Good Grief, Charlie Brown! “Peanuts” is 75!
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“The only thing I ever wanted to be was a cartoonist. That’s my Life. DRAWING.”
I was a comic strip fan when I was a kid, and “Peanuts” was always a favorite. I’d grab the Worcester Telegram (there was also an evening paper way back then, the Evening Gazette) and bypass all the boring bits… headlines, sports, obits (my Mom’s favorite). I’d get right to the good stuff… the comics section.
The “Peanuts” comic strip made its debut on October 2nd, 1950, before I was able to appreciate Charles Schulz and the Charlie Brown Gang. It started very simply, but the strip grew and developed, and personalities were added as the strip matured and became more popular. According to Wiki, the strip first appeared in seven newspapers: the Minneapolis Star, Schultz’s hometown newspaper, and six other papers, including the Washington Post and the Chicago Tribune. “The strip's original run extended from 1950 to 2000, continuing in reruns afterward. Peanuts is among the most popular and influential in the history of comic strips.”
Peanuts debuted with this first strip on October 2, 1950.
Again from Wiki, “Schulz drew every strip, through nearly 50 years, including the lettering and coloring process with no assistants. ‘His saga of Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Lucy, and Linus is arguably the longest story ever told by one human being,’ Robert Thompson, a professor of popular culture at Syracuse University, observed on the PBS ''NewsHour'' with Jim Lehrer, ‘longer than any epic poem, any Tolstoy novel, any Wagner opera.’ In all, Mr. Schulz drew more than 18,250 strips in nearly 50 years.”
Interestingly, Schultz always hated the name of the strip.
“… somebody at United Features came up with the miserable title Peanuts, which I hate and have always hated. It has no dignity and it’s not descriptive. ”
At the time of Schulz's death in 2000, Peanuts ran in over 2,600 newspapers, with a readership of roughly 355 million across 75 countries, and had been translated into 21 languages. The strip spawned five full-length movies, 51 made-for-TV animated specials, and three major stage productions.
Characters were added along the way. Over 70 distinct characters were introduced in the Peanuts comic strip during its 50-year run. My favorite, of course, was Marcie. She’s a studious character, known for her appreciation of the arts, nature, and truth, and a best friend to Peppermint Patty. Introduced on July 20, 1971, she wears glasses, enjoys quiet activities, and is sometimes depicted as quiet or introverted, though she is brave and a good problem-solver. Okay, maybe not me. But as a result, Marcie Day is celebrated on July 20th, which I didn’t know until I started doing a bit of research for this blog. I plan to celebrate in the future.
Charles Schulz died in his sleep at his home on February 12, 2000 at the age of 77. On February 13, 2000, Schulz's final Sunday strip appeared in newspapers around the world. Schulz explicitly stated that he did not want anyone else to continue drawing the strip after his death.
The Charles M. Schulz Museum opened in Santa Rosa, CA, in August 2002 to fulfill its mission of preserving, displaying, and interpreting the art of Charles Schulz. Read more about the museum and Charles Schulz here.
Happy Birthday, Peanuts! What a legacy!