A Charlie Brown Christmas
From Christmas Specials Wiki
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| Directed by: | Bill Melendez |
| Written by: | Charles M. Schulz |
| Release date: | December 9, 1965 |
| Running time: | 25 minutes |
| Characters: | |
| Merchandise: | |
A Charlie Brown Christmas is a television special based on the popular Peanuts comic strip. In the special, Charlie Brown tries to find the real meaning of Christmas.
Contents |
Synopsis
Charlie Brown thinks that Christmas has become too commercial: his little sister Sally has written to Santa Claus asking for cash, and his beagle Snoopy has decked out his doghouse in the hope of winning a Christmas decorations contest.
Lucy recommends that he direct the Christmas pageant in order to lift his spirits, but the cast is also self-involved and uninterested. When tasked with finding a Christmas tree for the pageant (Lucy would prefer a pink, aluminum one), Charlie Brown sets off with Linus to pick it out. But when he returns with a small, sickly pine tree that he thinks can use some love, everyone is disappointed. Frustrated, Charlie Brown asks if anyone can tell him what Christmas is all about, to which Linus eloquently response by quoting Scripture.
After Charlie Brown leaves the rehearsal with his tree, he returns home to find that Snoopy's doghouse has won the first prize. But when he places a single ornament from the doghouse onto his tree, the whole thing bends over, and Charlie Brown is afraid that he has killed it. At that moment, the neighborhood children come to cheer him up, helping him clean up his tree and singing "Hark the Herald Angels Sing."
Ratings
The 1965 premiere of A Charlie Brown Christmas was the second-highest rated program of the week, reaching well over 15 million homes. Charlie Brown was second only to the blockbuster Bonanza; more people watched Charlie Brown that week than Lucille Ball, Walt Disney, Andy Griffith and the Beverly Hillbillies. [1]
In the following years, A Charlie Brown Christmas reached an even larger audience. Two airings of the special appear on the "All-Time Top 10 Christmas Ratings" list -- 1969, which got a 34.8 rating, and 1967, which got a 34.3. The only other shows rated higher than the 1969 Charlie Brown Christmas are the annual Bob Hope Christmas Specials, a popular tradition in the late 60s and early 70s. [2]
Songs
A Charlie Brown Christmas features original music written by Vince Guaraldi, and performed by his jazz trio.
A soundtrack album of the special's musical score was released in 1965 on Fantasy Records, which was a well-known jazz label, and Guaraldi's home label at the time. The album became an instant classic, and remains available to this day. A single of "Christmas Time is Here", backed with "What Child is This", was also released.
In addition to the score album, in 1977 Charlie Brown Records (distributed by Disneyland/Buena Vista Records) released a book and record set, with a catalogue number of 3701, containing an LP of the special's entire soundtrack, including songs, dialogue, and sound effects. It also included a 12-page booklet with pictures from the special. Charlie Brown Records also released a condensed version of the special on a 7" 33 1/3 RPM book and record set, with a catalogue number of 401.
Cast
- Peter Robbins: Charlie Brown
- Tracy Stratford: Lucy van Pelt
- Christopher Shea: Linus van Pelt
- Bill Melendez: Snoopy
- Kathy Steinberg: Sally Brown
- Chris Doran: Schroeder, Shermy
- Ann Altieri: Freida
- Sally Dryer: Violet
- Karen Mendelson: Patty
- Geoffrey Ornstein: Pig-Pen
- Note: 3, 4, and 5 make appearances but do not have speaking roles.
Tributes
The Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends Christmas episode, "A Lost Claus", pays homage to this chesnut using a jazz musicial style in the soundtrack, and even Snoopy's home decorated for Christmas in that episode.
References
- ↑ A Charlie Brown Christmas: The Making of a Tradition, by Lee Mendelson with reminiscences by Bill Melendez. 2000, HarperCollins Publishers Inc. The book's information is quoting an Advertising Age top ten list from January 10, 1966.
- ↑ A Charlie Brown Christmas: The Making of a Tradition, by Lee Mendelson with reminiscences by Bill Melendez. 2000, HarperCollins Publishers Inc.
