Charlie Brown and the elusive football balloon made their way down Broadway in the 76th annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York on Thursday, Nov. 28, 2002. More than two-and-a-half million spectators were expected to line the streets to watch the two-and-a-half-mile march through Manhattan. (AP photo/Suzanne Plunkett)
These articles are arranged from the most recent down, so you'll always find the newest news about Charlie Brown and his friends toward the top; older articles will be located further down, or on previous pages.
World's biggest Snoopy theme park to open in China
January 15, 2003
Japantoday.com
HONG KONG The world's largest theme park featuring Snoopy,
Charlie Brown and other Peanuts' characters will open in Shunde City, a
leading production center for electrical appliances in China, in May,
the developer said Tuesday.
The 40,000-square-meter park, to be located in the new downtown of
Shunde in booming southern Guangdong Province, will be the first of its
kind in the mainland China.
The Asia-Pacific licensing agent for the U.S. comic strip
characters said it is planning to open two more theme parks in the
mainland over the next five years.
"We hope to have one park in the eastern part of China and another
in the north, likely in Nanjing and Beijing, respectively," Raymond Mok,
chairman of RM Enterprises (BVI) Ltd., said after a press conference in
Hong Kong.
Mok said his company also wants to open a Peanuts attraction in the
planned Universal Studios in Shanghai, which could open in 2006, under a
business cooperation model similar to that used in Osaka in Japan.
The "Snoopy Fun Fun Garden" in Shunde will be built in five phases,
with attractions including a Peanuts' school, a 15-meter-tall Snoopy
dressed in a space suit, a camping site and canoe ride, and a mini-sized
golf course for children.
A Snoopy playground will also be erected in a business and
commercial complex within the nearby private residential estate Jiaxin
Citigarden.
The whole project will involve an investment of 100 million yuan
($12.1 million) and its first phase is expected to open May 1, the
developer, Shunde Jiaxin Realty Development Co, said.
"To attract more tourists, we will initially open the park to the
public for free," managing director Chen Jiye told reporters.
Chen said he hopes more than three million tourists will visit
Shunde each year, up from the present 1.5 million, after the opening of
the Snoopy theme park.
Shunde was chosen as the park's site because the city is located in
the center of the Pearl River Delta region in Guangdong Province and is
within easy reach of other Chinese cities, the developer said.
Shunde is 50 minutes from Guangzhou by car, more than an hour from
Hong Kong by jetfoil.
Officials from the Shunde government said the authorities aim to
turn the downtown, where the Snoopy theme park is located, into a new
hub for city administration, business, culture, tourism and residence.
With a population of 1.7 million, Shunde is China's largest
production center for domestic appliances, including air conditioners,
microwave ovens, electric fans and rice cookers. It is also the largest
freshwater fish farming and eel farming center in the country.
Surrounded by Snoopy Woman admits obsession
December 31, 2002
By Jacob Bennett
The News-Enterprise (Hardin, Kentucky)
Sometimes Susan Masters is Joe Cool.
Sometimes she's silly. Sometimes she's philosophical.
Sometimes she's the World War I Flying Ace?
Metaphorically, perhaps. Masters, 37, is the county
personnel/payroll clerk. She hunts Snoopy memorabilia the way the flying
ace hunted the Red Baron.
Here's a very short list of Snoopy merchandise she's gathered in
more than two decades of collecting Several stuffed animals, cups,
mugs, plates, baby spoons, flags, a light up Snoopy Santa, a ceiling
fan, an alarm clock and a smoke detector.
Last year, she put up a Christmas tree with Snoopy ornaments and
Snoopy lights. Her prized possession is a Snoopy leather jacket.
"I always say I'm the easiest person to shop for," Masters said.
"But people say it's getting harder because they don't know what I have
and what I don't."
Masters loves Snoopy because of his multi-faceted personality. He's
silly and smart, laid-back and philosophical. She sees herself in many
of those traits.
"That's kind of the way I feel I am," she said.
Among the many faces of Masters mother of three, wife to husband
Gary, soccer coach.
Masters was 13 when she bought her first Snoopy item, an
18-inch-tall stuffed animal. She saved her allowance for several weeks
to afford its $24 cost. She bought it at Coast to Coast Hardware in
Elizabethtown, where she later worked.
Her first job was at McDonald's. By a stroke of luck, she worked
there when the company offered "Camp Snoopy" glasses. She collected them
all.
"He's been with me through thick and thin," Masters said.
Now planning 'Peanuts on Parade' IV
December 28, 2002
By Karl J. Karlson
The St. Paul Pioneer Press
Either Woodstock or Linus will star next summer in St. Paul's
tribute to Charles Schulz, planners said Friday, confirming that such an
event is almost sure to happen.
Lee Koch, vice president of the Capital City Partnership, which
oversees the event, said the organization wants to do it, previous
sponsors want to do it and the Schulz family wants to do it. However,
details haven't been inalized.
Koch said TivoliToo the St. Paul firm that made the Snoopy, Charlie
Brown and Lucy statues for the three previous summer events is designing
possible statues of Lucy Van Pelt's brother, Linus, and of Woodstock,
the yellow bird who follows Snoopy around in Schulz's famed comic strip
"Peanuts.''
"We're sending the designs to the Schulz family within a week,''
Koch said Friday.
Hart Johnson of TivoliToo said the firm wants to take part again
and that "it's fun that both characters are so well liked that it's a
hard decision of which to do. Maybe we'll have time for both.''
During visits to her late husband's hometown, Jean Schulz has
supported the idea of continuing the practice of displaying the
artist-decorated statues of "Peanuts'' characters around the city. The
tribute started after Schulz, who used his St. Paul childhood as a
source for much of his "Peanuts'' material, died in February 2000.
The formula has been successful in raising money. More than $1
million was raised in statue auctions, enough to pay for permanent
bronze "Peanuts" sculptures, which will be unveiled this spring in a new
downtown park.
Koch said no decision has been made about holding another statues
auction next summer.
"We don't need to raise any more money for the bronzes,'' she said,
adding that the scholarships also funded by the auctions are being
increased.
The events also attract people to St. Paul and are a boost to the
economy, according to the St. Paul Convention and Visitors Bureau. On
Friday, the agency said last summer's "Looking for Lucy'' event drew
800,000 people to the city and contributed $50 million to the local
economy.
The estimates are based on the number of people who registered at
the bureau's "dog house" information booth, hospitality industry reports
and industry-accepted figures on how much visitors spend.
The bureau estimated that "Peanuts on Parade'' in 2000 with statues
of Snoopy attracted 450,000 visitors and had a $20 million to $25
million economic impact. The bureau estimated that "Charlie Brown Around
Town'' in 2001 drew 700,000 visitors with an impact of $44
million.
Area boy finds solace in lost, then found toy
December 19, 2002
By Judi Brinegar
The Courier-Tribune (North Carolina)
RANDLEMAN Little Zachary McQueen has a best friend that most
little boys would envy.
His name is Snoopy and he is a 12-inch stuffed animal that Zachary
received when he was born.
From a Band-Aid on his paw, to a hospital ID tag to the missing
button on the flap of his union suit, Snoopy has been loved and loved
hard by a little boy who has faced a load of health problems since his
birth eight years ago.
For Zachary, Snoopy is not a toy he is as real as you or I.
Zachary was born at Women's Hospital on Dec. 17, 1994 two months
prematurely. His mom Beverly said that he stopped developing when she
was 28 weeks pregnant.
"They had to do an emergency C-section and he has had a lot of
health problems since his birth," said Beverly. "He weighed 2 pounds, 10
ounces at birth and was just 14 inches long."
Zachary has faced three operations in his short lifetime two for
hernias and one for kidney problems. He also has seizures and is on
medication, trying to get them under control. And Snoopy was with him
every step of the way.
"His Aunt Kim gave him the Snoopy back then and Snoopy has been to
every doctor's visit and was present at every MRI that Zach has had
since."
Looking a little sheepish, Zachary admitted that Snoopy has a habit
of getting lost though.
Once at the Outer Banks, once in a packing box during a move, and
more recently, when Zachary's family stayed with his grandma in Seagrove
during Randolph County's recent ice storm.
"We lost our power at home and because Zachary (who has sleep
apnea) needs electricity for his CPAP (Continuous Positive Airway
Pressure), we had to go to stay with my mom," said Beverly. "When we got
back home a week later, we got busy going to visit Santa and then going
to see the lights on Burney Road.
"When we got ready for bed that night, we realized that Snoopy was
missing. I don't know who cried harder Zachary or me."
For Zachary, Snoopy was a friend who had always been there for him.
"He has been with me all the time. He is not just any Snoopy," said
Zachary.
The McQueen family turned the house upside down looking for
Zachary's best buddy.
"We walked from room to room praying for Snoopy to be found safe
and sound," said Beverly. "I called my mom, looking for him. We were
even going to put an ad in the paper for him."
"I was even going to pay for it myself," added Zachary.
"Zachary and I went into another room together to pray about it and
we couldn't pray for crying so hard," admitted Beverly.
Soon, Grandma Gloria called with the good news that Snoopy had been
found.
"He can't ever be replaced," said Beverly. "Snoopy is such a part
of our lives and we just wanted everyone to know that if they see a toy
laying abandoned somewhere that it does mean something special to a
child somewhere.
"My mother said that if she ever finds a lost toy, she will put an
ad in the paper to help it get returned to its owner."
So, this little boy who loves his buddy Snoopy enough that he
dressed as Charlie Brown for Halloween, is glad that Snoopy was found
safe and sound.
"He is the bestest stuffed animal that ever lived," said Zachary as
he hugged Snoopy. "He has been with me all the good times and all the
bad times."
Good grief! Parodying Peanuts
December 19, 2002
By Malcolm Mayhew
The Dallas-Fort Worth Star-Telegram
Robert Smigel seems to get paid to do two things
Write funny cartoons for Saturday Night Live.
And irritate people with them.
The mind, and pen, behind SNL's popular "TV Funhouse" segments have
goofed on everyone from Michael Jackson to Larry King to Barbara Walters
to a good number of this country's past and present presidents to Disney
to Christina Aguilera. If you're in the spotlight, chances are Smigel's
gonna getcha sooner or later.
On last week's SNL, however, Smigel ventured onto what some
consider sacred turf Charles M. Schulz's beloved holiday cartoon, A
Charlie Brown Christmas. How, some people are asking, could he do this
without getting sued?
The segment featured the Peanuts gang waving their arms to
magically transform people and things. Peppermint Patty and Marcie, for
instance, were transformed into giant, voluptuous lesbians.
"I think it's terrible," says Edna Poehner, Schulz's former
secretary who works at the Charles M. Schulz Museum and Research Center
in Santa Rosa, Calif. "I've had several calls today from people who were
just horrified."
Horrifying, perhaps. But is it illegal?
According to both SNL's people and Schulz's representatives, no.
Even with the Peanuts franchise under copyright, both camps say no laws
were broken.
"I can't imagine the network would have allowed that to go on the
air if there were legal questions about it," says Marc Liepis, a
spokesman for NBC. "There was at least approval or acknowledgment from
[Schulz's] people."
Melissa Menta, a spokeswoman for the New York-based United Media --
which with the Schulz family owns the rights to Peanuts, says "no one's
up in arms over it."
"They created their own animations," she says. "It was a parody."
That's the key, lawyers say.
Jeffrey Collins, an attorney for the Pennington Baker law firm in
Fort Worth, says parodying an already established body of work is
completely legal.
"You have a lot of leeway with parodies," he says. "A lot of these
silly movies you see today are parodies of other movies, and they're
legal."
Parodies fall under a legal umbrella called "fair-use exception,"
says Fort Worth lawyer Guy V. Manning. Permission, in these cases, is
not necessarily required.
"To parody someone else who has put themselves out in the public,
particularly if that other person is making a political commentary, is a
quick way of rebuttal using their own work," says Manning. "Weird Al
Yankovic was doing something similar. I imagine he did that with
permission, but fair use assumes you don't have permission. I'm not
saying what SNL did is fair use, it's just that it might be."
Smigel has been in this boat before. He has carved a career out of
parodying people. A veteran writer for Saturday Night Live, he appeared
as one of the beer-drinking commentators on SNL's popular "Da Bears"
sketches. He then trailed SNL writer Conan O'Brien to NBC's Late Night
With Conan O'Brien in 1993, serving as the show's head writer and
co-producer.
After working with O'Brien, then, briefly, Dana Carvey, Smigel
returned to SNL, his over-the-top cartoons in hand. Thus began his "TV
Funhouse" segments, now a celebrity-bashing staple of the show.
If Smigel has indeed been tromping on legal rights, Manning says he
probably would have been sued a long time ago.
"Sometimes it can be argued either way," he says. "But if it's a
true parody, no laws have been broken."
Celebrating Sparky's life
Schulz Museum and Research Center in Santa Rosa is a dignified
tribute to Peanuts creator
December 2002
By Cory Golden
California Construction Link magazine
Charles "Sparky" Schulz died in his sleep on Feb. 12, 2000, the
night before his final "Peanuts" strip brought Charlie Brown and Snoopy
to newspapers around the world for the last time. In the 30 months that
followed his death, his widow, Jeannie Schulz, oversaw the completion of
the Charles M. Schulz Museum and Research Center.
"I think it's helped," she said recently. "There's no doubt all the
things I had to do kept me closer to Sparky. It's kept me in his world."
The $8 million, 27,384-sq.-ft. museum on Hardies Lane in Santa Rosa
- designed by C. David Robinson Architects and built by general
contractor Oliver & Co. - opened Aug. 17.
The notion of a museum first came up in 1995, when Jeannie Schulz
began moving her husband's work from a safe into archival boxes. Two
years later, the idea picked up momentum when the couple saw the work of
a kindred spirit in Japanese artist Yoshiteru Otani.
Using natural materials, Otani had created clever works, like a
wall painted with Snoopy's eye lines or the bird tracks of his sidekick,
Woodstock, for Snoopy Town shops. His work, the Schulzes decided, could
give the museum that certain something else to appear alongside the
preserved comic strips.
Soon, Jeannie Schulz said, the project "had a life of its own."
C. David Robinson was among the architects who submitted designs.
He said brainstorming produced visions of Snoopy-shaped buildings and
giant doghouses. In the end, however, "cutesy" ideas were scrapped for a
more modest design, a sort of over-scaled house suiting Charles Schulz's
low-key personality.
"[The building] is more serious, because I think his work was
serious," Robinson said. "Over time, I think people will look at it and
ask why it's so universal, how it could cut through so many different
cultures yet everybody still gets it."
Jeannie Schulz said Robinson and Oliver & Co. were chosen because
of their previous experience with museums. As they worked, her husband
kept abreast of developments, but largely stayed focused on his comic
strip. He was diagnosed with colon cancer just three months before his
death.
Robinson designed a building small enough to suit the residential
area around it with flexible space inside since it wasn't certain just
what would go into the museum.
Using "thought-bubble" shaped skylights and bright, "Woodstock"
yellow as an accent to an otherwise black-and-white, stone-and-wood
structure suggests the whimsy of "Peanuts" without distracting from
Schulz's small-scale original art. Square-shaped panels of various sizes
are a reminder of the blank panels Schulz confronted every day for 50
years.
The steel and masonry-block structure features a 100-seat
auditorium, a re-creation of the cartoonist's studio, research center,
museum store and classroom space.
Otani had two compelling contributions a 17-by-22-ft. tile mural
composed of 3,588 comic strip images to form a larger picture of Lucy
holding a football for Charlie Brown and a 7,000-lb. wood sculpture
detailing the evolution of Snoopy. Both installations were completed
before contractors could finish the room around them, said Oliver & Co.
Project Manager Tom Angelo.
Some of the building's most challenging work is also its most
beautiful, he said glass railings, cherry veneer panels and cherry wood
doors, marble and granite counter tops, African slate tile on the first
floor with a Vermont marble border and oak flooring on the second level.
"It looks as if it could be a home," Jeannie Schulz said, "a very
elegant home."
What the museum is not, is showy. There are no giant computer
displays, nothing loud. Like her husband, Jeannie Schulz said, the
museum is, in many respects, "normal."
"He was a normal man who happened to have a gift and he devoted
himself to it," she said. "People don't like to think about hard work,
but he was really an anecdote to what we've become. He worked hard at
his gift because it was the only thing he wanted to do."
Angelo said the building's design speaks up or quiets down when
appropriate
"The general areas are warm and rich, like the corridors, the great
hall and the restrooms, but once you step into the gallery spaces, all
the focus is on the artwork."
There, structure provided challenges. Angelo said building code
revisions during the design process prompted changes, and the final
landscaping plan morphed, under Jeannie Schulz's guidance, from a
baseball field to a 51-by-57-ft. labyrinth, designed by Lea Goode-Harris
and shaped like Snoopy's head.
The overall design preserved existing trees, important to the
Schulzes. The building also includes an efficient energy management
system and ground bubblers, in addition to spray sprinklers, for times
of drought.
Angelo said subcontractors called him, asking to be included in the
project because of what Schulz meant to them and the town he loved.
"It meant something special to everyone who was there," Angelo
said. "I didn't know Mr. Schulz, but everybody I worked with - from the
subcontractors to the material providers who knew him - said he was such
a great man and did so much for the community without asking for
anything in return. It's so rare not to hear a bad thing about someone.
And working with Jeannie was a joy. I've never enjoyed working on
something more than this."
Said Robinson "The thing for me is that Jeannie likes it so much
and her family likes it so much and feels it's an appropriate tribute to
Sparky."
Indeed, Jeannie Schulz said, the building has grown on her, day by
day.
"I find myself liking it more and more," she said. "I've been
really amazed that people have gone out of their way to come up and say,
'Oh, this is beautiful.' But a museum is not supposed to be the thing,
and it's not. It forms a very homey background that people feel
comfortable in, and that's what we wanted ... for people to come and get
a sense of Sparky and his work."
As much as anything, Jeannie Schulz said, she enjoys looking out of
the building's large windows, watching visitors navigate the labyrinth.
"My heart just soars," she said.
Good grief, Stan Lee!
Spider-Man co-creator provides authenticity of disputed 'Peanuts'
painting
November 26, 2002
Wizardworld.com
Someone may be in the doghouse over a disputed 1965 painting of
beloved Peanuts characters, Charlie Brown and Snoopy.
But Spider-Man co-creator, Stan Lee, said that despite a sudden web
of controversy (including an article in the New York Times) he can prove
the unique painting's pedigree.
The controversy involves "the only known oil painting by the late
cartoonist, Charles Schulz. It is a unique piece of 1960s Americana,"
according to John Petty, Director of Heritage Comics Auctions, Dallas,
Texas.
The 20 by 30-inch "pop art" painting could easily be valued at
$100,000 or more today, even though Stan Lee paid only $250 for it back
in 1965.
It was offered by Heritage last month as part of a record setting
$5 million auction of comic books, comic art and memorabilia (including
the $1.68 million Nicolas Cage comic book collection). But the painting
was not sold after the auctioneer received a last-minute allegation by
the Charles Schulz estate that he did not paint it.
The painting's owner and consignor, Stan Lee, however, says he has
proof Schulz created it himself for a 1965 USO (United Service
Organizations) fund-raising event hosted by actress Joan Crawford, for
which 32 comic strip artists created and donated unique works.
Lee fell in love with and purchased the painting at that USO event
in New York City 37 years ago, and kept it in his personal collection
since then.
The oil painting depicts a smiling Charlie Brown standing to the
left of Snoopy's doghouse while Snoopy is prone on his back on the roof.
"Rendered in oils on Masonite, this painting is a terrific example
of iconic 60s pop art. Schulz actually cut slats of wood and attached
them with nails to the painting to create Snoopy's doghouse. Snoopy's
ear is made of real felt," said Petty.
Lee is adamant "I know the painting is authentic as I personally
attended the USO auction, and personally bid on it. Every piece was
offered as an original work by a known comic strip artist. I can't
believe that the USO or Charles Schulz would have been party to a hoax,"
he emphasized.
The Newspaper Comics Council sponsored the event, which took place
at the World House Gallery in New York City, May 18-24, 1965. It
attracted support and/or donations from cartoonist Charles Addams, New
York Mayor Robert Wagner, producer David Merrick, Mr. and Mrs. Marshall
Field, Mr. And Mrs. Ed Sullivan, Mr. and Mrs. John Hay Whitney, and many
others.
Lee recalled that Schulz placed a fake can of "dog food" alongside
the painting to add to the "pop art" sense of realism to its display at
the auction.
"I also have a Polaroid photo of the painting I showed to Sparky
(Schulz's nickname) at a cartoonist's function in 1988. He autographed
the back of the photo to me, writing, 'To Stan with friendship. Charles
Schulz.' Seems to me if the painting wasn't authentic he'd have said
something about it, or, at least, not autographed the back of its
photo!" Lee said.
Heritage Chairman, James L. Halperin, says he has acquired
additional documentation from the 1965 USO fund-raiser, including two
contemporaneously printed magazine articles and a photograph of auction
host, Joan Crawford, standing next to the painting.
The day before the painting was to be sold, Heritage Auctions
received an e-mail from Edna Poehner, Administrative Assistant to
Charles M. Schulz Creative Associates in Santa Rosa, California,
claiming the artwork was not created by Schulz.
"According to Mr. Schulz's secretary at that time, Mr. Schulz's
wife, Jean, and various people who worked with Mr. Schulz and know his
art, this was definitely not done by him. He would have had to have
painted it out behind the garage, packed and mailed it off himself, as
she never saw or heard of any signs of such a project. He has never
spoken of any kind of oil painting, in fact he often said that he wished
he knew how to use oils," she wrote.
Despite the allegation by the Schulz estate, Heritage officials say
they have no doubt about the authenticity because of its provenance.
They politely point out that his widow may have no memory of it because
the painting was created a full ten years before she married Schulz.
"Maybe Charles Schulz did not consider himself a good oil painter,"
Halperin added, "but on that point I must disagree with him. For what it
is (i.e. a pop art painting), this is a very compelling piece, with an
almost Van Gogh-like air to it. And we strongly believe the painting to
be genuine."
So does cartoonist, Mort Walker, creator of the comic strips,
Beetle Bailey and Hi & Lois, who also attended and submitted artwork for
the 1965 fund-raising auction. Walker recently was contacted by Lee, and
responded immediately.
"In talking to several other cartoonists, the unanimous feeling is
that the Schulz painting owned by Stan Lee is authentic. I knew 'Sparky'
for 50 years and know he would never allow anyone else to do his artwork
or sign it. He was very adamant about that," Walker stated in a letter
to Halperin.
Heritage Comics Auctions officials, now satisfied with proof of the
famous pedigree, plan to place the painting in a public sale next year.
"Out of respect for the administrators of the Charles Schulz
Estate, we felt we had to make the Estate's reservations known to any
prospective buyers, but honestly, we never really doubted the piece's
provenance or pedigree," commented Heritage auction director Petty.
"Our consignor, Stan Lee, is universally regarded as the most
important comic book writer of the 20th century. He is the creator or
co-creator of Spider-Man, X-Men, the Incredible Hulk, Thor, Daredevil,
Fantastic Four, and hundreds of other world-famous popular culture
characters."
Heritage is the world's largest collectibles auctioneer with
auction sales of more than $70 million in 2001, and expected auction
sales of about $90 million for 2002.
Snoopy Ice Show grows up, elegantly
December 15, 2002
By Diane Peterson
The Santa Rosa Press Democrat
This year's holiday ice show glides along smoothly, with fast
pacing to keep the kids from getting bored, plus elegant choreography
for adults who appreciate the sheer beauty of skating.
While there's more Snoopy than ever, there are no skits aimed
specifically at the youngsters, which is probably just as well. Those
sweet, treacly bonbons always seemed a bit over the top anyway.
Instead, Jill Schulz and ice show director Karen Kresge frame the
show with Christmas vignettes featuring the cranky, quirky and
refreshingly honest characters of the late Charles M. Schulz's "Peanuts"
comic strips.
Linus, Lucy, Sally and Charlie Brown are performed by local actors
J. Eric Cook, Mollie Boice, Hollie Martin and Richard La Rosa. Cook is
particularly persuasive as the over-analytical Linus, and Martin brings
the guileless Sally to life.
Even more persuasive are Vince Guaraldi's gently swaying tunes from
"A Charlie Brown Christmas," accompanying the vignettes. Between skating
acts, the vignettes punctuate the show with Schulz's quiet, understated
humor.
The show's skating highlights include the athletic artistry of Eric
Millot, four-time French national champion, and the lyrical skating of
Tony Paul and Terry Pagano, World Professional Pair silver medalists.
The quirky "Flying Ice" sequence before intermission "Swan Lake"
meets the Black Light Theater of Prague offered the most bang for the
buck Thursday night. This modern skit showcases the wild, wacky costumes
of Jennifer Langeberg, spinning eye candy from Aydar Rakhmatullin of
Cirque de Soleil and aerial acrobatics.
The only snag occurred at the end of the sequence, when a
three-ring circus act dissolved into darkness, an unsettling musical
soundtrack suddenly brightened and the lights came up on an empty stage.
The fractured ending seemed to dash the audience's expectations as
surely as a fragile Christmas ornament that slips from its perch at the
top of the tree.
For those needing an injection of holiday spirit to get the season
jump-started, however, the show offers plenty of chestnuts roasting over
an open fire, including the opening "Winter Pond" sequence with regal
purple costumes, white muffs, carols and candles.
A pas de deux between ensemble skaters Steven Smith and Sara
Robertson, accompanied by Joni Mitchell's "It's Coming on Christmas,"
hit a lyrical high note in the first half with its yearning refrain for
a "river I could skate away on."
"Snoopy's Hit Parade," featuring a musical countdown through the
decades from Elvis, The Fifth Dimension and The BeeGees to Michael
Jackson and 'N Sync, was an obvious crowd-pleaser, especially when
Millot executed a backflip into the 21st century.
Paul and Pagano ratcheted up the acrobatics with a writhing,
spinning, upside-down Gypsy tango as hot as their pink-and-black
costumes.
The entire cast then teamed up for the "Flying Ice" sequence a
serious and funny foray into the surreal that includes six acrobatic
tumblers bouncing off trampolines lined up alongside the ice.
After intermission, Judy Sladky as Snoopy got the show back into
focus with a tribute to classic Hollywood, from "Casablanca" to the Marx
Brothers.
Highlights of this glamorous skit included a lyrical "Singing in
the Rain" sequence and Snoopy's red-caped conclusion as "The Big Bow
Wow." The kids were howling like hounds after this one.
The crowd flipped again for Millot when he went Western in chaps
and cowboy hat during his solo to the country tune, "I'm Giving You All
My Love for Christmas."
Returning to the reason for the season, the production landed back
on its feet with an elegant "Silent Night" dance number, followed by
Linus' breathless and beautiful recitation of the Christmas story.
The "Christmas Waltz" finale wrapped it all up in a shiny
red-and-gold package, complete with nostalgic costumes, towering
Christmas trees and Rockettes-style chorus line.
At the very end, a sprinkling of snow transforms Snoopy's Home Ice
into Rockefeller Center just for one brief and magical moment.
*****
The Event "It's Christmas, Snoopy!" the annual holiday ice show
produced by the family of Charles Schulz
Dates and times 3 and 7 p.m. most weekdays; noon, 4 and 8 p.m. most
weekends through Dec. 24. There are no shows on Dec. 18, and a noon show
only Dec. 24.
Where Snoopy's Home Ice, 1665 W. Steele Lane, Santa Rosa
Tickets $10-$48
Phone (707) 546-3385
MetLife Pays Peanuts For Ad Spokescharacters
December 12, 2002
BrandWeek.com
NEW YORK MetLife, Inc. said Wednesday that it has signed a new
10-year contract with United Media for the use of its Snoopy and Peanuts
characters in advertising and promotional venues both domestically and
overseas.
Financial terms were not disclosed. MetLife has featured Snoopy and
the Peanuts characters since 1985, including its ongoing "Have you met
life today?" campaign, via WPP Group's Y&R Advertising, New York, which
launched in April 2001.
"Snoopy is our corporate ambassador and has been an important part
of our advertising campaign for 17 years," Lisa Weber, MetLife svp and
chief administrative officer, said in a statement. "We are very pleased
to continue our ongoing relationship with United Media. This winning
combination has been successful in helping us to differentiate our brand
identity in the marketplace."
Charlie Brown, old or new, still charms
December 7, 2002
By Scott Sandell
The Los Angeles Times
When ABC broadcast "A Charlie Brown Christmas" for the first time
last year, after it had been on CBS since 1965, the network presented a
digitally remastered version and added an informative behind-the-scenes
feature. The hourlong package was a ratings winner, and the
mini-documentary earned an Emmy nomination.
On Sunday at 8 p.m. and repeating Friday at 9 p.m., ABC is looking
to match that success by following the holiday classic not with a
"making of" segment, but with "Charlie Brown's Christmas Tales," a
collection of new animated vignettes based on the comic strips of the
late Charles M. Schulz.
Although the five shorts, each focusing on a specific "Peanuts"
character, are faster-paced and more slickly animated than the original,
they are just as charming. There's no overarching story line here, but
the same message of peace and joy amid life's little anxieties resonates
throughout.
In the first vignette, Snoopy faces rejection from Lucy as her
ice-skating partner and from the cat next door.
The next four segments feature Linus, Sally, Lucy and Charlie Brown
each struggling over letters to Santa or the objects of their affection,
among other escapades.
The humor is classic Schulz, and the punch lines come quickly, as
opposed to the more languid timing of the original Christmas special.
Perhaps that's a concession to viewers brought up on quick-cut videos,
but it also makes sense, given that the source material is from comic
strips. More important, it's a refreshing change-up from director Larry
Leichliter.
Although Schulz died in 2000, two key players behind the 1965 show
were involved with this special executive producer Lee Mendelson and
producer Bill Melendez.
With efforts like these, it's a welcome thing that Christmastime is
here on TV.
Oh, good grief!
December 7, 2002
By Ron Wolfe
The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
"Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Linus, Lucy ... how can I ever forget
them..."
With those plain words, cartoonist Charles Schulz ended his
"Peanuts" comic strip in its 50th year, February 2000. He died just
before his last Sunday page appeared in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
and about 2,600 other newspapers worldwide.
Schulz, 78, had decided no one else should take over drawing
"Peanuts." His round-headed cartoon kid, Charlie Brown, has been gone
from this newspaper's comics pages ever since. Gone, too, are Snoopy,
Linus, Lucy ... but who could ever forget?
The nearest thing to seeing them all like new again is Speak Softly
and Carry a Beagle The Art of Charles Schulz, an exhibit through Feb. 2
at the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art. The characters may be as familiar
as Charlie Brown's zigzag shirt, but the exhibit is a fresh chance to
see them like Schulz did. Ink lines on paper, they were little people
who came alive only because he drew them, gave them hopes and hurts, and
brushed away the eraser crumbs.
Speak Softly and Carry a Beagle is a nationally touring exhibit
from the Charles M. Schulz Museum in Santa Rosa, Calif., and the
Minnesota Museum of American Art in St. Paul. It displays more than 40
original "Peanuts" strips like paintings, the size Schulz drew them,
much larger than they looked on newsprint. His daily strips were about 2
feet long Sunday pages, the size of Linus' security blanket. The show
traces how Schulz re- fined "Peanuts" over the years, changing almost
everything but the title. The syndicate called it "Peanuts," a name he
never liked.
He wanted to call it "Li'l Folks," but "Peanuts" stuck.
SIMPLIFIED STYLE His earliest strips have a soft, cute style that
gave way to the 1960s' more distinctive snap, when Charlie Brown's
squiggle line of a mouth came to represent all there is to say about
defeat. Schulz practically invented the simplified look of today's
cartoons.
Even the last years found him trying new ways to make "Peanuts"
better. "I'm still searching for that wonderful pen line," he said.
Evidence is, he found it. He worked with a dip pen, something younger
and less patient cartoonists often toss aside for quick-drying,
disposable felt tips.
Schulz drew with a crusty pen that left wet ink easy to smear
as he performed the daily miracle of a smooth line around Charlie
Brown's head. Round is one of the hardest pen lines to control. He did
it like driving a sports car, while he admitted only to being a "fairly
good" artist.
"The only thing I'm proud of is that I think I've done the best
with what I have," he said, as quoted in the exhibit. "I haven't wasted
my ability."
When the pen slipped, he touched up his mistakes with white paint.
His original "Peanuts ' drawings reveal the careful dot of white-out
here, a brush stroke there, that made all the difference to Schulz's
readers. They never saw a sloppy-looking" Peanuts "strip. No wonder if
Schulz couldn't imagine another artist continuing" Peanuts. "Right to
the end, he did everything himself.
LETTER-PERFECT Other comic-strip artists routinely delegate jobs
such as lettering to their assistants. Not Schulz. He could no more let
someone else letter for him, he said, than Arnold Palmer would call in
somebody else to do his putting. Schulz worked on the same drawing board
he'd used for years one made of real wood, sanded now and then to keep
the surface clean. A picture shows it apparently sanded to a dip in the
middle. The caption doesn't say, but he probably did the sanding
himself, too. Once a teacher for a correspondence art school, he
stressed the all-importance of good drawing. Woodstock, for example
Schulz distilled Snoopy's bird pal from drawings of real birds. The
little character might look like a scattering of random lines. But
Woodstock was no good, Schulz said, until he learned to arrange those
few lines just right. Charlie Brown came out of Schulz's own childhood,
when he thought he looked so bland and easily forgotten," my appearance
was a perfect disguise. "As for Snoopy, he said," Charlie Brown never
really understands his dog. "
(In Snoopy's honor, the" Peanuts" show is attached to one called
Memphis Barkitecture, a gallery of fanciful doghouses by some of the
city's best-known architects through Jan. 12. An Oriental-looking mutt
palace is titled "Dog House of the August Moon. ") Schulz worked out
ideas for his strip in scribbles on yellow legal pads. The exhibit shows
a couple he crumpled in the process of making his thoughts clear on
paper. His care paid off." Peanuts "debuted in seven newspapers. It led
to a Broadway musical, four animated movies, TV's A Charlie Brown
Christmas that first aired in 1965, and Little Rock theologian Robert L.
Short's 1964 best seller, The Gospel According to Peanuts.
BITTERSWEET TOUCH Short found parables in Charlie Brown's plight
as a loser in everything from baseball to love. Others including
Schulz pointed out the comic strip's sad musings about childhood and
hopeless desires. Maurice Horn, in his book, 100 Years of Newspaper
Comics, describes" bittersweet echoes" that "give 'Peanuts' a dimension
that is unprecedented in the literature of the comics."
Readers, though, mostly found smiles.
As "Peanuts" neared the end, there was speculation Schulz would
close out with a strip that showed Charlie Brown ever the loser
finally winning. At long last, good ol' Charlie Brown would kick the
football, or fly his kite high over the kite-eating tree, or wonder of
wonders, even kiss the little red-haired girl.
Or maybe Snoopy would sell his story about the dark and stormy
night, or Lucy would turn sweet, or the Great Pumpkin would arrive on
Halloween just the way Linus always believed he would.
But none of that happened. Schulz went with a quiet goodbye, as if
he still believed he was so easily overlooked, nobody would notice he'd
gone.
Good grief.
Cyrus Chestnut brings 'A Charlie Brown Christmas' to Eisenhower
Auditorium
December 6, 2002
By Tyler Michael
The Centre Daily Times (Central Pennsylvania)
You're a good man, Cyrus Chestnut!
That fact already has been established in State College with the
jazz pianist's previous appearances at Penn State, including a concert
last March with his trio before a capacity house at Schwab Auditorium.
He returns Wednesday with another group of stellar musicians to pay
homage to his and, it seems, everyone's favorite little buddy, Charles
Schulz's beloved "Peanuts" character Charlie Brown.
They will perform "A Charlie Brown Christmas" in concert in
Eisenhower Auditorium. Chestnut says he will present music from and
inspired by the 1960s' "Peanuts" television special of the same name,
along with traditional Christmas favorites like "Christmas Time Is
Here," "The Christmas Song" and "Have Yourself A Merry Little
Christmas."
Chestnut says it was the music of "A Charlie Brown Christmas," as
rendered by the Vince Guaraldi Trio on that classic television special,
that was one of his introductions to jazz as a boy growing up in
Baltimore.
It's music that is simple, yet complex, he says.
"It so fits the cartoon so well. It's humorous, it's lyrical,"
Chestnut said. "I love Vince's compositions, his approach. It is a
simple and very warm approach to playing, very musical."
Chestnut promises his Eisenhower audience "a good, warm evening
with the music of Vince Guaraldi."
"There will be a lot of the music we have come to know through the
years in our hearts," he said.
Chestnut says he thinks there is a little bit of Charlie Brown in
everyone.
"Charlie Brown is for all ages. He's a great example of
determination and, like Charlie, everybody wants to be accepted for who
they are," he said.
If the crowd wants to close their eyes and see Charlie Brown in the
televisions of their minds, that's fine with Chestnut.
"Whatever they want to do, I hope they enjoy themselves," he said.
"If they see Snoopy, Charlie Brown or Woodstock, it's fine by me. My
intent is to leave them feeling better than when they arrived."
*****
"A Charlie Brown Christmas" with Cyrus Chestnut and Friends
Home base New York City
Band line-up Cyrus Chestnut, piano; Neil Smith, drums; Michael Hawkins,
acoustic bass; Mark Whitfield, guitar; Vanessa Rubin, vocals; and Brad
Leali, saxophone
CDs "Soul Food," 2001; "Blessed Quietness A Collection of Hymns,
Spirituals and Carols," 1996; "Earth Stories," 1996; "The Dark Before
Dawn," 1995; "Revelation," 1994
Influences Fats Waller, Jelly Roll Morton, Miles Davis and
others
Still special
Big 3 holiday shows have staying power
December 4, 2002
By Chuck Barney
The Contra Costa Times (Northern California)
C'MON, ADMIT IT. You still get a little lump in your throat
whenever Linus delivers his that's-what-Christmas-is-all-about speech in
"A Charlie Brown Christmas." And you still experience a bounce in your
heart when the little hoofed wonder rescues those downtrodden Misfit
Toys in "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer." And you know you still can't
help but crack up when that fuzzy green grouch takes a treacherous
sleigh ride with his panicky pooch, Max, in "Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch
Stole Christmas."
Yes, we've seen these shows at least a million times (or so it
seems), but Charlie Brown, Rudolph and the Grinch are oldies-but-goodies
that continue to cast a powerful yuletide spell. They are the Big 3 of
television's holiday specials, towering over the forest like the classic
evergreens they are.
Every year at this time, TV programmers flood the airwaves with
holiday-themed offerings (see the accompanying list) whether we're in
the mood or not. Most of these shows are given the casual once-over and
then are quickly discarded like wads of crumpled gift wrap.
But the Big 3 endure, refusing to show their age and defying the
shelf-life laws of pop culture. Each debuted in the 1960s and each
continues to rank among TV's longest-running and best-loved specials,
regardless of the season. "Rudolph" turns 38 this month, while "Charlie
Brown" is 37 and "The Grinch" a spry 36.
And talk about drawing power. According to a recent story in USA
Today, a Thursday-night airing of "Charlie Brown" on ABC last year
attracted 72 percent more viewers than the network had been getting in
the time period. "The Grinch" last year set a Friday-night ratings
record for the WB. As for "Rudolph," he continued to light the way
toward solid ratings for CBS.
So what is it about these old-time shows that make them must-see TV
gems even though they have been available on home video for years?
What is it that helps them to outshine newer, supposedly more hip,
contemporary offerings?
Obviously, for many people, they capture the sentiment of the
holiday. Both the "Grinch" and "Charlie Brown" speak to the "real
meaning" of Christmas and deliver subtle but powerful messages about the
evils of greed and commercialism. "Rudolph," meanwhile, is a celebration
of nonconformity and plays upon our timeless affection for the underdog.
All three open with some kind of conflict but culminate with a
redemptive sense of love and community. "Charlie Brown" initially has
our bald-headed hero experiencing holiday anxiety and being ridiculed
for choosing a scrawny tree. By the end of the story, though, said tree
comes to life in glorious decor and Charles Schulz's Peanuts gang is
united in song.
