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Why Fans Love A CHARLIE BROWN CHRISTMAS Every Year

Photo from @RiseFallNickBck on X

Why Fans Love A CHARLIE BROWN CHRISTMAS Every Year

By Movieguide® Contributor

In what’s been called “the most magical two minutes in all of TV animation,” A CHARLIE BROWN CHRISTMAS shares the real meaning of the globally celebrated holiday.

“Isn’t there anyone who knows what Christmas is all about?” Charlie Brown cries out in the 1965 special.

“Sure, Charlie Brown, I can tell you what Christmas is all about,” says his friend Linus, who shares the simple story of Jesus’ birth.

“‘For unto you is born this day in the City of David, a Savior, which is Christ the Lord,'” he says.

Peanuts creator Charles Schulz was adamant that the special include the Gospel story.

“If we don’t do it, who will?” he said.

“There were actually quite a few things in the special that the executives and some of his creative partners were not too sure about, from the jazz music to the children voice actors and including the religious reference, that got quite a bit of pushback,” said Dr. Stephen Lind, author of “A Charlie Brown Religion: Exploring the Spiritual Life and Work of Charles M. Schulz.”

He says Schulz stood very firm in his beliefs.

“Schulz really planted his feet on a lot of those creative decisions, and at the end of the day, when the studio executives viewed the special, even though they were very wary about it, as it turns out, they did not have a lot of time to come up with a new special,” he continued. “And they had already advertised for it, so because of the scheduling, they were kind of stuck to go with Schulz’s creative vision, and as it turns out, the public loved it.”

READ MORE: WHY CHARLES SCHULZ FOUGHT FOR FAITH IN A CHARLIE BROWN CHRISTMAS

“In the 1960s when it first aired, there were lots of letters sent to Schulz and the sponsor, Coca-Cola, telling them that the viewers were so gratified to see a substantive reference to religion on TV,” said the author. “Some of those letters from the 1960s sound like they could have been written today.”

The special has been enjoyed by many ever since it was released.

Writer Paul Batura said, “I think people look forward to it every year; I think it centers people. You know our first impressions make a big impression, and for most of us, we saw A CHARLIE BROWN CHRISTMAS when we were three, four, five years old, and that sticks with us.”

“And we’re reminded when we hear that voice when we hear the reading of the Gospel of Luke, we’re reminded why we celebrate Christmas,” he said. “And so I think it has had a very much a net positive impact on the world.”

Lind believes that Schulz’s faith was a very important thing in his life.

“Schulz had a biblical faith that was maybe more nuanced than some of the denominational dogma that some of his peers would have, but it was a personal, biblical faith that he would talk to close confidants about over the years and include in his strips, even if it was a little bit more nuanced and broad then some of the traditional teachings,” he shared.

Batura said, “Some have tried to sanctify him, and some have tried to vilify him, even accusing him of some heretical beliefs. I think the reality is he was somewhere in the middle, and I say that because look at the fruit of his work; look at what he produced, and look at what we still enjoy today. And I have a very, very good feeling about where Charles Schulz was with his Christian faith.”

Lind found that over 560 of Schulz’s 17,800 Peanuts strips had a spiritual or theological reference.

“Later in his career, the religious references came so frequently that pastors and religious publications regularly requested permission to reprint Peanuts strips, which Schulz almost always granted,” The Atlantic reported.

You can stream A CHARLIE BROWN CHRISTMAS this year on Apple TV+.

READ MORE: HOW TO STREAM A CHARLIE BROWN CHRISTMAS FOR FREE


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