Few headlines about network television make me giddy. Fewer still make me hopeful that all is good in the world. But back in August of 2010, I read the following headline from the media pages with great excitement: “Charlie Brown Is Here to Stay: ABC Picks Up ‘Peanuts’ Specials Through 2015.” The first of these to be made, the famous Christmas special, was an instant classic when it was created by Charles Schulz on a shoestring budget back in 1965, and thanks to some smart television executives, it will be around for at least another five years for all of us to see and enjoy.
What people don’t know is that the Christmas special almost didn’t happen, because some not-so-smart television executives almost didn’t let it air. You see, Charles Schulz had some ideas that challenged the way of thinking of those executives 46 years ago, and one of them had to do with the inclusion in his Christmas cartoon of a reading from the King James Bible’s version of the Gospel of Luke.
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The more things change, the more things stay the same.
As far back as 1965 — just a few years before Time magazine asked “Is God Dead?” — CBS executives thought a Bible reading might turn off a nation populated with Christians. And during a Christmas special, no less!Ah, the perils of living on an island in the northeast called Manhattan.
“A Charlie Brown Christmas” was a groundbreaking program in so many ways, as we learned watching the great PBS American Masters series on Charles Schulz, known by his friends and colleagues as “Sparky.” It was based on the comic strip Peanuts, and was produced and directed by former Warner Brothersanimator Bill Melendez, who also supplied the voice for Snoopy.
We learned in that PBS special that the cartoon happened by mere serendipity.
“We got a call from Coca-Cola,” remembered Melendez. “And they said, ‘Have you and Mr. Schulz ever considered doing a Christmas show with the characters?’ and I immediately said ‘Yes.’ And it was Wednesday and they said, ‘If you can send us an outline by Monday, we might be interested in it.’ So I called Sparky on the phone and told him I’d just sold ‘A Charlie Brown Christmas,’ and he said, ‘What’s that?’ and I said, ‘It’s something you’ve got to write tomorrow.’”
We learned in that American Masters series that Schulz had some ideas of his own for the Christmas special, ideas that didn’t make the network suits very happy. First and foremost, there was no laugh track, something unimaginable in that era of television. Schulz thought that the audience should be able to enjoy the show at its own pace, without being cued when to laugh. CBS created a version of the show with a laugh track added, just in case Schulz changed his mind. Luckily, he didn’t.
The second big battle was waged over voiceovers. The network executives were not happy that the Schulz’s team had chosen to use children to do the voice acting, rather than employing adults. Indeed, in this remarkable world created by Charles Schulz, we never hear the voice of an adult.
The executives also had a problem with the jazz soundtrackby Vince Guaraldi. They thought the music would not work well for a children’s program, and that it distracted from the general tone. They wanted something more . . . well . . . young.
Last but not least, the executives did not want to have Linus reciting the story of the birth of Christ from the Gospel of Luke.The network orthodoxy of the time assumed that viewers would not want to sit through passages of the King James Bible.
My guess is without A Charlie Brown Christmas, several others that followed, including How the Grinch Stole Christmas, would never have been made or aired. It was truly a ground breaker.
God bless us everyone!!!!!
The 25th of December is more pagan than Christian when it was chosen to appease sun-worshippers upset about the Way of the Jewish Messiah. In this world where people think they can eliminate God, believing in His Son, our Redeemer is the only Way.
For centuries, Christian writers accepted that Christmas was the actual date on which Jesus was born. John Chrysostom preached a sermon in Antioch c. 386 which established the date of Christmas as December 25 on the Julian calendar since the conception of Jesus (Luke 1:26) had been announced during the sixth month of Elisabeth's pregnancy with John the Baptist (Luke 1:10-13) as dated from the duties Zacharias performed on the Day of Atonement during the seventh month of the Hebrew calendar Ethanim or Tishri (Lev. 16:29, 1 Kings 8:2) which falls in September–October.
In the early 18th century, scholars began proposing alternative explanations. Isaac Newton argued that the date of Christmas was selected to correspond with the winter solstice, which the Romans called bruma and celebrated on December 25. In 1743, German Protestant Paul Ernst Jablonski argued Christmas was placed on December 25 to correspond with the Roman solar holiday Dies Natalis Solis Invicti and was therefore a "paganization" that debased the true church. In 1889, Louis Duchesne proposed that the date of Christmas was calculated as nine months after the Annunciation, the traditional date of the conception of Jesus, which itself was based on a traditional belief that he was conceived and crucified on the same date, 15 Nisan.
- Wikipedia
Please don't jump on the atheist bandwagon and try to destroy the date of Christmas.
I am amused year after year at how smug, condescending folk constantly berate Christians for things like celebrating Christmas in December, having Christmas trees, and so on.
The fact of the matter is most of us are perfectly aware of the pagan origins of these things. We are also aware that they don't matter much because there is a far more important Reason for the Season. For instance, anyone with even a cursory understanding of argiculture knows shepherds would not be "tending their flocks by night" in December -- it would almost certainly have been sometime in the spring. Furthermore, it is becoming more and more common knowledge that the word in the Gospel for "inn" (as in, there was no room in the "inn") was mis-translated. The correct translation is "upper room." This is because homes in that time were often two-storied, with the humans living "upstairs" and their animals living "downstairs," with a donut hole in the middle of the floor which allowed the animals' body heat to act as natural central heating (it gets cold in the desert at night). It also makes little sense that Joseph would be staying at an inn at all, since he was required by Rome to return to his city of origin (Bethlehem), where he would certainly have plenty of relatives. The story suddenly makes more sense because the house was too crowded for Joseph and Mary to stay in the upper room, so they stayed with the animals in the "stable." (the Gospel mentions a "manger," but references to a "stable" might only be found in more recent versions -- I'm not an expert on all the available translations, but I recommend Young's Literal for anyone with the stomach for such things.). The pagan origins of the trees is already well-known. Outside of Christmas itself, it is becoming more commonly known that Easter, with it's pagan symbols of fast-breeding rabbits (fertility), was based on the festival of Aoestra, who was also a fertility symbol.
I could go on, but the larger point is: it's funny how some people assume that Christians have no idea what they're talking about, despite that we are convinced the Gospel is the crux of all history and existence. Quite the contrary: because we do believe it, many of us go to some lengths to explore, verify, and/or test those beliefs. Some people should try stepping outside their liberal cocoon and TALK to a Christian for a change.
PS. Ever consider the possibility that the conquest of Christian symbolism over pagan symbolism might be ordained or at least prophetic? Put another way, the replacement of pagan festivals/symbols by Christian festivals/symbols speaks to the strength of one and the weakness of the other. The Church can invent all the festivals it wants, but it can't force one person to truly believe anything, let alone several billion over two millenia. Just a thought.
A fitting tribute to a piece of cartooning & cultural history.
However, Schulz's thinking would evolve considerably in ensuing years. As is well documented, he ultimately came to refer to himself as a secular humanist, and was particularly skeptical of organized religion, saying such things as "I think the best religion is no religion at all."
Note the tone of the strip arc where the kids find, to their surprise, that their new summer camp is run by a conservative religious group. Beginning in June 1980, it features Linus asking a counselor, "Have you ever considered that you might be wrong?"
My favorite Christmas show of all time. I make sure my 3 kids watch it every year. I always get a lump in my throat when Linus gives his recitation. The birth of Christ is the first step to the Cross. There is no Cross without His birth.
Great article ! I too always toon in just to reassure myself that television can get it right. A stroll down memory lane, with a timeless message for everyone.
As a child I found it treacly and cloying, but I loved the music until it was repeated ad nauseam every year. Charlie Brown's emotional depression was and is annoying, today he would be on Prozac. I never could understand how his life is such a downer in this best of all possible worlds.
Even so, I am glad we have it today, and my kids like it.
gee freaky, why the hate on charlie brown? charles schulz was just keeping it real. treacly and cloying? what kind of childhood did you have? what a shame.
hopefully your kids will see through your anger and cynicism and enjoy their childhood in spite of you.
My favorite Christmas special ever. When I first saw it I was too young to appreciate what a ground-breaking production this truly was. All I knew was that I loved the redemption of Charlie Brown's poor little tree, Snoopy's capitulation to commercialism, and Vince Guaraldi's music.
At my December wedding I had the organist play "Linus and Lucy" as the recessional. Even the minister loved it.
I was lucky enough to see it that first time it aired. I was 4 1/2 and living in San Angelo, Texas at the time. It was also one of the few constants in my life as I was growing up. I'm a military brat and moved quite a bit, including overseas. Fortunately, the Armed Forces Radio and Television Service aired it on base in the Philippines and Germany. I've seen it every year since that first broadcast. Thank you, Charles Schulz.
A few years ago, after not being able to catch Charlie Brown or the Grinch on TV at Christmastime, I bought both on CD. Now, every Christmas I gather the clan and we sit down to watch them both. It's one of the best moments of the season!
BTW, both CDs include the story of how the specials were created, including interviews with the people who made these classics. Fascinating.
There ought to be a list somewhere of the names of the CBS executives who were "horrified" at a very appropriate reading of the 51 seconds worth of the Bible. It'd be interesting to know their background. I bet I can guess.
