TVSquad

We have a TV Royalty category here at TV Squad, and if there's anyone who worked in television and deserved the honor it's Bill Melendez.

Melendez was an animator for Walt Disney Studios in the 1930 and 40s, working on such classic movies as Fantasia and Pinocchio and Mickey Mouse shorts, then went on to make tons of movies, cartoons and commercials (he worked on many Bugs Bunny shorts and other famous cartoons) for well-known companies such as United Productions of America (where he was an animator on Gerald McBoing McBoing) and Playhouse Pictures. He then met Charles Schulz in 1959 and went on to animate (and often direct and produce) most of the Peanuts TV specials, including A Charlie Brown Christmas, A Boy Named Charlie Brown, It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, and many, many others. Many people don't know this but he was also the voice of both Snoopy and Woodstock (they didn't talk, of course, but he did all of the howls and other noises). He worked on TV versions of Cathy and Garfield too.

I'll say right up front that I am a huge Charles Schulz fan. I think Peanuts is one of the most important things in the history of pop culture (not just comics, but in all of pop culture - film, literature, TV, music and art). It's the type of comic that's entertaining and fun for all of the obvious reasons but something that can also show you a little bit about how to live your life too. I mean, who doesn't like Snoopy or A Charlie Brown Christmas?

So I've been a little antsy about a new biography of Schulz that is coming out next week, Schulz and Peanuts: A Biography, by David Michaelis. It's a bio that supposedly gives a fuller picture of Schulz, including the sad, unhappy parts of his life. Now I see that I'm not the only one who is a little antsy about the book and a new American Masters that will profile Schulz too.

It's a Charlie Brown Thanksgiving Week! Charlie Brown, where have you been all these years? We've been missing you. We usually see you at the major holidays, like Christmas and Halloween, but to be honest those visits seem repetitive. What else have you been up to? Sure, you've taken some trips and had some valentines and such, but we've come to expect more Charlie Brown, and quite frankly, we need you these days. Please think about giving us Charlie Brown's Democratic Presidential Election, or something equally topical and timely.

10 Zen Monkeys has compiled a list of Charlie Brown's five worst cartoon moments. Check it out on their site which comes complete with YouTube embedded video and spot-on commentary. Continue onto see my thoughts about the list:

Apparently the Walgreens across the street from me isn't the only one getting in the Christmas spirit early. This year, Charles Schulz's seminal Christmas classic A Charlie Brown Christmas will air not in December, but on November 28 at 8 pm. After missing It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown this year when it was pre-empted by a midterm election debate, I'm glad I found out about this. I watch A Charlie Brown Christmas every year, but I normally don't start looking for it until December. Last year they actually aired the special twice, so maybe we'll see it again in December, but for now set your DVRs and mark your calendars so you don't miss it. While I enjoy other Christmas specials like Frosty the Snowman and Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, A Charlie Brown Christmas still stands out as the most profound and affecting sentiment of the holiday season.

Running a very close second to A Charlie Brown Christmas as one of my favorite television specials of all time, It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown will air on ABC October 27 at 8 pm. The special will be followed by a bonus cartoon in which Linus runs for class president. This year marks the 40th anniversary of the Halloween special in which wise but naive Linus tries to tell everyone about The Great Pumpkin, a mystical creature who rises from the pumpkin patch to deliver toys to all the good children. Charles Schulz originally came up with the idea for the Peanuts comic strip as a gag in which Linus confuses Halloween with Christmas. Actually, the name "Charlie Brown" in the title is kind of misleading, since Linus is the real star of this special. You still gotta feel bad for ol' Chuck getting all those rocks in his treat bag, though.

This year marks the 40th anniversary of It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, which first aired in 1966, one year after A Charlie Brown Christmas made its debut. To celebrate, United Feature Syndicate, Inc., the company that distributed the Peanuts comic strip, is sponsoring an essay contest where people can write about their worst Halloween experience ever. If, you know, you can think of something worse than spending the night in a pumpkin patch only to be greeted by a beagle dressed as a World War I pilot. The deadline for the essays, which must be more than 500 words and less than 600, is July 21. Winners will be chosen by members of Charles Schulz's family, as well as his partners on the Peanuts animated specials, Lee Mendelson and Bill Melendez. Peter Robbins, the first kid to voice Charlie Brown, will also be a judge. Winners will receive lots of Peanuts-related stuff, plus a trip to the Charles M. Schulz Museum and Research Center in Santa Rosa, California. You can learn more about the contest here.

I have a very deeply ingrained love for Charles Schulz and his Peanuts creation. If I were so inclined, I could bore you to tears right now with all the reasons I admire it so much, but I won't. I did want to let you know, however, that It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown will air on ABC this evening at 7p.m. CST. This particular Peanuts special doesn't quite stand up to It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown and  A Charlie Brown Christmas, but it's still a fun special with lots of great gags, especially the one involving Marcie trying to make Easter eggs and having no idea how to do it. She tries frying them, boiling the yolks, and at one point cracks some eggs into the toaster. The plot is similar to Great Pumpkin, except this time Linus tries to convince everyone the Easter Beagle is coming to give eggs to all the children. There's also a subplot in which Snoopy tries to build a new home for Woodstock. Not as much of a "must see" as Pumpkin and Christmas, but still worth checking out if you're a fan of such specials.