I Got a Rock

Ghosts, goblins, werewolves, vampires, and monsters are synonymous with Halloween, but so is the Great Pumpkin, at least for Peanuts fans anyway. Much like the tradition of A Charlie Brown Christmas airing yearly on television around Christmas time, the television special It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown airs before Halloween. Similarly to the annual Christmas special, the Halloween favorite is also celebrating its 50th anniversary this year.

It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, based on the comic strip by Charles M. Schulz, first aired in 1966 on CBS, where it continued to air annually through 2000. In 2001, ABC picked up the rights. It has aired on ABC ever since. It was the second Peanuts themed holiday special to air on television and stars all of the Peanuts favorites, Charlie Brown, Sally, Lucy, Linus, Snoopy, Woodstock, and the rest of the crew.

The legend of the Great Pumpkin is extremely similar to the story of Santa Claus and Linus is a true believer. According to him, every year on Halloween night the Great Pumpkin rises out of his pumpkin patch and flies through the air with his bag of toys for all the children. This special tells the story of Halloween with the Peanuts characters as well as Linus’s dedication to his belief in the Great Pumpkin by spending the night waiting for him in the “most sincere” pumpkin patch.

To me, this yearly story of the Great Pumpkin is even better than the Christmas special. I think it’s funnier and more unique, especially because of the concept of the Great Pumpkin. I always laugh to myself when I watch Charlie Brown trick-or-treat with his friends or when he completely misses kicking the football because Lucy pulls it out from under him. It’s those little moments that make the Halloween special a yearly treat for those that grew up watching it.

This year the 50th anniversary special airs on Wednesday night on ABC at 8:00 p.m. ET. I’m stoked to see Linus convince Sally to spend Halloween with him waiting for the Great Pumpkin, watch Charlie Brown get rocks, and re-learn that you should never discuss religion, politics, or the Great Pumpkin with anyone. I’m sure it will be as good as always for the 50th time.

A Charlie Brown Christmas

Every year for the last 50 years A Charlie Brown Christmas has aired on television during the holiday season. A few weeks ago, a special celebrating the annual Christmas show aired on ABC. I guess I should have written about A Charlie Brown Christmas that week, but I figured since Christmas in is in a few days it might be nice to get in the spirit this week.

A Charlie Brown Christmas is based on the Peanuts comic strip created by Charles M. Schulz. It first debuted on December 9, 1965 on CBS. It was produced by Lee Mendelson and directed by Bill Melendez. In the show, the main character, Charlie Brown, is very depressed during the Christmas season. When fellow Peanut and friend Lucy suggests that he should direct the annual school Christmas play, Charlie Brown decides to go for it since it might be a good way to help him combat his holiday blues. Upon taking the directing role, Charlie Brown finds himself disrespected and ignored by his peers. It takes a little reminder from his friend Linus to get into the spirit of Christmas and remember the true meaning of the season.

The special was created in only six months on a very small budget and was commissioned and sponsored by The Coca-Cola Company. They also cast child actors to voice the characters in a move that was seemingly unconventional at the time. Another unconventional move by the creators was having a jazz score performed by Vince Guaraldi and an absence of a laugh track (the standard for animated programs at the time). Although it was unsure how the special would be received by the public, A Charlie Brown Christmas had much success. Along with the annual airing of the show, it also received both an Emmy and a Peabody Award. The soundtrack has gone triple platinum in the U.S. as well.

I can’t really remember when I was introduced to the Peanuts and A Charlie Brown Christmas in particular because I always watched it growing up. In fact, I’m pretty sure I had the special on a VHS tape to watch whenever I wanted to. My mother was and still is a big Peanuts fan, so much so, that she owns plenty of Peanuts merchandise and watches the Christmas, Thanksgiving, and Halloween specials every year. This is why it seems that all of the Peanuts holiday specials have been a staple in my life for a very long time.

I tuned in a few weeks ago to watch the 50th Anniversary of A Charlie Brown Christmas on ABC and I learned a lot about the show. Most, if not all, of what I wrote in the blog today was info I learned from the special. I’m sure many others learned a lot about A Charlie Brown Christmas that day as well. For a lot people, watching the show is a holiday tradition. Families gather around the TV every year to watch A Charlie Brown Christmas and subsequently, pass it on future generations. I actually just watched it with my four year old cousin over the weekend. The jazz score more commonly know as “Linus & Lucy” plays on radio stations and playlists throughout the Christmas season as well. There’s no doubt in my mind that most people can hum the famous tune if asked. Though Charlie Brown complains of the commercialization of Christmas in the famed Christmas show, it is much more commercialized today. A Charlie Brown Christmas reminds us every year through all the hustle and bustle that Christmas celebrates the birth of Christ and promotes peace on earth and goodwill towards men (and women!). And that’s what Christmas is about Charlie Brown! *cue “Hark the Herald Angels Sing”*