News Archive
These are older, archived news items. For the latest news, please see the main Peanuts Animation and Video Page.
News Archive: New Shows
News Archive: Broadcast Information
News Archive: DVD & Video Releases
News Archive: Music Releases
News Archive: Other News
News Archive: New Shows
New Peanuts "Motion Comics" on iTunes and Amazon.com
Warner Home Video has created 10 new "motion comics" (also described as "webisodes") featuring the Peanuts gang. The motion comics are 7- to 8-minute videos based directly on material from 1964 Peanuts comic strips. The videos are "all new," drawn with Flash animation, and feature new voices and a limited musical score. The webisodes were created by Warner Brother's Motion Comics division, with the involvement of the Schulz family and estate. (Neither Melendez Productions or Mendelson Productions were involved.) The new videos are available both on iTunes and Amazon Video on Demand.
The episodes are:
Linus for President / The Election (released Mon 11/3/08)
The Sore Arm / Independence Day (released Mon 11/10/08)
Eraserophagia / The Great Pumpkin (released Mon 11/17/08)
A Fall Rain / Some Advice (released Mon 11/24/08)
Ready to Pitch / Back on the Mound (released Mon 12/1/08)
Dear Santa / I'm New At It (released Mon 12/8/08)
Science Project / April Fool (released Mon 12/15/08)
Crabby Little Girl / Mother's Day (released Mon 12/22/08)
All Your Faults / Services Rendered (released Mon 12/29/08)
The Good Brother / Valentine's Day (released Mon 1/5/09)
You can use this link to find the episodes on iTunes (note this will open iTunes on your computer) and this link to find the episodes on Amazon Video on Demand.
The episodes are priced at 99 cents each, or you can get all 10 as a "season" for $7.99.
The videos from iTunes can be viewed using iTunes on your Macintosh or Windows computer, or using an iPod, iPhone, or Apple TV device. The videos on Amazon on Demand can be viewed using a web browser, or downloaded to a Windows PC or a TiVo DVR. Note, however, that videos purchased from either place cannot be burned to a DVD or viewed on a DVD player.
You can also read the press release and listen to an NPR interview with Craig Schulz about these new animations. (January 26, 2009)
New Charles Schulz Documentary Aired Monday October 29, 2007 on PBS
A new, 90-minute video biography of Charles Schulz aired Monday October 29, 2007 as part of the PBS series American Masters. The documentary, titled "Good Ol' Charles Schulz," was created by Lumiere Productions, a New York film production company, who have produced a number of award-winning and critically acclaimed documentaries, and have worked hard to make the documentary as in-depth as possible. In part, they worked with David Michaelis, whose 650-page biography of Charles Schulz was also published in October.
Here's the description from Lumiere's website:
"Charles M. Schulz always insisted he was ordinary and boring. But his ordinary life—like those of the Peanuts characters he created—was in fact chock-full of drama: mundane cruelties, transcendent hopes, and the daily collisions of insiders and outsiders. Interviews with those who knew him best (including the real-life Linus and Little Red-Haired Girl) will propel this feature-length documentary, the first American Masters tribute to a comic-strip artist."
PBS also issued a full press release about the show.
Amusingly, the documentary premiered at the Woodstock Film Festival on October 11 (that's Woodstock, New York).
Unfortunately, a DVD release of this show is unlikely.
(October 31, 2007)
He's a Bully, Charlie Brown
The new TV special He's a Bully, Charlie Brown aired Monday, November 20, 2006 from 8:30-9:00 (Eastern/Pacific) on ABC, after this year's broadcast of A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving. This special tells the story of a game of marbles that becomes too fiercely competitive for some of the children. When Charlie Brown is called upon for help, he finds that the only way he can finally prove himself to be a neighborhood hero is to match wits with the marble-playing bully. Is he up to the challenge? The show is based on Peanuts comic strips from April 1995. Charles Schulz was working on the idea for this special when he passed away, although he did not complete a script for it. No rebroadcast or DVD release of this show has been announced yet. (December 6, 2006)
"Lucy Must Be Traded, Charlie Brown" Storyboards at the Charles M. Schulz Museum
From June 6 until September 29, 2003, a reproduction of the complete storyboard for the new TV special "Lucy Must Be Traded, Charlie Brown" was on display at the Charles M. Schulz Museum in Santa Rosa, California as part of a baseball-themed exhibit at the Museum. In addition, there were several other baseball-related cels from previous shows. (June 6, 2003)
"A Charlie Brown Valentine" - February 14, 2002 on ABC
"A Charlie Brown Valentine," the new Peanuts TV special, aired Valentine's Day, Thursday, February 14, 2002 at 8 PM EST/PST on ABC.
The special was based solely on previous published comic strips drawn by Charles Schulz. It was produced and animated, like all past specials, by Lee Mendelson and Bill Melendez. David Benoit performed and arranged Vince Guaraldi's music for the special.
From the ABC press release: "The Valentine's Day special marks the first newly created programming from the PEANUTS team in several years. It is taken directly from the vast number of archived strips that Schulz themed to the popular February holiday. In this special, Charlie Brown finally works up the courage to call the little red-haired girl to ask her to the Valentine's Day dance. But once again he ends up broken-hearted and empty-handed when he dials the wrong number and reaches Peppermint Patty instead."
ABC is also the new home of the three classic specials "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown", "A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving", and "A Charlie Brown Christmas".
You can read the original 2001 press release announcing the show and the shorter more recent 2002 press release. (February 21, 2002)
New "The Making of A Charlie Brown Christmas" TV Documentary!
Immediately following this year's broadcast of the classic TV special A Charlie Brown Christmas on ABC will be an all-new documentary titled "The Making of A Charlie Brown Christmas." Produced by Lee Mendelson Productions, who created the original special, the 17-minute documentary hosted by Whoopi Goldberg will focus on the creation of the first Peanuts TV special, including segments with Bill Melendez, Lee Mendelson, some of the original voice actors, and an example of the earliest Peanuts animations, one of the Ford Falcon TV commercials, and a tribute to Vince Guaraldi.
A Charlie Brown Christmas and "The Making of A Charlie Brown Christmas" will both air on ABC on Thursday December 6 and Sunday December 16 from 8-9 PM (EST) each night. (November 15, 2001)
Will There Be More Shows?
(This article was obsoleted when the "A Charlie Brown Valentine" was announced in 2002.)
Now that Charles Schulz has passed away, it's unclear whether new shows beyond the It's the Pied Piper will be made. The Schulz family has said they don't want new specials to be made, and reports that Schulz expressed a desire for the animated shows to end as well. But United Media hopes to continue making them, and Lee Mendelson and Bill Melendez have expressed willingness to create new shows if asked. Bill Melendez says that Schulz had sent him an outline for a new story, provisionally titled "It's Only Marbles, Charlie Brown," based on a series of comic strips where a marbles hustler comes to town, cheating little kids at marbles, until Charlie Brown stops him. Lee Mendelson is talking with the Schulz family about making this and possibly more shows, but emphasizes that any decision to produce new ones "will be unanimous." Discussions on producing "It's Only Marbles" are continuing, and while they are looking positive, no final decision has been made.
ABC recently acquired the broadcast rights to show for the holiday specials and when they announced this, said that they are "taking a look" at producing new specials.
An article in the 3/10/01 Los Angeles Times about animator Bill Melendez says that he is "working on some of Schulz's uncompleted Peanuts projects." (March 17, 2001)
"Pied Piper" Direct-to-Video Special Now Out
It's the Pied Piper, Charlie Brown, the new direct-to-video show, is now available on VHS and DVD. See Video & DVD Release News for more details. (September 14, 2000)
News Archive: TV Broadcast Information
It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown Broadcast Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Perennial spring favorite It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown was broadcast on Wednesday, March 31, 2010 from 8:00-8:30 PM (Eastern/Pacific) on ABC. (March 16, 2010)
A Charlie Brown Valentine Returned on Wednesday, February 10, 2010
ABC broadcast the 2002 special A Charlie Brown Valentine on Wednesday, February 10, 2010, from 8:00-8:30 PM (Eastern/Pacific). In some previous years, ABC broadcast the older Valentine's Day special as well, but not this year. (January 26, 2010)
Happy New Year, Charlie Brown Aired Wednesday, December 30, 2009
You could have rung in the new year with the Peanuts gang by watching Happy New Year, Charlie Brown when it aired on Wednesday, December 30, from 8:00-8:30 PM (Eastern/Pacific) on ABC. (December 20, 2009)
A Charlie Brown Christmas Officially Appeared Online During December 2009
During the month of December 2009, both ABC.com and Hulu.com had A Charlie Brown Christmas together with Charlie Brown's Christmas Tales available to watch online for free. While initially both sites had edited versions of the special (missing about 4 minutes), after about a week they both updated their video to include the full, unedited special and the bonus shorts as well. The special is no longer available online, perhaps it will be back next December. iTunes and Amazon Video on Demand continue to offer it online for a fee. (December 20, 2009)
I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown Was Also Online in December 2009
ABC.com or Hulu.com also offered I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown for free viewing online from late December 2009 through January 12, 2010; the special is no longer available online. iTunes and Amazon Video on Demand continue to offer the show online for a fee. (December 20, 2009)
I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown Aired Monday, December 21, 2009
The more recent holiday special I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown was broadcast Monday, December 21, from 8-9 PM (Eastern/Pacific) on ABC. (November 4, 2009)
A Charlie Brown Christmas Aired December 8 & 15, 2009
ABC broadcast A Charlie Brown Christmas twice in December 2009 — a shortened, edited version on Tuesday, December 8 from 8-8:30 PM and the full, unedited version on Tuesday, December 15 from 8-9 PM (all times Eastern/Pacific). The unedited December 15 broadcast was followed by Charlie Brown's Christmas Tales.
This was a change from previously announced plans; originally these broadcasts were going to be on December 1 and December 8 respectively, but after President Obama announced he would give a televised speech on December 1st, ABC rescheduled the A Charlie Brown Christmas broadcasts. (December 1, 2009)
A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving Aired Thursday, November 26, 2009
ABC made A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving part of the Thanksgiving day celebration when they broadcast the special on Thanksgiving Day, Thursday, November 26, from 8-9 PM (Eastern/Pacific). The special was followed by an shortened version of This is America, Charlie Brown: The Mayflower Voyagers. (October 11, 2009)
A Boy Named Charlie Brown and Snoopy Come Home Aired on ABC Family Channel, November 28 & 29, 2009
The first two Peanuts feature films, A Boy Named Charlie Brown and Snoopy Come Home, were shown on the ABC Family cable channel on Saturday November 28, 2009 and Sunday November 29, 2000. The broadcast times were (all times Eastern/Pacific):
A Boy Named Charlie Brown - Sat Nov 28, 7-9 PM
Snoopy Come Home - Sat Nov 29, 9-11 PM
A Boy Named Charlie Brown - Sun Nov 29, 10 AM-12 PM
Snoopy Come Home - Sun Nov 29, 12-2 PM
(November 18, 2009)
It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown to Aired Twice: Tuesday, October 27, 2009 and Wednesday, October 28, 2009
ABC broadcasted It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown twice in 2009. The first broadcast was on Tuesday, October 27, from 8-9 PM (Eastern/Pacific) and featured the uncut special followed by a shortened version of You're Not Elected, Charlie Brown. The second broadcast was the following night, Wednesday October 28, 2009, from 8:00-8:30 PM (Eastern/Pacific); this repeat broadcast was edited for time. (October 17, 2009)
ABC Broadcast It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown and Charlie Brown's All-Stars on Tuesday, April 7, 2009
ABC broadcast another hour of seasonal specials to TV when they aired It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown, followed by Charlie Brown's All-Stars, on Tuesday April 7, from 8-9 PM (Eastern/Pacific). (In case you were wondering, it had been 27 years since Charlie Brown's All-Stars previously aired on network prime-time!) (March 10, 2009)
Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown and A Charlie Brown Valentine Aired Tuesday, February 10 and Saturday, February 14, 2009
ABC dug into the vaults again and pulled out another Peanuts special that hadn't been broadcast in primetime for over 20 years. The special Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown — first broadcast in 1975, and previously last seen on network primetime in 1987 — aired together with the more recent special A Charlie Brown Valentine on Tuesday, February 10, 2009 from 8-9 PM and again Saturday, February 14, 2009 on ABC (all times Eastern/Pacific). (February 7, 2009)
Happy New Year, Charlie Brown Aired Tuesday, December 30, 2008 and Saturday, January 3, 2009
ABC closed out 2008 and welcomed 2009 by broadcasting Happy New Year, Charlie Brown on Tuesday, December 30, 2008 from 8-8:30 PM, and again Saturday January 3, 2009 from 8-8:30 PM (all times Eastern/Pacific). This was the first time this special had aired on network prime-time television in 20 years! (January 3, 2009)
A Charlie Brown Christmas Aired December 8 & 16, 2008
A Charlie Brown Christmas accompanied by Charlie Brown's Christmas Tales aired on Monday, December 8, from 8-9 PM (Eastern/Pacific), and again on Tuesday, December 16, from 8-9 PM (Eastern/Pacific) on ABC. (November 12, 2008)
I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown Aired on December 15 & 20, 2008
Also in December, I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown aired twice on ABC: on Monday, December 15, from 8-9 PM (Eastern/Pacific) and Saturday, December 20, 2008 from 8-9 PM (Eastern/Pacific). (December 2, 2008)
A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving Aired Tuesday, November 25, 2008 and Thursday, November 27, 2008
ABC broadcast A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving twice in 2008 - first on Tuesday, November 25, from 8-9 PM (Eastern/Pacific), and then again on Thanksgiving Day, Thursday, November 27 from 8-9 PM. Both times it was accompanied by an edited version of This is America, Charlie Brown: The Mayflower Voyagers, which is also a Thanksgiving-themed show. (November 12, 2008)
A Boy Named Charlie Brown and Snoopy Come Home aired on Family Channel, November 29 & 30, 2008
The first two Peanuts feature films, A Boy Named Charlie Brown and Snoopy Come Home, were shown on the cable channel the Family Channel on Saturday November 29, 2008 and Sunday November 30, 2008. The broadcast times were (all times Eastern/Pacific):
A Boy Named Charlie Brown - Sat Nov 29, 7-9 PM
Snoopy Come Home - Sat Nov 30, 9-11 PM
A Boy Named Charlie Brown - Sun Nov 30, 12-2 PM
Snoopy Come Home - Sun Nov 30, 2-4 PM
(November 23, 2008)
It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown Aired Tuesday, October 28, 2008
ABC broadcast It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown on Tuesday, October 28, from 8-9 PM (Eastern/Pacific). The special once again aired uncut, and was followed by a shortened version of You're Not Elected, Charlie Brown. (October 13, 2008)
Documentary About the MetLife "Snoopy One" Blimp Aired Saturday August 16, 2008
This admittedly only has a tenuous Peanuts connection, but on Saturday, August 16, CBS broadcast an hour-long show titled The Best Shot in Golf, which was all about the MetLife blimp, "Snoopy One."
According to the PR, "The MetLife blimp, Snoopy One, stars in the hour-long documentary, The Best Shot in Golf presented by MetLife. The documentary goes inside the operations of the MetLife blimp, giving viewers the opportunity to soar 1,500 feet in the air with camera man Bob Mikkelson as he crafts amazing shots of the picturesque course below, watch pilot Charlie Smith battle time and Mother Nature on his first solo transcontinental flight, and follow the 14 team members of the MetLife Snoopy One blimp crew as they choreograph each take-off and landing."
The show aired Saturday, August 16, from 2-3 PM Eastern time (11 AM - 12 noon Pacific time) on CBS.
You can watch a trailer for the show on YouTube.
(This was actually a repeat broadcast of the show; it first aired back in May, but there was almost no advance notice, so most people missed it, including me!) (Aug 12, 2008)
"It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown" Aired Tuesday, March 18, 2008
It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown returned to TV again on Tuesday, March 18, 2008 from 8:00-8:30 PM (Eastern/Pacific) on ABC. (February 27, 2008)
"A Charlie Brown Valentine" Aired Saturday, February 12, 2008
ABC broadcast the special A Charlie Brown Valentine once again on Saturday, February 9, 2008 from 8:00-8:30 PM (Eastern/Pacific). (January 22, 2008)
"I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown" Aired Monday, December 10, 2007
ABC will broadcast the special I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown on Monday, December 10, 2007 from 8-9 PM (Eastern/Pacific). (November 27, 2007)
"A Charlie Brown Christmas" Aired Tuesday, November 27, 2007 and Monday, December 3, 2007
ABC broadcast the classic special A Charlie Brown Christmas together with the short Charlie Brown's Christmas Tales on Tuesday, November 27 from 8-9 PM (Eastern/Pacific) and again on Monday, December 3 from 8-9 PM. Memo to ABC: if you're going to repeat the show, maybe you should wait and do it closer to Christmas? (November 15, 2007)
"A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving" & "He's a Bully, Charlie Brown" Aired Tuesday, November 20, 2007
ABC broadcast the classic special A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving together with the more recent special He's a Bully, Charlie Brown on Tuesday, November 20. "A Charlie Brown Thankgiving" aired from 8-8:30 PM (Eastern/Pacific), "He's a Bully" aired from 8:30-9:00 PM. (November 15, 2007)
New Documentary "Good Ol' Charles Schulz" Aired Monday, October 29, 2007
The new 90-minute video biography of Charles Schulz, titled "Good Ol' Charles Schulz," aired from 9:00-10:30 PM (Eastern/Pacific) on Monday, October 29, 2007 as part of the PBS series American Masters. See above for a description of the show. (October 31, 2007)
"Peanuts Gallery" Documentary Aired Again Monday, October 29, 2007 on Many PBS Stations
Many PBS stations broadcast the short documentary "Peanuts Gallery," about Ellen Taaffe Zwilich's Peanuts-inspired symphonic work, on Monday October 29, 2007, from 10:30-11 PM (Eastern/Pacific), following the new video biography "Good Ol' Charles Schulz."
In 1990, Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Zwilich composed a short symphonic work based on the Peanuts comic strip. The piece was titled, appropriately enough, "Peanuts Gallery." It premiered at Carnegie Hall, and while sheet music is available, the piece has never been released on CD. This half-hour TV special tells how the Peanuts characters went from the daily comics to Carnegie Hall, features interviews with Zwilich and Jeannie Schulz, and concludes with a performance of "Peanuts Gallery for Piano and Orchestra" by the Florida State University Symphony Orchestra.
This documentary first aired on a very limited number of PBS stations in October 2006, and it was good to see it getting wider distribution at last. While not all PBS stations are showing it, many are - definitely check your local listings and watch this show in addition to the new Schulz documentary. (October 22, 2007)
"It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" Aired Tuesday, October 30, 2007
This year, ABC broadcast the classic special It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown on Tuesday, October 30 from 8-9 PM (Eastern/Pacific) - once again ABC showed the entire, uncut special along with an edited version of You're Not Elected, Charlie Brown. (October 28, 2007)
"Lucy Must Be Traded, Charlie Brown" Aired Friday September 7, 2007
ABC re-broadcast the 2003 special Lucy Must Be Traded, Charlie Brown from 8:30-9:00 PM (Eastern/Pacific) on Friday, September 7, 2007. (August 26, 2007)
"A Charlie Brown Valentine" Aired Saturday February 10, 2007
ABC broadcast A Charlie Brown Valentine from 8:00-8:30 PM (Eastern/Pacific) on Saturday, February 10, 2007. (February 2, 2007)
"A Charlie Brown Christmas" Aired Tuesday November 28 & Sunday December 17, 2006
A Charlie Brown Christmas, along with "Charlie Brown's Christmas Tales," aired twice on ABC in 2006 - on Tuesday, November 28 from 8:00-9:00 PM and on Sunday, December 17, from 7:00-8:00 PM (Eastern/Pacific). The special received excellent ratings both times. The show was also broadcast in Canada on December 17 on the cable channel YTV from 7:00-7:30 PM (Eastern). (December 6, 2006)
"I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown" Aired Tuesday December 19, 2006
I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown, the recent Christmas special starring ReRun and Spike, aired again on Tuesday, December 19, 2006 from 8:00-9:00 PM (Eastern/Pacific) on ABC. (December 6, 2006)
"A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving" and "He's a Bully, Charlie Brown" Aired Monday November 20, 2006
A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving aired Monday, November 20, 2006 from 8:00-8:30 PM (Eastern/Pacific) on ABC. It was followed by the new TV special He's a Bully, Charlie Brown, which aired from 8:30-9:00 the same night. (November 1, 2006)
"It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" Aired Friday October 27, 2006
It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown aired on Friday, October 27, 2006 from 8-9 PM (Eastern/Pacific) on ABC. As befitted the 40th anniversary broadcast, the special was broadcast uncut (in previous years, some scenes had been cut to make room for commercials), and it was followed by a bonus special, the 1972 show You're Not Elected, Charlie Brown, which mentions the "Great Pumpkin" briefly. (November 1, 2006)
Ellen Taaffe Zwilich's "Peanuts Gallery" Aired on PBS in October 2006
In 1990, Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Ellen Taaffe Zwilich composed a short symphonic work based on the Peanuts comic strip. The piece was titled, appropriately enough, "Peanuts Gallery." It premiered at Carnegie Hall, and while sheet music is available, the piece has never been released on CD. Finally the piece reached a somewhat wider audience in October, 2006. A selection of PBS stations around the country (unfortunately, far from all of them) aired a half-hour special telling how the Peanuts characters went from the daily comics to Carnegie Hall, and concludes with a performance of "Peanuts Gallery for Piano and Orchestra" by the Florida State University Symphony Orchestra. The special was titled "Peanuts Gallery." (October 1, 2006)
"It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown" Aired April 11, 2006 on ABC
It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown returned for another outing on network TV in spring 2006. It was broadcast Tuesday, April 11 on ABC from 8:00-8:30 PM (Eastern/Pacific). (April 3, 2006)
"A Charlie Brown Valentine" Aired Tuesday February 14, 2006
A Charlie Brown Valentine aired Tuesday, February 14, 2006 at 8 PM (Eastern/Pacific) on ABC. (February 10, 2006)
"A Charlie Brown Christmas" 2005 Airdates
A Charlie Brown Christmas along with the short "Charlie Brown's Christmas Tales" aired on Tuesday, December 6, 2005 from 8:00-9:00 PM (Eastern/Pacific) and again on Friday, December 16, 2005 on ABC in the US. 2005 was the 40th consecutive year the special has been shown on TV! (January 2, 2005)
"I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown" Aired Friday, December 9 on ABC
The recent hour-long Peanuts Christmas special I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown (first broadcast in 2003) was shown again this year on Friday, December 9 from 8:00-9:00 PM (Eastern/Pacific) on ABC in the US. (November 27, 2005)
"A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving" Aired Thursday, November 24, 2005
A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving was broadcast on Thanksgiving Day, Thursday, November 24, 2005 from 8:00-8:30 PM (Eastern/Pacific) on ABC in the US. (November 12, 2004)
It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown Aired October 25, 2005 on ABC
In 2005, ABC broadcast the classic TV special It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown on Tuesday, October 25, 2005 from 8:00-8:30 PM (Eastern/Pacific). (October 6, 2005)
It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown Broadcast on ABC in 2005
In 2005, ABC picked up the rights to broadcast the 1974 holiday special It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown, and aired it Friday, March 25, 2005 from 8:00-8:30 PM (Eastern/Pacific). (February 26, 2005)
A Charlie Brown Valentine 2005 Aired Saturday, February 12
ABC broadcast A Charlie Brown Valentine on Saturday, February 12, from 8:00-8:30 (Eastern/Pacific). (February 15, 2005)
Christmas Special 2004 Broadcast Dates
A Charlie Brown Christmas along with "Charlie Brown's Christmas Tales" was shown on Tuesday, December 7 from 8:00-9:00 PM (Eastern/Pacific) on ABC, and again on Thursday, December 16 from 8:00-9:00 PM (Eastern/Pacific) on ABC.
I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown was shown on Tuesday, December 14 from 8:00-9:00 (Eastern/Pacific) on ABC. (December 13, 2004)
Christmas Specials on Canadian TV in 2004
The Canadian cable channel YTV broadcast the following Peanuts TV specials at the following times in December 2004. All times Eastern.
It's Christmastime Again, Charlie Brown - Monday, December 13 at 7:30pm
A Charlie Brown Christmas - Sunday, December 19 at 7pm
I Want A Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown - Monday December 20 at 5pm
I Want A Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown - Friday December 24 at 7:30pm
A Charlie Brown Christmas - Friday December 24 at 8pm
(December 13, 2004)
"A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving" Aired on Thursday, November 25, 2004
In 2004, we celebrated Thanksgiving Day with A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, which was broadcast on Thursday November 25 from 8:00-8:30 PM (Eastern/Pacific) on ABC in the US. (November 28, 2004)
"It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" Aired Tuesday, October 26, 2004
The perennial classic It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown aired on Tuesday, October 26 on ABC from 8:00-8:30 PM (Eastern/Pacific) in the US. (October 27, 2004)
ABC to Show Peanuts Specials Again in 2004-05
In June, ABC announced that they will once again broadcast a variety of Peanuts TV specials during the 2004-05 television season. The shows include three classic Peanuts TV specials, and the more recent ones created for ABC.
The specials ABC will be showing in the upcoming year are:
It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown
A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving
A Charlie Brown Christmas
A Charlie Brown Valentine
I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown
"Lucy Must Be Traded, Charlie Brown" already aired again, on June 12. (June 18, 2004)
Lucy Must Be Traded Aired Again June 12, 2004
The 2003 special Lucy Must Be Traded, Charlie Brown aired again on ABC Saturday, June 12, 2004 from 8:00-8:30 PM (Eastern/Pacific). (May 5, 2004)
No More Peanuts Shows on NickToons
As of May 1, 2004, NickToons removed the Peanuts TV shows from their schedule, as a result of the Nickelodeon contract to air the shows expiring. (May 2, 2004)
A Charlie Brown Valentine Aired Feb. 14, 2004 on ABC
A Charlie Brown Valentine once again was broadcast on ABC on Saturday, February 14, 2004 from 8:00-8:30 PM (Eastern/Pacific). (January 23, 2004)
A Charlie Brown Christmas Aired December 2 & 13, 2003
The classic TV special A Charlie Brown Christmas aired twice on ABC in the U.S. in 2003: first on Tuesday, December 2, 2003 from 8:00-9:00 PM (Eastern/Pacific), and again on Saturday December 13 from 8:00-9:00 PM (Eastern/Pacific). Like the previous year, both times the classic special was followed by Charlie Brown's Christmas Tales to fill out the hour-long slot. (January 3, 2004)
New TV Show "I Want a Dog For Christmas, Charlie Brown" Aired December 9, 2003
The new hour-long Peanuts TV special, I Want a Dog For Christmas, Charlie Brown!aired Tuesday, December 9, 2003 from 8:00-9:00 PM (Eastern/Pacific) on ABC in the U.S.
According to the ABC press release, the show "centers on Rerun, the lovable but ever-skeptical younger brother of Linus and Lucy. It's Christmas vacation and, as usual, Rerun's big sister is stressing him out, so he decides to turn to his best friend, Snoopy, for amusement and holiday cheer. However his faithful but unpredictable beagle companion has plans of his own, giving Rerun reason to ask Snoopy to invite his canine brother Spike for a visit. When Spike shows up, it looks like Rerun will have a dog for Christmas after all... but then the real trouble begins." Read the full press release here. (November 6, 2003)
A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving Aired November 23, 2003
A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving aired Sunday, November 23, 2003, from 7:00-7:30 PM (Eastern/Pacific) on ABC in the US. (November 3, 2003)
"Great Pumpkin" Gets Good Ratings in 2003
According to ABC, the October 28, 2003 broadcast of It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown "led its time period in Total Viewers (13.2 million) and Adults 18-49 (5.0/14)," was one of "the Top 2 TV Shows of the night among Adults 18-49," and "attracted its largest audience in 12 years, since 10/30/91." (October 30, 2003)
It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown Aired October 28, 2003
It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown aired Tuesday, October 28, from 8:00-8:30 PM (Eastern/Pacific) on ABC in the USA. (October 10, 2003)
"Lucy Must Be Traded, Charlie Brown" Aired August 29, 2003
The new TV special "Lucy Must Be Traded, Charlie Brown," based on the series of strips where Charlie Brown trades Lucy off the team in hopes of getting a better player, was broadcast Friday, August 29, 2003 from 9:00-9:30 PM (EDT/PDT) on ABC. (July 3, 2003)
ABC To Air Classic Specials Again
In their "upfront" presentation about the 2003-2004 TV season, ABC announced that they plan to broadcast the classic specials It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, and A Charlie Brown Christmas once again later this year. (May 16, 2003)
"Easter Beagle" Canadian Broadcast April 20, 2003
Canadians can catch It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown at both 12 PM and 6 PM EDT on Sunday, April 20 on the cable channel YTV.
Unfortunately no USA channel is scheduled to show it this year. (April 17, 2003)
Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown Does Not Air on Nickelodeon After All
Despite advance listings indicating the cable channel Nickelodeon would show the 1975 special Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown at 1 PM (Eastern/Pacific) on Friday February 14, 2003, they did not in fact show it. (February 28, 2003)
A Charlie Brown Valentine Aired February 15, 2003
The special A Charlie Brown Valentine, first broadcast last year, is scheduled to air again this year on Saturday, February 15 from 8:00-8:30 PM (Eastern/Pacific) on ABC. Too bad that's one day after Valentine's Day! (February 28, 2003)
A Charlie Brown Christmas & Charlie Brown's Christmas Tales Aired December 8 & December 13
The classic holiday special A Charlie Brown Christmas, along with a new short special titled Charlie Brown's Christmas Tales, aired twice on ABC in the U.S: first Sunday, December 8, 2002 from 8-9 PM (Eastern/Pacific), and then again Friday, December 13, from 9-10 PM (Eastern/Pacific).
The original special was broadcast uncut, just as it was last year, and the remainder of the hour was filled out with "Charlie Brown's Christmas Tales," a series of new Christmas-themed animated shorts. The five shorts, each focusing on a specific Peanuts character (Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Linus, Lucy, and Sally), are based directly on stories from the Peanuts comic strips. Here is the full ABC press release about the broadcast and new show. (December 17, 2002)
A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving 2002 Ratings
A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving faced tough competition in its 8-8:30 P.M timeslot on Thursday, November 21, 2002, up against an episode of "Survivor: Thailand" on CBS and NBC's "Friends." The show came in a distant third with a 5.8 rating/8 share. Despite this, it was still ABC's best Thursday night score of the season. (November 25, 2002)
It's the Great Pumpkin 2002 Ratings
This year, It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown aired Friday, October 25, at 8 PM (Eastern/Pacific) on ABC in the US.
The special received a 5.8 rating/10 share. It came in third in the ratings during the 8-9 PM hour, behind "Providence" on NBC and "48 Hours Investigates" on CBS, but ahead of "Firefly" on FOX. But it was tops in the 18-to-49-year-old bracket for the 8-8:30 slot! For the week of October 21-27, the special ranked 60th out of 131 shows overall. (October 30, 2002)
Peanuts Shows Coming to Boomerang UK
Boomerang UK, a 24-hour "classic cartoon" channel available in the United Kingdom, has acquired the rights to show 30 half-hours of prime-time Peanuts specials and all 18 half-hours of the Saturday morning show The Charlie Brown and Snoopy Show. The shows are supposed to start airing in August - check your schedules! It's been a long time since the Peanuts shows were aired regularly in the UK, so this is a welcome change. (July 27, 2002)
"A Charlie Brown Valentine" Gets Respectable Ratings
The new special "A Charlie Brown Valentine" received good ratings when it was broadcast Thursday 2/14 on ABC, all things considered, since the competition was the men's skating finals in the Winter Olympics!
According to the Neilsen Ratings, the show ranked 31 out of 116 shows for the week of Feb. 11-17, 2002; and consider that the top 7 shows for the week were the Olympics. The show received a 5.7 share, equivalent to a little more than 6 million homes.
Other tidbits:
"The first original Charlie Brown special in more than eight years was last week's most watched prime-time program among kids... [it] beat every night of NBC's Games coverage among the younger set." (Washington Post)
"ABC's A CHARLIE BROWN VALENTINE, the first new Charlie Brown TV special in eight years, delivered the strongest nonsports 18-49 score in Thursday's 8 p.m. half-hour (3.5/10) since last March." (Reuters)
Reportedly ABC was pleased with the ratings results. (February 24, 2002)
Other Broadcast Info
Nickelodeon has removed the Peanuts specials from their lineup temporarily. See the TV schedule for upcoming broadcasts of movies on other channels. (September 2, 2000)
A Charlie Brown Christmas to Air December 6 & December 16 on ABC
A Charlie Brown Christmas aired on Thursday December 6 and Sunday December 16 on ABC. The show was paired with a new documentary about the making of the classic special--see news item above! Important note for VCR users: the original special plus new documentary are scheduled for an 8-9 PM hour-long block; the original special will air uncut, so with commercials, it will run over the half-an-hour mark - set your VCR for the full hour (you wouldn't want to miss the documentary anyway). (December 7, 2001)
ABC Edits "Great Pumpkin" & "A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving"
For those of you who have been asking, yes, ABC did make edits in its initial broadcast of It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown and A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving.
Three minutes of material were cut from It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown. The edited scenes were:
- The scene near the beginning where Lucy tries to get Charlie Brown to kick the football (1 min, 15 secs);
- Snoopy dances to music Schroeder plays on the piano at the Halloween party (1 min, 45 secs);
Plus, the final title card saying "The End" and one repetition of Linus's outraged statements about "next year" were lopped off (1-2 seconds).
Two scenes were edited from A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving to make room for more commercials:
- Around mid-show, after Snoopy sets plates and napkins on the table: Snoopy puts on a pilgrim outfit, forces Woodstock into one, and walks to Charlie Brown's door (Woodstock has trouble getting up the stoop);
- At the end of the show after the gang sings "To Grandmother's House We Go": Snoopy and Woodstock make and eat a real turkey dinner, Woodstock gets the wishbone.
The two "Thanksgiving" cuts totaled 3 minutes, 40 seconds - even more time than was cut from "Great Pumpkin!"
While we realize that networks include more commercial time than they did 30 years ago, this is more than CBS ever edited out from the shows--we hope that ABC will consider making fewer edits (or none at all!) in future showings and in the other specials.
We're pleased to confirm that ABC aired A Charlie Brown Christmas uncut and unedited in its initial showing on Dec. 6, although the timing of the commercial breaks was less than optimal.
Feedback can be sent to ABC's Audience Relations Department at netaudr@abc.com or by writing ABC, Inc., 500 S. Buena Vista Street, Burbank, CA 91521 .
The Paramount VHS and DVD releases are complete and unedited. (December 7, 2001)
A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving Aired on November 16, 2001 on ABC
A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving aired Friday, November 16, 2001 at 8 PM (EST) on ABC. This was the first time in over ten years the show had been broadcast on TV in the U.S.! (November 17, 2001)
"Great Pumpkin" Gets Good Ratings
ABC's 10/30/01 broadcast of "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" was ABC's highest rated show of the evening, gathering an overall 8.4 rating/12 share. It was third overall for the 8:00-8:30 timeslot (behind the World Series pre-game show and "JAG"), and sixth overall for the entire evening (out of 21 network shows).
And here's some demographic breakdowns from an ABC press release:
Repeat telecasts of the Halloween classics "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" and "Boo! To You, Too, Winnie the Pooh," drew an average audience of 11.9 million viewers.
Among Kids 2-11 (8.6/26), ABC delivered a higher rating in the hour than CBS, NBC, Fox, UPN and the WB combined. In addition "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" and "Boo! Too You, Too, Winnie the Pooh" generated ABC's strongest Kids delivery in the hour in 2-1/2 years &endash; since the series finale of "Home Improvement" aired in the time slot on 5/25/99.
ABC's rebroadcast of "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" was the top-rated entertainment program in its half-hour among young adults. Among Adults 18-49, "Charlie Brown" (5.1/13) beat the first half-hour of CBS' original episode of "JAG" by 38% (3.7/9) and NBC's original "Emeril" by 113% (2.4/6). Outscoring Fox's World Series baseball pre-game coverage in the half-hour, "Charlie Brown" won the time period among Adults 18-34 (4.8/14), Women 18-49 (6.4/16), Women 18-34 (6.5/17) and Kids 2-11 (7.8/23).
ABC's airing of "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" generated the animated program's strongest Adult 18-49 rating in over 5 years. Versus its most recent telecast on CBS (10/29/99 &endash; CBS had rights to the franchise prior to ABC), ABC's performance with the program was up by 31% among Adults 18-49 (5.1 vs. 3.9).
All the "ratings" numbers above are of the form (rating/share), where "rating" is the percent of all television households, regardless of whether the TV was on or not; "share" is the percent of household that were actually watching television. (November 2, 2001)
Holiday Specials Moved to ABC in 2001
After 35 years on CBS, the three classic holiday specials--A Charlie Brown Christmas, It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, and A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving--moved to ABC in 2001. ABC outbid CBS for the rights to air them, and has a three-year contract starting in 2001 to broadcast the shows. (The broadcast rights for all the other shows remain with Nickelodeon.) Unlike CBS, ABC "has every intention" to air all three shows each year. For more details, see this news article. (September 29, 2000)
News Archive: DVD & Video Releases
You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown Deluxe Edition DVD Now Available
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The first Peanuts DVD release of 2010, the 1985 animated version of the musical You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown, is now available. This is the first time this special has been released on DVD in the United States.
In addition to the 48-minute animated adaptation, the You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown Deluxe Edition DVD includes a bonus featurette titled Animating a Charlie Brown Musical, which according to Warner PR, "explores the 20-year journey of the Clark Gesner album that evolved into an off-Broadway hit before becoming this animated TV special." This DVD does not include a bonus episode; also unlike previous Warner Peanuts DVD releases, it does not come with a slipcover.
The suggested retail price is $19.98. The DVD was released on January 26, 2010 by Warner Home Video.
You can watch a trailer for this DVD here.
Note that the animated version of You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown is not the entire musical; some edits were made to fit it into an hour-long TV time slot. Also note that this DVD is only the animated adaptation; it does not include any live-action version of the musical. (February 1, 2010)
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Peanuts Motion Comics Now Available on DVD
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The Peanuts Motion Comics, animated shorts based on Peanuts comic strips from 1964, are now available on DVD from Warner Archive. The DVD is titled Peanuts: Motion Comics Collection, and features all 20 shorts. The shorts include stories about Christmas, Halloween, school elections, baseball, and Valentine's Day. Each short is about 3 1/2 minutes long, so the disc has an overall runtime of about 70 minutes. The Peanuts Motion Comics were first released as digital downloads on iTunes and Amazon at the end of 2008 have never aired on television. While iTunes and Amazon bundle paired shorts together to form 10 "episodes," the shorts are each listed individually on the DVD. The titles of the shorts are:
Linus for President
The Election
The Sore Arm
Independence Day
Eraserophagia
The Great Pumpkin
A Fall Rain
Some Advice
Ready to Pitch
Back on the Mound
Dear Santa
I'm New At It
Science Project
April Fool
Crabby Little Girl
Mother's Day
All Your Faults
Services Rendered
The Good Brother
Valentine's Day
Currently the DVD can only be ordered directly from Warner Home Video's on-line store, WBShop.com — you can find the DVD by clicking this link. The DVD has a list price of $19.95, but is currently selling for $14.95, plus tax and shipping. The video is anamorphic widescreen (16x9 enhanced for widescreen televisions).
It's important to note that Warner Archive DVDs are not manufactured, pressed DVDs that you typically find in stores; they are actually recordable DVD-Rs that are burned on demand as customers order them. While they should play in any DVD player produced in the last 8-10 years, they may not be quite as durable or long-lasting as regular DVDs. For more information, see the Warner Archive FAQ.
Thanks to Lon Cseplo for the initial tip! (January 1, 2010)
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Charlie Brown's Christmas Tales DVD Available Exclusively at CVS Pharmacy Stores
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During November and December 2010, CVS Pharmacy stores were selling an exclusive Peanuts DVD release of the holiday short Charlie Brown's Christmas Tales. This 18 minute long show of Christmas-themed skits was first broadcast in 2002. The DVD also includes a "bonus episode," Is This Goodbye, Charlie Brown?, the 1983 special where Linus and Lucy's father gets a new job and they move to a new town. (Seems a rather odd pairing of episodes, doesn't it?) The DVD does not contain any other bonus features. It retails for $12.99, and was first available at CVS on November 3, 2009.
While the spine of the DVD has the description "deluxe edition," this term doesn't appear on the front or the back of the DVD, unlike all other Warner Home Video releases, so it seems unlikely the DVD was intended to be regarded as a deluxe edition release. (The price is also cheaper than all other "deluxe edition," releases.)
Charlie Brown's Christmas Tales was previously released on DVD by Paramount, but that DVD is now out of print. This is the first time Is This Goodbye, Charlie Brown? has been released on DVD in the US.
For the 2009 holiday season, the DVD was sold exclusively at CVS Pharmacy stores. Since the holiday season is past, the stores are no longer stocking the DVD. It's not known if the DVD will be available again for the 2010 holiday season or not. (Thanks to Nat Gertler and Brenda Maupin for the initial tips about this DVD.) (March 16, 2010)
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Peanuts 1970's Collection, Vol. 1 DVD Box Set Now Available
Following on from this year's previous box set of the 1960's Peanuts specials, Warner Home Video has released the Peanuts 1970's Collection, Vol. 1, a two-disc DVD set containing all of the animated Peanuts TV specials from 1970-1974.
This box set contains six Peanuts specials, two of which are new to DVD in the US. The specials included are:
Play It Again, Charlie Brown (1971)
You're Not Elected, Charlie Brown (1972)
There's No Time for Love, Charlie Brown (1973)
A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving (1973)
It's a Mystery, Charlie Brown (1974)
It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown (1974)
You're Not Elected, Charlie Brown, A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, and It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown are available on other Warner Home Video DVDs; There's No Time for Love, Charlie Brown was previously released on a Paramount DVD, which is now out of print; and Play It Again, Charlie Brown and It's a Mystery, Charlie Brown have never been released on DVD before in the United States.
The box set also includes a 13-minute featurette titled Woodstock: Creating Snoopy's Sidekick, which the press release describes as follows: "A documentary focusing on Woodstock, Snoopy's best friend. He might be a little yellow bird, but the character of Woodstock has a huge personality. Conceived as a loveable pest to Mr. Joe Cool himself, Woodstock is as much a comedic sidekick as he is a sarcastic thorn in the side of Snoopy. The perfect compliment to Snoopy, is Woodstock that agent of chaos in the calm and organized universe of everyone's favorite beagle, or was he the device for Charles Schulz to further his social commentary on all things under the sun?" It includes interviews with Jean Schulz, Peanuts specials producer Lee Mendelson, Peanuts historian Derrick Bang, cartonist Alexis Fajardo, and author Phil Cousineau.
Finally, the box set includes an offer to get two songs by digital download from iTunes: "Thanksgiving Theme" and "Charlie's Blues." Both of these tracks have been released previously as part of the Charlie Brown's Holiday Hits CD.
You can watch an on-line trailer for the DVD set here.
The Peanuts 1970's Collection, Vol. 1 has a suggested retail price of $29.98, and was released on October 20, 2009.
Note that this DVD set does not include the bonus episodes and documentaries that appear on the separate A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving and You're Not Elected, Charlie Brown DVDs; to get those bonus features, you must also purchase the separate DVD releases (rats!).
Warner has not announced plans to release Play It Again, Charlie Brown, There's No Time for Love, Charlie Brown, or It's a Mystery, Charlie Brown on DVD separately; for now this box set will be the only way to get them. (October 22, 2009)
I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown Deluxe Edition DVD Now Available
The I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown Deluxe Edition DVD from Warner Home Video is now available.
This 2003 special was previously released on DVD by Paramount, but that DVD is now out of print. The new Warner DVD video release includes different bonus material from the old Paramount DVD. First, the new DVD includes Happy New Year, Charlie Brown (1986) as a bonus episode; this is the first U.S. DVD release for that special. Second, there is a new featurette, Sibling Rivalry: Growing Up Van Pelt, "about how Charles Schulz came to create Rerun Van Pelt, Lucy and Linus' younger brother."
Unfortunately, this means the two bonus features from the Paramount DVD — the short animated show Charlie Brown's Christmas Tales and the 2001 Making of A Charlie Brown Christmas documentary — are missing in action.
You can watch a trailer for the DVD by clicking this link.
The I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown Deluxe Edition DVD has a suggested retail price of $19.98, and was released on October 6, 2009. (October 6, 2009)
First High Definition Peanuts Released: A Charlie Brown Christmas Arrives on Blu-ray Disc Out Now
Also now available is the first-ever release of a Peanuts special on a high-definition home video format. Warner has released the classic special A Charlie Brown Christmas on Blu-ray Disc.
The Blu-ray Disc features the main special remastered in high-definition 1080p video with a "newly remixed" Dolby Surround 5.1 soundtrack. However, it only includes the remixed surround audio; the original, monaural soundtrack for the special is not present on the Blu-ray disc. The Blu-ray disc includes the same bonus material as the Deluxe Edition DVD from last year — a "bonus" episode, It's Christmastime Again, Charlie Brown, and the featurette A Christmas Miracle: The Making of A Charlie Brown Christmas. The bonus episode is also in 1080p high definition with a Dolby Surround 5.1 soundtrack (the original mono soundtrack is not included); however, the behind-the-scenes featurette is only in standard-definition video.
In addition to the Blu-ray disc, the release also includes a "bonus" DVD whose contents duplicate the Deluxe Edition DVD — it includes the title special, the bonus episode, and the featurette. You cannot buy the Blu-ray disc separately without the "bonus" DVD.
The DVD also includes a "digital copy" of A Charlie Brown Christmas, for copying to your computer's hard drive or "compatible portable device." However, unlike the digital copies included with many DVDs, the digital copy here only works on Windows computers and portable devices that support Windows "PlaysForSure" — which does not include iPods.
The Blu-ray disc will has a suggested retail price of $29.99, and was released on October 6, 2009. Note that you need to have a special Blu-ray Disc player to play this disc; it will not work in regular DVD players. The "bonus" DVD does work in regular DVD players, however (but if all you have is a DVD player and don't plan on buying a Blu-ray player soon, you may as well get the cheaper DVD-only release of this special). (October 6, 2009)
Snoopy's Reunion DVD Now Available!
The 1991 special Snoopy's Reunion was released on DVD from Warner Home Video on April 7, 2009.
The remastered deluxe edition DVD also includes the 1984 special It's Flashbeagle, Charlie Brown as the bonus episode. This is the first time both specials have been released on DVD in the US.
The DVD also includes a behind-the-scenes featurette titled Together Again: The Peanuts Voice Cast Reunion. The suggested retail price will be $19.98. (July 3, 2009)
Peanuts 1960's Collection DVD Box Set Now Available
The Peanuts 1960's Collection, a two-disc DVD set containing all of the animated Peanuts TV specials from the 1960's, has been released by Warner Home Video and is now available.
This box set contains six Peanuts specials, two of which have never been released on DVD in the US before. The specials included are:
A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965)
Charlie Brown's All-Stars (1966)
It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown (1966)
You're in Love Charlie Brown (1967)
He's Your Dog, Charlie Brown (1968)
It Was a Short Summer, Charlie Brown (1969)
A Charlie Brown Christmas, It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, and You're In Love, Charlie Brown are available on other Warner Home Video DVDs; Charlie Brown's All-Stars was previously released on a Paramount DVD, which is now out of print; but this is the first time He's Your Dog, Charlie Brown and It Was a Short Summer, Charlie Brown have been released on DVD in the United States.
The box set also includes a bonus feature titled The Maestro of Menlo Park, a new 35-minute documentary about jazz musician Vince Guaraldi, who composed the music for the first 14 Peanuts TV specials (including all the ones in this set). The documentary features contributions from David Guaraldi (Vince's son), Lee Mendelson, pianist George Winston, and other jazz musicians.
You can watch an on-line trailer for the DVD set here.
The Peanuts 1960's Collection has a suggested retail price of $29.98, and was released on July 7, 2009.
Note that this DVD set does not include the bonus episodes and documentaries that appear on the separate A Charlie Brown Christmas and It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown DVDs; to get those bonus features, you must also purchase the separate DVD releases (sigh!).
Warner has not announced plans to release Charlie Brown's All-Stars or It Was a Short Summer, Charlie Brown on DVD separately; for now this box set will be the only way to get them. However, He's Your Dog, Charlie Brown will be getting a separate DVD release on September 7, 2010. (July 14, 2009)
You're a Good Sport, Charlie Brown DVD Now Available!
The deluxe edition DVD of the 1975 special You're a Good Sport, Charlie Brown from Warner Home Video is now available! In this special, Charlie Brown, Peppermint Patty, and the Masked Marvel (aka Snoopy) compete in a motocross race.
This remastered deluxe edition also includes the thematically related 1979 special You're the Greatest, Charlie Brown, where Charlie Brown, Marcie, and the Masked Marvel enter the Junior Olympics Decathlon as the bonus episode. Neither You're a Good Sport or You're the Greatest have been released on DVD in the US before.
The DVD also includes a behind-the-scenes featurette titled Dust Yourself Off and Pick Yourself Up, Charlie Brown. The suggested retail price is $19.98. This DVD was released on January 27, 2009. (January 27, 2009)
A Charlie Brown Christmas Deluxe Edition DVD Now Available
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The A Charlie Brown Christmas Deluxe Edition DVD features the TV specials A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965) and It's Christmastime Again, Charlie Brown (1992), plus a new mini-documentary, A Christmas Miracle: The Making of A Charlie Brown Christmas.
Warner describes the new mini-documentary as follows: "A Christmas Miracle: The Making of A Charlie Brown Christmas - An in-depth look at how the producers brought a newspaper comic strip to animated life in a new medium. Under tense pressure and with many doubters, the show creators were able to create Peanuts in a new medium and make the show a smash success."
The Paramount DVD of A Charlie Brown Christmas included both these specials; new to this deluxe edition DVD is the "making of" documentary. Note that this is a completely new documentary, with new interviews; it is not the same as the "The Making of A Charlie Brown Christmas" show that aired on ABC in 2001 and that appeared on the Paramount I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown DVD.
The initial DVD release included a free download coupon for two Vince Guaraldi tracks from the iTunes Store. The two tracks are "Hark the Herald Angels Sing" and "Christmas Time is Here (vocal)." Neither of these tracks are new; they are both from the CD A Charlie Brown Christmas.
The DVD includes English, Spanish Japanese, and Portuguese mono audio, and English, Spanish, Chinese, Korean, Portuguese, and Thai subtitles. The suggested retail price is $19.98. This DVD was released on October 7, 2008 and is also available as part of the Peanuts Deluxe Holiday Collection DVD box set.
You can watch a trailer for this DVD (together with the A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving Deluxe Edition DVD). (October 7, 2008)
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A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving Deluxe Edition DVD Now Available
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The A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving Deluxe Edition DVD features the TV specials A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving (1973) and This is America, Charlie Brown: The Mayflower Voyagers (1988), plus a new mini-documentary, Popcorn & Jellybeans: Making a Thanksgiving Classic.
Warner describes the new mini-documentary as follows: "Popcorn & Jellybeans: Making a Thanksgiving Classic - A look at the final installment of the Peanuts holiday trilogy and what it meant to its creators and to us."
Both these specials were previously released on the Paramount DVD of A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving; new to this release is the behind-the-scenes documentary and remastered video. Also, this DVD restores a scene in The Mayflower Voyagers where the pilgrims shoot a turkey; this had been edited out of all previous home video releases.
The initial DVD release included a free download coupon for two Vince Guaraldi tracks from the iTunes Store. The two tracks are "Thanksgiving Theme" and "Camptown Races." Neither of these tracks are new; they are both from the CD Charlie Brown's Holiday Hits. (And in fact, only the "Thanksgiving Theme" is from A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving special; "Camptown Races" is not from the A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving or any other Peanuts television special soundtrack.)
The DVD includes English, Japanese, and Portuguese audio, and English, Chinese, Korean, Portuguese, and Thai subtitles. This DVD was released on October 7, 2008 and is also available as part of the Peanuts Deluxe Holiday Collection DVD box set.
Warner has put a trailer for this DVD online. (December 7, 2008)
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You're Not Elected, Charlie Brown Deluxe Edition Now Available
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The You're Not Elected, Charlie Brown Deluxe Edition DVD features the TV specials You're Not Elected, Charlie Brown (1972) and He's a Bully, Charlie Brown (2006), plus a new mini-documentary, The Polls Don't Lie: The Making of You're Not Elected, Charlie Brown.
Warner describes the new mini-documentary as follows: "The Polls Don't Lie: The Making of You're Not Elected, Charlie Brown - Offers viewers an in-depth look at this program, which happens to be the eighth Peanuts television special. This featurette explores the political leanings (or lack thereof) of its producers, as well as the way in which they set out to create a politically-themed piece within the realm of Peanuts. Civic duty meets Charlie Brown!"
You're Not Elected was previously released on DVD by Paramount as the bonus episode on their It's the Great Pumpkin DVD; Warner Home Video has decided to give You're Not Elected its own DVD release (perhaps because 2008 is a presidential election year?). The Warner DVD's bonus episode, He's a Bully, Charlie Brown, has never been released on DVD or video before - it's great to see that it's available at last. So, between the remastered video, new featurette, and He's a Bully, there's a lot of new stuff on this DVD.
The DVD includes English, Japanese, and Portuguese audio, and English, Chinese, Korean, Portuguese, and Thai subtitles. The suggested retail price is $19.98. The DVD was released on October 7, 2008. (October 7, 2008)
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DVD Release of He's a Bully, Charlie Brown Now Available!
As mentioned above, He's a Bully, Charlie Brown, the last new animated Peanuts special to air on TV, is finally available on DVD as of October 7, 2008. It is the "bonus episode " on the Warner Home Video DVD release of You're Not Elected, Charlie Brown. See above for more information about that DVD release. He's a Bully has not been previously released on home video. (October 7, 2008)
"Peanuts Deluxe Holiday Collection" Box Set Now Available
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In addition to the individual DVD releases detailed below, Warner has released the Peanuts Deluxe Holiday Collection box set, which includes the A Charlie Brown Christmas Deluxe Edition, It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown Deluxe Edition, and A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving Deluxe Edition DVDs, plus an CD containing 6 tracks from the A Charlie Brown Christmas soundtrack by Vince Guaraldi. If you have the soundtrack CD already, you've got all these tracks plus more — there's nothing new on the CD. But it's a nice little bonus for people who might not already own the soundtrack.
This box set was released on September 23. The list price for the boxset is $44.98, so if you want all three specials, it's cheaper to buy this set than the three separate DVD releases. (September 22, 2008)
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Exclusive Barnes & Noble DVD Box Set Bundles All 6 Deluxe Edition DVDs Together
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Barnes & Noble has an exclusive Peanuts DVD box set, titled the "Peanuts Deluxe Collection," for sale. It contains all 6 of the Warner Deluxe Edition Peanuts DVDs that have been released so far — which means it includes the A Charlie Brown Christmas; It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown; A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving; You're Not Elected, Charlie Brown; It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown; and Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown Deluxe Edition DVDs.
The set doesn't contain anything you can't get by purchasing the DVDs separately; the only thing exclusive about it is that you can buy all 6 DVDs together in one box. It does not include the bonus soundtrack CD that comes with the regular 3-DVD Peanuts Deluxe Holiday Collection box set. The set is available both at Barnes & Noble stores and on-line at www.barnesandnoble.com . The list price is $99.99, although it may retail for cheaper — it has been $69.99 on-line at some points. Note that even at $69.99, it's not necessarily a better deal than just buying the regular Holiday DVD box set and the other 3 DVDs separately; you should check the prices instead of assuming the Barnes & Noble set is cheaper. But it is the only way you can get all 6 DVDs in one box! (Thanks to reader Michael Pajak for the tip.) (November 5, 2008)
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It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown Deluxe Edition DVD Now Available
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The new Warner Home Video DVD release of It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown is now out.
The It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown Deluxe Edition DVD features both the title special and the 1981 special It's Magic, Charlie Brown, and a new behind-the-scenes documentary titled We Need a Blockbuster, Charlie Brown.
Warner describes the new behind-the-scenes documentary as follows: "We Need a Blockbuster, Charlie Brown - Documentary featurette focusing on the myth and tradition of the Halloween staple television program, It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown. Revealed along the way, through original interviews with the Schulz family and producers, are the pressures and challenges of following up an underdog hit with a bigger and better TV special."
This will be the first time It's Magic, Charlie Brown has been available on DVD in the United States. The old Paramount DVD release of It's the Great Pumpkin included You're Not Elected, Charlie Brown as its bonus episode, but Warner Home Video is releasing You're Not Elected on its own DVD on October 2, 2008.
The initial DVD release included a free download coupon for two Vince Guaraldi tracks from the iTunes Store. The two tracks are "Great Pumpkin Waltz" and "Oh Good Grief." Neither of these tracks are new; they are both from the CD Charlie Brown's Holiday Hits. (And in fact, only the "Great Pumpkin Waltz" is from It's the Great Pumpkin; "Oh Good Grief" is not from the Great Pumpkin or any other Peanuts television special soundtrack.)
Audio options include English, Spanish, Japanese, and Portuguese; subtitle options include English, Spanish, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, and Thai. The DVD has a retail price of $19.98, and was released on September 2, 2008.
You can watch a trailer for this DVD. (September 2, 2008)
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Warner Home Video Website for New Peanuts DVD Releases
Warner Home Video has set up a special website for the Peanuts DVD releases at http://www.peanutsdvd.com, featuring information and trailers about the DVD releases, as well as short video clips and pictures. (August 16, 2008)
Peanuts TV Specials Available For Download on iTunes, Amazon Unbox, XBox, Sprint Cell Phones
In addition to the new DVD releases, the Peanuts specials are also being made available as digital downloads in several different ways.
First, you can now purchase a variety of Peanuts shows from Apple's iTunes Store, using the iTunes software for Macintosh and Windows. Once purchased, you can watch the shows on your computer's monitor, or transfer them to an iPod or iPhone for viewing. (Presumably they can also be purchased and viewed using the Apple TV device, but I have not verified this.) Shows sold on iTunes are "near DVD quality," and having downloaded a couple and viewed them, I agree that the video quality is close to the DVD releases, although there are more compression artifacts. Note, however, that videos purchased from iTunes cannot be burned to a DVD or viewed on a DVD player.
For details of what specials are available, see the list of iTunes Releases.
Second, Amazon Video on Demand (formerly Amazon Unbox) - another digital video service, run by the giant on-line retailer Amazon.com - is offering Peanuts TV shows for on line viewing (and, in some cases download) as well. The video quality of Amazon Video on Demand offerings are generally not quite as good quality as the iTunes offerings or DVDs; there is more blockiness visible. Note that videos purchased from Amazon Video on Demand cannot be burned to a DVD or viewed on a DVD player.
For details of which specials are available on Amazon Video on Demand, see the list of Amazon Video on Demand Releases.
Reader Leo Ames wrote to say that Warner has also released two of the Peanuts specials as digital downloads on the Xbox Live video marketplace. If you're an XBox owner (the Xbox is a videogame console), you can buy, download, and watch these Peanuts specials through your XBox. Currently only Be My Valentine and It's the Easter Beagle are available (along with their associated bonus features from the DVD releases), but perhaps more will be available in the future.
Finally, reader Keith Hendricks reports that select specials are available to watch on video-enabled Sprint cell phones. 4-5 specials are available at a time, with a rotating selection. I do not know if the shows are available on other cell phone networks, or how much it costs to view the shows, or how long the shows will be available. But if you have a capable phone on Sprint, check it out! (November 5, 2008)
Paramount Peanuts DVD Releases Out Of Print
Because they've lost the home video rights to the Peanuts TV specials, all of the Paramount DVD releases of the Peanuts TV specials are now out of print, except for the two movie DVDs A Boy Named Charlie Brown and Snoopy Come Home (Paramount retains the rights to the theatrical movies). Some stores may be selling off the remaining stock, but that's it. Hopefully, since Warner's Peanuts DVD releases have already started arriving, we won't have to wait long for the big-name specials to be back in print — and hopefully neglected specials will make their way to DVD soon. (December 4, 2007)
VHS Releases Out of Print
Unfortunately all of the US Paramount VHS releases have gone out of print, even though the specials have not all been released on DVD in the US yet. You may be able to find used copies are eBay or Amazon.com. Also, the four theatrical movies, A Boy Named Charlie Brown, Snoopy Come Home, Race For Your Life, Charlie Brown, and Bon Voyage, Charlie Brown are out of print, although at least the first two are now available on DVD. (October 2, 2007)
Classic Holiday Specials and You're Not Elected, Charlie Brown Now Available from iTunes, Amazon on Demand
The classic holiday specials It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, and A Charlie Brown Christmas, as well as You're Not Elected, Charlie Brown, are now available for purchase and download from both iTunes and Amazon Video on Demand. Each are accompanied by two bonus episodes.
See the list of iTunes releases and list of Amazon Video on Demand releases for more details, and for general information about iTunes and Amazon video downloads. (November 3, 2008)
DVD Promotional Deals - Cap'n Crunch, Skippy Peanut Butter, Birds Eye Voila
In conjunction with their release of four new Peanuts DVD in fall 2008, Warner Home Video partnered with a variety of folks to promote and give away DVDs and other prizes. These deals and promotions have now expired. From the press release for the Peanuts Deluxe Holiday Collection:
"This November and December [2008], 1 million boxes of Limited Edition Cap'n Crunch's Christmas Crunch(R) Cereal will feature a $3.00 mail-in rebate good towards Peanuts DVD titles. Plus, in support of the seasonal offerings, Wendy's will feature a kid's meal promotion with a $3.00 off coupon on the gusset of 12 million kid's meals bag this November and December, and Skippy will host a sweepstakes offer on 6 million jars of peanut butter giving consumers a chance to win a Peanuts DVD or a four day trip to Cedar Point, featuring world class coasters and the all new Planet Snoopy, in Sandusky, Ohio.
"Additionally, Birds Eye Voila! will promote the partnership between Birds Eye Voila! and Warner Home Video as they team up to offer a special DVD giveaway to Voila! consumers. Buy 3 bags of Birds Eye Voila!, and get a WHV Peanuts Holiday DVD FREE. Partnering with Peanuts licensee Rail Events, Birds Eye will offer a chance to win a trip for four to ride the 'The Great Pumpkin Express' along with other weekly and monthly prizes. Visit birdseyevoila.com for more details." (September 2, 2008)
"It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown" Deluxe Edition DVD Now Available
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Warner Home Video's second DVD release, It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown Deluxe Edition is now available. In addition to It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown (1974), the DVD also includes It's Arbor Day, Charlie Brown as a "bonus" special. These are the same two specials that were released on Paramount's DVD release of It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown.
New to the Warner Home Video release is a bonus featurette titled "In Full Bloom: The Peanuts at Easter," described in the Warner press release as follows:
In Full Bloom: The Peanuts at Easter – An exploration of Easter holiday, and what the Easter Beagle means to the creators through the Peanuts gang, and fans both immediately and metaphorically.
The video for the main feature is, like on Warner Home Video's first DVD release, noticeably improved, and the short documentary feature is a nice addition.
The DVD was released on February 19, 2008, and retails for $19.98. The running time for both specials together is 50 minutes. (February 21, 2007)
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"Deluxe Edition" DVD Release of "Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown" Now Available
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Warner Home Video's first DVD release, the Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown Deluxe Edition, is now available. In addition to the title show from 1975, the DVD includes two "bonus" specials, You're In Love, Charlie Brown (1967) and It's Your First Kiss, Charlie Brown (1977). These are the same specials that were released on Paramount's DVD release of Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown.
New to the Warner DVD is a 15-minute featurette titled Unlucky in Love: An Unrequited Love Story. It's actually a very nice little piece about the themes of love in the comic strip and background on the Be My Valentine special, with new interviews with Schulz family members, producer Lee Mendelson, director Phil Roman, and others. Also new are Spanish audio and subtitle tracks for all three shows, in addition to the English audio and subtitles. The video and audio for all shows has been modestly improved.
Read my full Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown Deluxe Edition review.
The Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown Deluxe Edition DVD was released on January 15, 2008, and retails for $19.98. The running time for all three specials together is 75 minutes. (January 15, 2008)
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Warner Home Video Takes Over Peanuts Home Video Releases
In late 2007, the Peanuts television specials moved to a new home for video releases - Warner Home Video took over the home video license previous held by Paramount Home Video.
Warner has a multi-year license to distribute 50 of the Peanuts TV specials on DVD, as well as the 18 episodes of the Saturday morning cartoon show The Charlie Brown and Snoopy Show. The deal does not include the 4 theatrical movies; the home video rights for those remain with Paramount.
The first titles Warner released were "deluxe editions" of Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown on Jan. 15, 2008 and It’s the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown on Feb. 19, 2008. They had remastered video, featured "newly created bonus features," and came in "new collectable packaging." The other big name holiday specials received similar treatments and were released in fall 2008.
At the time of the announcement, it was speculated that the lesser-known Peanuts specials — many of which have never been released on DVD — would be packaged in "Golden Collection" sets similar to the Warner "Looney Tunes Golden Collection" sets. While plans have been announced for big DVD collections, they are not being released under the "Golden Collection" moniker (which Warner has also retired for the Looney Tunes line).
Warner is also hoping to produce new, original Peanuts features for home video release. At the time it was said these will be produced by Melendez/Mendelson Productions, as always; however, the first new productions from Warner — the Peanuts Motion Comics released in fall 2008 — were done without the involvement of Melendez or Mendelson Productions, so it remains to be seen what their involvement with future productions will be.
And finally, Warner also announced plans to create "original shortform content for digital distribution through wireless, electronic sell-through and VOD platforms." The Peanuts Motion Comics, released through the iTunes Store and Amazon Video on Demand, were the first such releases. (December 4, 2007; revised March 10, 2009)
The Complete "This is America, Charlie Brown" Series Comes to DVD
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All eight episodes of the animated mini-series This is America, Charlie Brown are now available as a 2-DVD set from Paramount Home Video. Meant as both education and entertainment, in each episode the Peanuts gang witnesses and participates in different historic events and discoveries. The eight episodes, originally broadcast in 1988 and 1989, are:
Disc 1:
The Mayflower Voyagers
The Birth of the Constitution
The Wright Brothers at Kitty Hawk
The NASA Space Station
Disc 2:
The Building of the Transcontinental Railroad
The Great Inventors
The Smithsonian and the Presidency
The Music and Heroes of America
Short review: Like the other Paramount releases of Peanuts TV specials, the "This is America, Charlie Brown" episodes look very nice on DVD — the video is very colorful and clean. The audio is clear if not spectacular; while the packaging says English Stereo, I couldn't detect any significant stereo separation. The DVDs are minimalist, with no extras, no subtitles, and not even scene selection menus, although there are chapter stops in each show. The episodes are presented in their original broadcast order (unlike the VHS releases, which were out of order). The DVDs come in two slimcases with attractive inserts and fairly detailed descriptions of each episodes, inside a slim cardboard box. It's great that Paramount released the entire series in one nice little package, and thus it's easy to recommend this DVD set.
"The Mayflower Voyagers" is already available on DVD on the "A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving" DVD, but the rest are new to DVD in North America. The list price is $19.98. (June 15, 2006)
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"A Boy Named Charlie Brown" DVD Finally Released in UK or Australia
The theatrical movie A Boy Named Charlie Brown was finally released on DVD in the UK and Australia in summer 2006 (after initially being announced for spring 2005). (October 1, 2006)
Nothing New on "Great Pumpkin: 40th Anniversary Edition" DVD
While a variety of news stories and DVD release lists announced that Paramount released a DVD called "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown: 40th Anniversary Edition" in August 2006, there is nothing new on this DVD - the only difference between this edition and the previous one is a "It's the Great Pumpkin 40th Anniversary" badge on the front cover. Still, it was good to see Paramount promoting the disc again. (August 25, 2006)
"It's an Adventure, Charlie Brown" DVD Released in the UK
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A new Peanuts DVD, "It's an Adventure, Charlie Brown", was released on May 15 in the UK. It is now available from Amazon.co.uk and other British on-line retailers.
The DVD has a list price of £7.99. No matching VHS release has been announced.
Note that UK DVDs are in PAL video format, so most North American players cannot play UK DVDs. (May 23, 2006)
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"A Boy Named Charlie Brown" and "Snoopy Come Home" DVDs Details
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Paramount Home Video has released the first two Peanuts theatrical movies, A Boy Named Charlie Brown and Snoopy Come Home, on DVD. They were released on March 28, 2006.
Both DVDs feature remastered widescreen transfers of the movies, enhanced for 16:9 TVs (also known as "anamorphic widescreen"). This is the first time the movies have been released in widescreen on home video.
A Boy Named Charlie Brown comes with an English 5.1 Surround soundtrack and an English Stereo soundtrack. Snoopy Come Home has just a Dolby 2.0 Surround track. There are no extras on the DVDs, just the films themselves. However...
The best bit of news is that the DVD of A Boy Named Charlie Brown features the longer, 86 minute version of the movie, as opposed to the shorter 79 minute version that was previously released on VHS. This means fans can finally enjoy two major missing scenes — Lucy showing Charlie Brown a slow-motion replay of his failure to kick the football as "therapy," and Charlie Brown's entire conversation with hotel room service near the end of the movie — plus many short extensions to other scenes.
Read my review of the two movie DVDs. The short summary: overall they look and sound good, and it's great to have the longer version of "A Boy Named Charlie Brown" available at last. Definitely recommended.
The DVDs have a list price of $14.98 each, and are available now at most major on-line DVD retailers. (March 26, 2006)
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1963 Peanuts Documentary Available on DVD from Schulz Museum
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Not only is the movie "A Boy Named Charlie Brown" soon to be released on DVD, but the rare, unbroadcast 1963 television documentary of the same name is also now available on DVD from the Charles Schulz Museum.
The movie and the documentary actually have little to do with each other, except for their name. The A Boy Named Charlie Brown documentary—a great little time capsule examining both the Peanuts comic strip and its creator just as the strip was hitting the big time—was Lee Mendelson's first collaboration with Charles Schulz, but once they were finished, they were unable to convince any network or sponsor to buy the half-hour piece. So despite the great success of "A Charlie Brown Christmas" and other Peanuts television specials, this documentary remained unaired.
Up until now, the only way you could see this unaired gem was to visit the Charles Schulz Museum and hope they were showing it in their auditorium that day. Now you can order your very own copy for $14.95 (plus shipping)—call them at 707-579-4452 to order.
For more information about the documentary's contents, see the A Boy Named Charlie Brown documentary entry below. (March 12, 2006)
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"You're a Good Sport, Charlie Brown" DVD Released in the UK
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You're a Good Sport, Charlie Brown, along with You're the Greatest, Charlie Brown on the same disc, has been released in the UK. This DVD was previously only available in a box set of four other Peanuts DVDs.
The DVD has a list price of £7.99. A VHS release is also available for £5.99.
Note that UK DVDs are in PAL video format, so most North American players cannot play UK DVDs. (August 31, 2005)
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"Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown" DVD Released in the UK
A Box Set of UK Peanuts DVDs
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A box set of four Peanuts DVDs has been released in the UK.
According to sendit.com and play.com, the box set contains the previously released UK DVDs of A Charlie Brown Celebration, It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown, and Snoopy the Musical, as well as a previously unreleased DVD, You're a Good Sport, Charlie Brown.
According to Firefly Entertainment, You're a Good Sport, Charlie Brown should be available as a separate release in the UK later this year. So if you already have the other 3 DVDs, you don't have to buy this box set - you just need to be patient! However, if you don't have any of the DVDs, this set is a good way to start your Peanuts video collection.
The box set lists for £24.99.
Note that UK DVDs are in PAL video format, so most North American players cannot play UK DVDs. (February 15, 2005)
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"I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown" US DVD and VHS Released
"I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown" + "A Charlie Brown Christmas" Released in UK
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On November 15, Firefly released a UK DVD featuring both the latest Peanuts TV special and the very first Peanuts TV special. I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown features the classic A Charlie Brown Christmas as a secondary feature!
The DVD retails for £9.99. A UK VHS tape release is also available for £7.99. Both can be ordered at most UK on-line stores, such as Amazon.co.uk.
Note that UK DVDs are in PAL video format, so most North American players cannot play UK DVDs; however both these shows are also available on US format DVDs. (November 28, 2004)
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Next UK Peanuts DVDs - "Snoopy - The Musical"
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The latest UK Peanuts DVD from Firefly Entertainment, featuring the hour-long 1988 animated adaptation of Snoopy - The Musical, was released on September 27, 2004 and is now available.
The DVD retails for £9.99, a slightly higher price than the previous Firefly UK DVD releases. Both can be ordered at most UK on-line stores, such as Amazon.co.uk.
A UK VHS tape is also available for £7.99.
Snoopy - The Musical is not available on DVD in the US. However, note that UK DVDs are in PAL video format, so most North American players cannot play UK DVDs. (October 7, 2004)
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UK "Snoopy Come Home" DVD Released
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Paramount released the movie Snoopy Come Home on DVD in the UK on July 12, and it is now available.
The DVD is identical to the Australian release of the title from earlier this year. The movie is presented in fullscreen, and is not restored or a new transfer - it uses exactly the same transfer as the US VHS release of Snoopy Come Home, and is very average as a result.
All the Peanuts theatrical movies were originally created in the 4:3 aspect ratio, so the aspect ratio of this DVD is not necessarily incorrect - however, the movie may have been presented in a widescreen aspect ratio when it was shown in theaters.
No extras are included on the DVD, although in addition to English, the audio is available in three other languages - Spanish, German, and Italian. Even the songs are sung in the alternate languages! Italian subtitles are included as well. List price is £12.99.
There are still no plans for a US release of any of the Peanuts theatrical movies at this time.
Note that UK DVDs are in PAL video format, so most North American players cannot play UK DVDs. (August 10, 2004)
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Second UK Peanuts DVD Released
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The second UK Peanuts DVD from Firefly Entertainment was released on June 14, 2004 - it contains the hour-long 1982 TV special A Charlie Brown Celebration, and has a retail price of £5.99. It's available now at most UK on-line stores, such as Amazon.co.uk. A Charlie Brown Celebration is not available on DVD in the US.
A UK VHS tape of A Charlie Brown Celebration is also available.
Note that UK DVDs are in PAL video format, so most North American players cannot play UK DVDs. (June 18, 2004)
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Australian "Snoopy Come Home" DVD Now Out
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The Australian DVD of the movie Snoopy Come Home, delayed from last fall, is now out. This is the first time one of the theatrical Peanuts movies has been released on DVD anywhere.
The DVD is fullscreen, and is not restored or a new transfer - it uses exactly the same transfer as the US VHS release of Snoopy Come Home.
No extras are included on the DVD, although in addition to English, the audio is available in three other languages - Spanish, German, and Italian. Even the songs are sung in the alternate languages!
Unfortunately, Paramount says that there are no plans for a North American release at this time.
Note that this is both a PAL and Region 4 DVD, so most North American DVD players cannot play this DVD. (March 9, 2004)
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"Lucy Must Be Traded, Charlie Brown" Now Out on DVD and VHS
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On March 2, 2004, Paramount Home Video released, Lucy Must Be Traded, Charlie Brown on both DVD and VHS.
Both DVD and VHS releases include an extended version of Lucy Must Be Traded, Charlie Brown with 4 minutes of previously unseen material!
The DVD includes 2 additional shows, Charlie Brown's All-Stars and It's Spring Training, Charlie Brown. The VHS release just contains Lucy Must Be Traded, Charlie Brown, as the other shows are already available on VHS. The suggested retail price for the DVD is $14.99, the VHS is $12.95. (March 5, 2003)
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UK "Easter Beagle" DVD Released
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Good news for Peanuts fans in the UK - a company named Firefly Entertainment has been licensed to release the Peanuts shows on DVD in the UK.
The first DVD, It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown, was released on March 22, 2004, and also includes Life is a Circus, Charlie Brown. It's up for pre-order now at most UK on-line stores, such as Amazon.co.uk.
Note that UK DVDs are PAL and Region 2, so most North American players cannot play UK DVDs. (April 5, 2004)
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Extended Version of "A Charlie Brown Valentine" on Home Video
In a completely unannounced surprise, the just released Paramount Home Video DVD of the 2002 special A Charlie Brown Valentine contains previously unseen material! (As does the VHS release, in fact.)
The version of the special on the home video releases is not the broadcast version, with the video version running 4 minutes longer than the broadcast version - considering the length of the show, that's not a trivial amount of extra animation. The home video version contains five completely new scenes and one extended scene. Also, two other scenes are edited slightly differently, a couple of scenes appear in a different order than they did in the broadcast version, and there's a new version of the credits.
The two older shows on the DVD, "There's No Time For Love, Charlie Brown" and "Someday You'll Find Her, Charlie Brown," are the same as their previous VHS releases and do not include any new material.
And further good news is that the upcoming home video releases of "Lucy Must Be Traded, Charlie Brown" and "I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown" should feature similarly extended versions of those shows.
So, if you haven't picked up "A Charlie Brown Valentine" on home video yet, there's another excellent reason to do so! (January 15, 2003)
"A Charlie Brown Valentine" Released on DVD and VHS
No More DVD Releases In 2003
(This article was superseded by the announcement of the first 2004 DVD.) Unfortunately, Paramount confirms that no more Peanuts DVDs are on the schedule "for now," as of March 4, 2003. This probably means there won't be any further releases for at least six months, if not longer (hopefully we won't have to wait two years like we did between the last set of releases). (March 4, 2003)
It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown DVD Released
Paramount released It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown on DVD on March 4, 2003. The DVD includes It's Arbor Day, Charlie Brown as a "bonus episode." As with previous Peanuts DVD releases, the specials are in full-frame format and English Mono (both as originally aired), with English sub-titles as an option. Retail price is $19.99 (C$26.95 in Canada). Read the full Paramount press release, and then read my review. (March 4, 2003)
Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown DVD Released
On January 7, 2003, Paramount released the 1975 special Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown on DVD. The DVD also includes two bonus episodes: You're In Love, Charlie Brown, (1967) and It's Your First Kiss, Charlie Brown (1977). The shows are in full-frame format and English Mono (both as originally aired), with both closed-captions and English sub-titles. Retail price will be $19.99 (C$26.95 in Canada). Read the full Paramount press release, and then read my review. (January 7, 2003)
"Charlie Brown Around Town" Video
A video featuring all 102 of the Charlie Brown statues that were displayed in St. Paul, MN this summer is now available. Similar to last year's video featuring the Snoopy statues, "Peanuts on Parade: Charlie Brown Around Town" was produced by Craig Schulz, features "up close and personal" look at each statue with a classic Peanuts music accompaniment. Proceeds from sales of the video will be donated to the Charles M. Schulz Fund in support of the bronze statues being designed for St. Paul's new downtown park. The video runs 35 minutes, sells for $19.95, and is available from either Camp Snoopy or Snoopy's Gallery and Gift Shop. (November 5, 2001)
First Two Movies Move to Paramount Home Video
The first two Peanuts movies, A Boy Named Charlie Brown and Snoopy Come Home, previously released on home video by CBS Fox and recently out of print, will now be distributed by Paramount Home Video. The Paramount-labeled VHS re-releases are scheduled for May 29, 2001. (No DVD releases are scheduled at this time.)
Paramount picked up the films as a result of the Viacom-CBS merger, as Paramount is owned by Viacom.
Unfortunately, the same source tapes will be used for the Paramount releases, so the video of A Boy Named Charlie Brown will continue to be missing some footage (see the movie's entry for more details). (April 27, 2001)
German Videos Now Available
German-language video releases of the Peanuts specials are now available in Europe from Baumhaus Medien AG. You can see nice photos of them at the following web links: http://www.netwear.de/peanuts/videos.html and http://www.netwear.de/snoopy/videos.html (these links are not an endorsement of the store linked to, they're just where I found good photos and descriptions). (May 21, 2001)
"Peanuts on Parade" Video Now Available
It doesn't star the Peanuts gang per se, but this video, created by Charles Schulz's son Craig, features footage of all 101 Snoopy statues that were displayed in St. Paul, Minnesota during the summer of 2000, accompanied by classic Peanuts background music performed by David Benoit. The video is 28 minutes long, costs $19.95, and is available from Snoopy's Gallery and Gift Shop. (January 15, 2001)
No DVD Releases Scheduled for 2001
Paramount says that currently they have no new Peanuts DVD releases planned for 2001. Rats! (January 6, 2001)
"Pied Piper" Comes to Video and DVD
It's the Pied Piper, Charlie Brown has been released as a direct-to-video title on both VHS and DVD. Based on the legend of the Pied Piper, it stars Snoopy as the title character, who tries to rid the Peanuts' gang's hometown of sports playing, loudly dancing mice by playing his accordion in return for a year's supply of dog food. You can see a trailer for the "Pied Piper" at reel.com (although it's fairly poor quality).
Both the VHS and DVD also include an 11-minute "retrospective interview with creator Charles M. Schulz." The DVD also includes an English Dolby Stereo and English subtitles. The video release also includes a sweepstakes card to win an actual animation cel from the special, and a coupon for Pillsbury Peanuts cookies. (September 15, 2000)
Classic Holiday Specials Come to DVD
In addition, three other Peanuts DVDs have been released, each containing a "classic" special and one other special:
A Charlie Brown Christmas & It's Christmastime Again, Charlie Brown
It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown & You're Not Elected, Charlie Brown
A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving & This is America, Charlie Brown: The Mayflower Voyagers
The pictures quality on all the DVDs is excellent, the shows have never looked better!
Each disk has the original English mono soundtrack as well as English subtitles. The discs are priced at US$19.95 and C$26.99, and there will also be a three-disc gift set available for US$57.95 and C$80.99 (no bonuses included with the set except for the enclosing box). See the full press release for more details. (September 15, 2000)
Classic Holiday Specials Video Gift Set
In addition to the DVDs, Paramount has reissued the videotapes of A Charlie Brown Christmas, It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, and A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving in a gift box for US$38.85 and C$44.85. The gift set will also include a "free inflatable kid's chair" for a limited time. The videos will continue to be sold individually as well. See the full press release for more details. (September 14, 2000)
Schulz Memorial Service Video
You can order a very well-done videotape of the February 21, 2000 memorial service for Charles Schulz, put together by the Schulz family, from Snoopy's Gallery and Gift Shop. Proceeds from the video will go to the D-Day Memorial Fund. (July, 2000)
News Archive: Music Releases
'Twas the Season for A Charlie Brown Christmas Cover Albums
In December 2009, not one but two new albums covering the classic A Charlie Brown Christmas music were released. These albums feature current artists' interpretations of Vince Guaraldi's score for the holiday special.
First, Maryland-based jazz trio The Eric Byrd Trio released an album titled, not surprisingly, A Charlie Brown Christmas:
A Charlie Brown Christmas is the first holiday CD from The Eric Byrd Trio. We all grew up watching Charlie Brown, Snoopy and the Peanuts gang and their Christmas Special became a household tradition. We also found ourselves snapping along with the swinging sounds of the Vince Guaraldi Trio, as that may have been our first introduction to the classic jazz piano trio format.
In the last several years the EBT have been performing this music for families all over and they've finally recorded their unique and modern approach to these classic songs. The 'hits' are all here: "Linus and Lucy," "Christmas Time Is Here," "My Little Drum" and more. If you loved the original, you will truly love this updated version. The CD features the same Trio for the last 10 years - Byrd on piano, Bhagwan Khalsa on bass, Alphonso Young, Jr on drums and special guest Jason Miles Byrd on vocals.
You can order the CD and hear samples at CDBaby; note that the CD is actually a CD-R, not a regular pressed CD.
Second, independent Canadian label Zunior released an album titled A Peanuts Christmas: The 2009 Zunior Holiday Album, featuring tracks by various artists from the Zunior label:
The 2009 charity holiday album featuring a huge group of Zunior favourites!
Zunior.com is proud to present a brand new collection of songs created just for the Zunior Label. A Peanuts Christmas: The 2009 Zunior Holiday Album is a song-for-song tribute to the famous album by the Vince Guaraldi Trio called A Charlie Brown Christmas. Each song represents a unique interpretation of the classic song featured on the original album.
100% of the retail sale price of this album will be donated to the Daily Bread Food Bank. This digital-only release is available exclusively on Zunior.com - the little digital music store, Canada's source for independent digital music since 2004.
This album is download-only, and you can hear samples and purchase it from the Zunior website. Definitely listen to the samples first — these interpretations are non-traditional and may not appeal to everyone. (December 20, 2009)
Jazz for Peanuts: New Album of Peanuts Music from David Benoit
On October 28, 2008 David Benoit released another album of Peanuts music, titled Jazz for Peanuts - A Retrospective the Charlie Brown TV Themes. The album contains 6 new tracks from Benoit: 3 that are his interpretations of Vince Guaraldi's Peanuts music, and 3 of his own pieces from more recent TV specials. The album also contains 4 tracks by other musicians that have previously appeared on other CDs. The tracks are listed below; new tracks are denoted with an *.
- *You're in Love, Charlie Brown - from You're in Love, Charlie Brown (composed by Vince Guaraldi, performed by David Benoit)
- The Buggy Ride - from This is America, Charlie Brown: The Wright Brothers at Kitty Hawk (composed and performed by Wynton Marsalis)
- Benjamin - from This is America, Charlie Brown: The NASA Space Station (composed and performed by Dave Brubeck)
- *The Great Pumpkin Waltz - from It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown (composed by Vince Guaraldi, performed by David Benoit)
- *Wild Kids - from This is America, Charlie Brown: The Great Inventors (composed by David Benoit & Don Grusin, performed by David Benoit)
- Breadline Blues - from This is America, Charlie Brown: The Smithsonian and the Presidency (composed by David Benoit, performed by Kenny G)
- *Be My Valentine - from Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown (composed by Vince Guaraldi, performed by David Benoit)
- *Rollerblading - from It Was My Best Birthday Ever, Charlie Brown (composed and performed by David Benoit)
- *Re-Run's Theme - from I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown (composed and performed by David Benoit)
- Linus and Lucy - from A Charlie Brown Christmas (composed and performed by Vince Guaraldi)
The new tracks by Benoit are quite nice, it's just too bad there are only 6 of them and the album is so short overall! Nevertheless, the album is definitely recommended, and is available on CD from regular and on-line stores, and as a download from places such as iTunes. You may also want to read Concord Music's information about the album. (November 4, 2008)
Vince Guaraldi and the Lost Cues From the Charlie Brown Television Specials, Vol. 1 & 2
I have been very remiss in not mentioning these two relatively new CDs, which include previously unreleased music cues taken from the original studio master tapes for the Peanuts TV shows! The tracks for the CDs are drawn from It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown; Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown; It's a Mystery, Charlie Brown; A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving; There's No Time for Love, Charlie Brown; You're a Good Sport, Charlie Brown; and You're Not Elected, Charlie Brown. While fans might have wished for complete soundtrack releases for each of the specials, these albums are still must-haves for fans of Guaraldi's Peanuts music. You can get them from Amazon.com or the official Vince Guaraldi website. (September 2, 2008)
New Vince Guaraldi CD "Oaxaca" Includes Two New Peanuts Tracks
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A new Vince Guaraldi CD, titled Oaxaca, was recently released and it includes two previously unreleased Peanuts tracks.
The Oaxaca CD contains 9 tracks of previously unreleased Guaraldi performances. Among them two new Peanuts tracks: "Charlie Brown Blues" is a composition that appeared in A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, while "You're a Good Sport, Charlie Brown" is the title and main theme to the show of that name. Also included are the title track, which is an original composition by Vince Guaraldi, two covers of Beatles tunes in the unmistakable Guaraldi style, and more. Exciting news for Peanuts fans, and you'll certainly enjoy the other tracks as well.
The CD is available exclusively from the newly redesigned VinceGuaraldi.com, so head on over to their store to add it to your collection. (November 1, 2004)
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New Vince Guaraldi CD - "The Charlie Brown Suite"
A new CD of previously unreleased Vince Guaraldi music has been issued on the Bluebird label. The main attraction is "The Charlie Brown Suite", a roughly 40-minute long piece of fully orchestrated music that incorporates many of the themes familiar from his Peanuts music. The album also includes previously unreleased alternate versions of "Linus and Lucy" and "The Charlie Brown Theme." The liner notes contain an introduction by Dave Guaraldi, Vince's son, and an article by Peanuts TV producer Lee Mendelson. The source material for these recordings wasn't in pristine quality, so the sound of the album isn't perfect - but it's a great find nonetheless. (August 30, 2003)
"Here's To You, Charlie Brown" Album Nominated for Grammy, But Does Not Win
David Benoit's album of Peanuts music, "Here's To You, Charlie Brown: 50 Great Years" was nominated for a Grammy in the "Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical" category, however it lost to "Two Against Nature" by Steely Dan. (March 3, 2001)
David Benoit and "Pied Piper" Premiere Photos
Meanwhile, check out Derrick Bang's web page about David Benoit, which features photos from the "It's the Pied Piper, Charlie Brown" premiere and other information about Benoit's association with Peanuts. (January 15, 2001)
"A Boy Named Charlie Brown" Movie Soundtrack Record
The soundtrack for the movie "A Boy Named Charlie Brown" was only ever released on an LP record, and is long out of print. But you can still get a new, unused copy of it from the Stanyan By Mail web site (along with many other Rod McKuen albums) - all you have to do is find a record player to play it on! (January 15, 2001)
Original "You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown" Cast Album Returns to CD
Decca Broadway has released a re-mastered CD of the original 1967 off-Broadway cast album of "You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown" (Decca Broadway 012 159 851-2), finally making this long out-of-print recording available again. Even better, in addition to all 14 tracks from the original album, this release includes 4 bonus tracks taken from the never heard before 1966 demo record composer Clark Gesner sent to Charles Schulz in order to obtain permission to create the musical. The CD is accompanied by a 12-page booklet containing some never-seen before production photos, a synopsis, and an overview of the show's history. Visit Decca Broadway's web page for a track listing and samples. (November 18, 2000)
Cyrus Chestnut Covers "A Charlie Brown Christmas"
Jazz pianist and composer Cyrus Chestnut has released an updated version of the Vince Guaraldi Trio's "A Charlie Brown Christmas" album on the Atlantic Records label. The album includes new takes on the dozen songs from the original release, featuring vocals from Vanessa Williams and the Boys Choir of Harlem on the song "Christmas Time Is Here," Brian McKnight on "The Christmas Song," and the Manhattan Transfer on "What Child Is This?" The album also includes a Chestnut-composed solo piano tribute to late Peanuts creator Charles Schulz titled "Me & Charlie Brown." (September 27, 2000)
News Archive: Other News
Internet Radio Show Interviews Lee Mendelson
The Internet radio show TV Time Machine has a new one-hour interview with Lee Mendelson, producer of A Charlie Brown Christmas and all the other Peanuts television specials. In this interview, he talks about the story behind the classic holiday special, working with Charles Schulz, casting the original voices for the special, the recent Peanuts deluxe edition DVDs, and more. You can listen the interview at http://www.tvtimemachine.com/radio_show_charlie.htm . (December 28, 2008)
Peanuts Rocks the Vote
The Peanuts Rocks the Vote website at www.peanutsrocksthevote.com allowed you choose which Peanuts character you would want for president, however voting is now closed — and Snoopy won the mock election. The website no longer exists.
Additionally, the site included information about voting registration and election dates in the "real" election, classic Peanuts strips about elections, and the You're Not Elected, Charlie Brown DVD. (November 3, 2008)
Bill Melendez Passes Away
It's with great sadness that we note the passing of Bill Melendez, the director and animator of the Peanuts television specials. He also performed the voices of Snoopy and Woodstock. He died of natural causes in Santa Monica, California, at the age of 91. The Washington Post has a good obituary. Bill Melendez's clever and caring translation of Charles Schulz's work to the television screens served as many people's first introduction to the world of Peanuts, including myself, and he will be much missed. (September 6, 2008)
The Simpsons Parodied It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown
The Simpsons' annual "Treehouse of Horror" show parodied It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown on Sunday, November 2, 2008 from 8-8:30 PM (Eastern/Pacific) on Fox. The show featured a segment titled "It's the Grand Pumpkin, Milhouse," and recast the Simpons characters in roles from the TV show, and even featured the original Vince Guaraldi music. (November 2, 2008)
Special 40th Anniversary Celebration of "It's the Great Pumpkin" at the Schulz Museum on October 21, 2006
The Charles M. Schulz Museum in Santa Rosa, CA celebrated the 40th anniversary of It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown with a day of special events on Saturday, October 21, 2006.
Lee Mendelson, producer of the Peanuts TV specials, spoke about the making of It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown and the new special He’s a Bully, Charlie Brown, and also signed his new book on the making of the "Great Pumpkin" special. Both It's the Great Pumpkin and He's a Bully were shown in the Museum theater (it was the official premiere of He's a Bully, which was scheduled to air later in the year on ABC). There was also a panel discussion featuring cartoonists Darrin Bell (Candorville), Paige Braddock (Jane’s World), Michael Jantze (The Norm), and Keith Knight (The K Chronicles), discussing how Charles Schulz’s work influenced their work, their lives, and cartooning today.
In addition, the Schulz Museum displayed a replica of the storyboard and a cel from It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, and offered a chance to take your photo in front of a mural of Linus awaiting the Great Pumpkin in the Museum’s Great Hall. (October 1, 2006)
New Miniature Adaptation of "It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown"
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A new miniature (3" x 3") book adaptation of "It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown" is out now. The book is from Running Press Book Publishers, who have previously published nice miniature book adaptation of "A Charlie Brown Christmas" and "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown." Like the other two miniature books, this will be a 128-page hardcover. You can order it from Amazon.com. (March 1, 2006)
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New Book Adaptations of TV Shows
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Simon & Schuster's Little Simon imprint is releasing new book adaptations of the classic Peanuts TV shows. These books are targeted at young children ages 4-8, and each features an entirely new adaptation and new full-color art based on the shows - they are not recycled versions of previous book adaptations. The books are as follows:
Now Out:
It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown
A Charlie Brown Christmas
A Charlie Brown Valentine
It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown
Here's To You, America (adaptation of This is America, Charlie Brown: The Birth of the Constitution)
A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving
Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown (part of the "Peanuts Valentine Craft Kit")
Lucy Must Be Traded (one of two different adaptations of Lucy Must Be Traded, Charlie Brown)
Make a Trade, Charlie Brown! (one of two different adaptations of Lucy Must Be Traded, Charlie Brown)
I Want a Dog For Christmas, Charlie Brown
The books are 8" x 10", 32 pages long, and retail for $5.99, with two exceptions: "Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown" comes as part of the so-called "Peanuts Valentine Craft Kit" (but it's not much of a kit) and is only 6" x 7" - the whole "kit" costs $7.99; "Make a Trade, Charlie Brown" is a different shape and format than the rest. (October 7, 2004)
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New Miniature Adaptation of It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown
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Running Press Book Publishers, who made a very nice miniature book adaptation of A Charlie Brown Christmas last year, has put a miniature book adaptation of It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown this year. This small (3" x 3") 128-page hardcover adaptation of the classic TV special includes a ribbon bookmark with a little metal pumpkin at the end of it. You can get it from Amazon.com; also check out the mini-Christmas book if you haven't already. (October 31, 2004)
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New Bill Melendez Productions Website
Bill Melendez Productions, the folks who animated all the Peanuts TV specials and commercials, as well as some other familiar cartoon faces, have a new website:
http://www.billmelendez.tv
Along with a list of all the work the studio has done, Peanuts and otherwise, there are short video clips from many of the Peanuts TV shows and even a few of the rarely seen Peanuts commercials. There's also a biography of Bill Melendez, a list of awards he and the studio have received, and lots of other information.
Check it out! Note that the site is completely Flash-based and probably won't work well on dial-up Internet connections. (August 10, 2004)
The Complete Peanuts: 1953-1954
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The Complete Peanuts: 1953-1954 is now available in stores! It's the second volume in Fantagraphics Books' plans to reprint every single Peanuts strip in 25 books over the next twelve years. This volume features every Peanuts comic strip from January 1, 1953 through December 31, 1954. Hundreds of these strips have never been reprinted before! It includes such events as the first appearance of Linus's security blanket, the introduction of Pig-Pen, and even adults being drawn in the strip. The book also includes an introduction by journalist Walter Cronkite and an index. The book is hardcover, 302 pages, lists for $28.95, and is available from any book outlet. For more information, visit the Fantagraphics website. (October 31, 2004)
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The Complete Peanuts and Charles M. Schulz: Li'l Beginnings
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This isn't Peanuts TV or video news, but I wanted to mention it here anyway. Two new book covering Charles Schulz's early work are now available, and no Peanuts fan should be without them.
First, there's The Complete Peanuts: 1950-1952, from Fantagraphics Books. It's the first volume in Fantagraphics' plans to reprint every single Peanuts strip in 25 books over the next twelve years. The book features every Peanuts comic strip from the strip's debut on October 2, 1950 through December 31, 1952. Hundreds of these strips have never been reprinted before! The book also includes an introduction by humorist Garrison Keillor, an article on Schulz by biographer David Michaelis, a lengthy Charles Schulz interview from 1987, and an index. The book is hardcover, 320 pages, lists for $28.95, and is available from any book outlet. For more information, visit the Fantagraphics website.
Next, Charles M. Schulz: Li'l Beginnings from the Charles M. Schulz Museum collects all 135 of the "Li'l Folks" panels that Schulz created for his hometown paper, the St. Paul Pioneer Press, between June 22, 1947, and January 22, 1950, before he became a nationally syndicated artist with Peanuts. Once again, most of these have never been reprinted before, and the book also includes insightful annotations and commentary by Peanuts expert Derrick Bang, along with many examples of how Schulz reused material from "Li'l Folks" in the early days of Peanuts. This important book provides a previously unseen and entertaining look into Schulz's early years. The book is an oversized paperback, 292 pages, and lists for $30, and is available from the Charles M. Schulz Museum. Visit the Museum website for more information.
Did I mention you should go buy these books? (October 7, 2004)
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Playing Mantis TV-Based Figures
Building on their "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" figures released in 2002, Playing Mantis released more TV-based figures in 2003:
- Two new Great Pumpkin figures are out - Pig-Pen as a "Dirty Ghost" and Frieda with a regular ghost costume. There's also a new playset, "Lucy's Halloween Party." Some of the previously released characters come with new accessories - the only one I've noticed is that one of them comes with a coonskin cap, which is odd, since it was Shermy who wore that, and there isn't a Shermy figure. And the Snoopy Flying Ace Halloween Playset has been re-released with the same stuff as before, and a new farmhouse backdrop as well.
- A line of figures based on "A Charlie Brown Christmas" was released in the winter of 2003, featuring Charlie Brown, Linus, Lucy, Sally, Schroeder and Pig Pen with related accessories, and a "Charlie Brown Christmas" playset with Snoopy and "Light Up Doghouse."
- They also released a baseball-themed "You're an All-Star, Charlie Brown" figure series, but the figures are not really based on the TV show "Charlie Brown's All-Stars" (the uniforms are different). You can read a review and see photos of the baseball figures at Michael's Review of the Week.
(September 22, 2003)
"Why, Charlie Brown, Why" Book Reissued
The long out-of-print book adaptation of "Why, Charlie Brown, Why," the Peanuts TV special that deals with childhood leukemia, was reissued in hardcover by Ballantine Books in August 2002. This adaptation is unique in that it features illustrations drawn by Charles Schulz (almost all of the other TV adaptions were drawn by someone else under license). List price is $15.95.
The new edition is nearly identical to the original paperback published by Topper Books. The inside is exactly the same except for the publisher's credit and the addition of page numbers. The cover is slightly different - the book title and authors are in a different font, it now notes "foreword by Paul Newman," and it no longer says "based on the CBS-TV special" - in fact, there's no indication anywhere in the new edition that this is a TV special adaptation! (October 5, 2002)
"The Making of A Charlie Brown Christmas" Nominated for Emmy
The short documentary "The Making of 'A Charlie Brown Christmas'", broadcast on ABC in December 2001, was nominated for an prime-time Emmy Award in the category of "Children's Program." However, it lost to the Nickelodeon special "Nick News Special Edition: Faces of Hope: The Kids of Afghanistan". (September 23, 2002)
"It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" Action Figures
The company Playing Mantis has released their first two series of Peanuts action figures. The first set, "Good Ol' Charlie Brown," is based on the characters as they traditionally appeared in the comic strip. However, the second set is based on the TV show "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown"! There are six 3"-5.5" figures: Charlie Brown (with ghost costume and bag of rocks), Linus (with blanket and light-up jack-o-lantern), Lucy (with witch mask & hat), Snoopy (with Woodstock and flying ace outfit), Schroeder (with piano and candelabra), and Sally (with "Welcome Great Pumpkin" sign). Each figure will also come with an "interlocking pumpkin patch display base." The figures are sold separately or in three-packs. In addition there's a Snoopy doghouse pumpkin patch playset, which includes Snoopy with flying ace outfit (same as available separately), a detachable doghouse on pumpkin patch base with sound effects.
For great pictures and reviews of the figures, visit "Michael's Review of the Week":
Great Pumpkin figure reviews
Great Pumpkin playset review
(September 23, 2002)
Lee Mendelson to Talk at Charles M. Schulz Museum Grand Opening
As part of the Charles M. Schulz Museum's grand opening celebration, Lee Mendelson, producer of the Peanuts TV shows, will be giving a talk about Peanuts on TV at the Museum on Monday August 19. The talk will be given at both 11 AM and 1 PM (Pacific time). The talks are open to museum members and members of the public who pay admission. The Schulz Museum opens to the public on August 17. (July 27, 2002)
"Good Grief, Charlie Brown: A Tribute to Charles Schulz" Wins Emmy
At an awards ceremony on September 5, 2001, the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences presented an News and Documentary Emmy Award to last year's documentary Good Grief, Charlie Brown: A Tribute to Charles Schulz, produced by CBS News and Lee Mendelson Productions as a celebration of the final Peanuts strip. The Emmy was for "Outstanding Individual Achievement in a Craft: Scenic Design." The award goes to Scenic Designer Ann L. Cudworth and Assistant Art Director Matthew Anderson. (September 14, 2001)
Book adaptation of "A Boy Named Charlie Brown" Back In Print
Metro Books has reprinted the book adaptation of the movie "A Boy Named Charlie Brown." The reprint is available at Barnes & Noble bookstores (or their on-line store), and AAUGH.com or Amazon. (Thanks Nat Gertler for the tip.) (September 4, 2001)
New Book on the Making Of "A Charlie Brown Christmas" Arrives
A Charlie Brown Christmas: The Making of a Tradition, written by Lee Mendelson, the producer of the Peanuts television shows, is now out in the U.S. from HarperCollins.
The nicely laid out 9" x 9", 192 page book covers the history of how the first Peanuts special was created, featuring thoughts and reminiscences from Lee Mendelson, Bill Melendez, and others. It's in full color with lots of stills and photos.
Of particular interest to fans will be the inclusion of the entire script of "A Charlie Brown Christmas", illustrated with color stills taken directly from the original show negative - the first time the script has been published any place.
Other sections of the book include: a history of how the show came to be, and its debut, including some nice stuff like original TV Guide coverage and advertising; reflections on working with Charles Schulz by Lee Mendelson and Bill Melendez; an interview with Bill Melendez about how he became the Peanuts animator and the animation process; section about Vince Guaraldi and his Peanuts music; sheet music for "Christmas Time is Here" and "Linus and Lucy" (note: these are transcriptions, not the original sheet music); reproductions of production materials - a few storyboards, a few sketches, "bar sheets" describing the timing of the action of the first scenes; a "flip book" animation of the show opening on the corners of the pages; and many color pictures throughout, including some unique ones such as stills from one of the Ford Falcon commercials.
Unfortunately, the expected interviews with the actors who performed the original voices for the show are rather brief, amounting to just a few quotes from Peter Robbins (Charlie Brown) and Christopher Shea (Linus).
The book is available now for a list price $29.95. (October 29, 2000)
St. Paul Memorial Statue to Re-Create Scene from "A Charlie Brown Christmas"?
[In the end St. Paul decided not to go ahead with this design choice.]
The proposed design for a permanent sculpture to honor Charles Schulz in St. Paul, Minnesota is to recreate a scene from the 1965 TV show "A Charlie Brown Christmas" where "the characters happily dancing while Schroeder pounds his piano and Snoopy plays the guitar." The proposed design includes Pig Pen, Sally, Linus, Schroeder, Franklin, Snoopy, Woodstock, Charlie Brown, Lucy, Peppermint Patty and Marcie (even though some of these characters didn't appear in that special!) Schulz was born and grew up in St. Paul. (June 29, 2000)
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Last updated 6/26/10 - Scott McGuire (smcguire at fivecentsplease dot org) - Vers 1
