavin moiety bound to the phosphate...
between 1958 and 1965, but because of the negative publicity the trees received in A Charlie Brown Christmas, quickly fell out of favor. By 1967, just two years after the special first aired, they were no longer being regularly manufactured.
Other Christmas specials
Three lesser-known Christmas specials were produced decades after the 1965 original.- It's Christmastime Again, Charlie BrownIt's Christmastime Again, Charlie BrownIt's Christmastime Again, Charlie Brown is the 36th prime-time animated TV special based on the popular comic strip Peanuts, by Charles M. Schulz. It originally aired on the CBS network on November 27, 1992. It was the first Christmas-themed Peanuts special since the inaugural A Charlie Brown...
(1992). This special was 30 minutes in length with commercials and aired on CBS. It was abandoned by CBS shortly thereafter; it was released on DVD as a bonus feature with A Charlie Brown Christmas. - Charlie Brown's Christmas TalesCharlie Brown's Christmas TalesCharlie Brown's Christmas Tales is one of many prime-time animated TV specials based on characters from the Charles M. Schulz comic strip Peanuts. It originally aired on the ABC network in 2002.-Synopsis:...
(2002). This special is a slightly shorter 25 minutes with commercials and debuted on ABC. It has been released on DVD along with I Want a Dog for Christmas... - I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie BrownI Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie BrownI Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown is one of the Peanuts made-for-television specials. The hour-long special first aired on ABC on December 9, 2003...
(2003) This special is a full hour long with commercials and debuted on ABC. It is available on DVD.
While not true sequels, several other Charlie Brown holiday season specials were produced: 1966's It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown
It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown
It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown is a 1966 American prime time animated television special based on the comic strip Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz....
, 1973's A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving
A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving
A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving is the tenth prime-time animated TV special based upon the popular comic strip Peanuts, by Charles M. Schulz. It was originally aired on the CBS network on November 20, 1973, and won an Emmy Award the following year...
, and Happy New Year, Charlie Brown!
Happy New Year, Charlie Brown!
Happy New Year, Charlie Brown! is the 30th prime-time animated TV special based upon the popular comic strip Peanuts, by Charles M. Schulz. It was originally aired on CBS on January 1, 1986...
, among several others. All three of those mentioned still receive airplay on ABC to this day, with the first two having aired on a near-continuous basis since their debuts.
In 2003, a parody called "A Charlie Brown Kwanzaa
Kwanzaa
Kwanzaa is a week long celebration held in the United States honoring universal African-American heritage and culture, observed from December 26 to January 1 each year. It features activities such as lighting a candle holder with seven candles and culminates in a feast and gift giving...
" became famous over the internet and caused many sequels; it led to the website, Most Offensive Video (see under external links).