The Charlie Brown and Snoopy Thread!

[D'Snowth]

I'm kind of surprised we don't already have a thread for Peanuts - I looked, and found "your thoughts" type of threads on various Peanuts specials, but not a thread for Peanuts discussion in general... we must do something about that!

You know, I got to watching some of the old Peanuts movies the other day, and I realized the main thing I like about them - Charles Schulz never really tried to outdo the specials and such on TV, the movies always had the exact same quality... in fact, it's mostly like watching extended specials, rather than half-hour ones. That's one thing you often don't see in animation; if you have a popular series or series of specials that get turned into movies, it's like the company always has to outdo themselves to make the movies even better than the series as far as quality is concerned. I remember reading even Ross Bagdasarian Jr. saying he wanted the comparison on the Chipmunks Saturday morning cartoon and The Chipmunk Adventure movie to be like comparing a dog house to the Taj Mahal. Not so with Peanuts movies, they always of the same overall quality as the specials.

Another thing I like too is how Schulz himself handled all of the writing, which I think is a smart idea, after all he was the one who brought all of these characters to life in the funny papers for us years ago, and who has a better understanding of the characters and how they react with each other, and in their surroundings than the creator?

 

[Fozzie Bear]

I agree that having kept the same style of animation, even in the Charlie Brwn and Snoopy show on Saturday mornings, it was always both familiar and comfortable. Of course, following Sparky's lead, I always follow the strip for the tru chronology of Peanuts.

For example, in the special "Your first kiss" CB meets the rd haired girl, but not in the strips so Schulz says it didn't count.

Good Peanuts research can be found here:
http://www.peanutscollectorclub.com/

A good produvt place to go:
http://aaugh.com/

But be sure to visit the official kingdom here:
www.flyingace.net

 

[sesameguy]

Thanks to you both for the thoughts and links - I'm a big time "Peanuts" fan too. I agree that having Schulz "in charge" probably kept the strip's popularity going for as long as it did. It kept pretty much the same "feel" to it, even though the styles and plot lines and sometimes even the humor would change throughout the years.

If you can afford it, Fantagraphics books is currently reprinting all of the Peanuts comic strips. It's called "The complete Peanuts" and they are up to the 1970s, but I think older editions can still be purchased.

 

[Fozzie Bear]

I've been collecting the Fantagraphics books, too. Lots of great books available through the Snoopy Store online and the CMS Museum store.

I just remembered that once I started a Peanuts fan forum on Delphi in the mid 90's. Bet it's gone now.

As a collector, I think finding GOOD Peanuts merchandise is as hard as finding good Miss Piggy or Gonzo products.

Has anyone other than me been to the museum yet? All Peanuts fans should go there at least once. The museum is great, and the countryside and Santa Rosa people are beautiful through and through! Lots to do besides just the museum, but I could spend a month in the museum and never get bored.

 

[sesameguy]

I haven't been to the museum yet, though I'd love to check it out. There was a small local exhibit of Schulz's work last year, but I was a little disappointed to learn that the comic strips they had were reprints and not the actual drawings themselves. (They still looked great, but it's always cool to see the originals!) It was fun to see, though, and the official museum definitely looks fun.

I agree, Peanuts stuff is getting hard to find. I never see any real Peanuts "toys" anymore. Thankfully, some area bookstores carry some of the books, and DVDs of many TV episodes are still available. But Snoopy dolls and the like seem to be rare.

 

[Beakerfan]

Has anyone other than me been to the museum yet? All Peanuts fans should go there at least once. The museum is great, and the countryside and Santa Rosa people are beautiful through and through! Lots to do besides just the museum, but I could spend a month in the museum and never get bored.

Haha, I've been there!

For those of you who don't know, I live in Santa Rosa - we practically worship Charles Schulz LOL...

 

[Drtooth]

As a collector, I think finding GOOD Peanuts merchandise is as hard as finding good Miss Piggy or Gonzo products.

I'd say it's like finding good Winnie the Pooh stuff. There's so much cheap little trinkets, that when it comes to something quality, it's few and far between. I liked the CVS plush, but that's not the highest quality stuff I've seen. Not that I'm a huge collector of high quality stuff... just thought I should point it out.

There are a lot of lower quality kiddy things if you know where to look. Cheap candy dispensers are usually floating around every holiday... but do you really want a Snoopy driving a clear purple pumpkin?

 

[minor muppetz]

Today I bought "The Peanuts 1970s Collection Vol. 1" on DVD, though I only watched a few specials. I also have the "Peanuts 1960s Collection". I do find it odd that Warner Home Video and Fantagraph don't seem to be doing any kidn of cross-promotion for the DVDs and the "Complete Peanuts" books.

 

[D'Snowth]

I do find it odd that Warner Home Video and Fantagraph don't seem to be doing any kidn of cross-promotion for the DVDs and the "Complete Peanuts" books.

Are you even allowed to do that?

 

[minor muppetz]

Are you even allowed to do that?

Not sure.