Posted on 11/30/2015 2:52:17 PM PST by windcliff
The debut of “A Charlie Brown Christmas†would capture not only the Emmy and Peabody awards, but also roughly half the people watching television across America. And its place in the nation’s holiday hearth has remained fixed ever since. As the special celebrates its 49th anniversary this week — and the strip enjoys its 64th year — ABC airs the “Peanuts†special tonight (the first time of the season for the full, not-edited-for-commercial-constraints version).
As viewers tune in to see a sparse and wilting “Charlie Brown Christmas tree†— a conifer embodiment of “Chuck’s†hard-luck seasonal mood that soon entered our national vernacular — a question about this beguilingly humble cartoon perseveres: Why, precisely, does “A Charlie Brown Christmas†endure?
Charles Schulz insisted on one core purpose: “A Charlie Brown Christmas†had to be about something. Namely, the true meaning of Christmas. Otherwise, Schulz said, “Why bother doing it?â€
Mendelson and Melendez asked Schulz whether he was sure he wanted to include Biblical text in the special. The cartoonist’s response, Mendelson recalls: “If we don’t do it, who will?â€
The result — Linus’s reading from the Book of Luke about the meaning of the season — became “the most magical two minutes in all of TV animation,†the producer says.
(At center stage, Linus says, in part: “..For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God, and saying: ‘Glory to God in the highest, and on Earth, peace and goodwill towards men.’
“That’s what Christmas is all about, Charlie Brown.â€)
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...
It’s too bad they have to ruin it by having Zero and the First Wookiee show up in the special.
It could never be done again today, as it was written.
I am actually surprised that there have been calls for it to be ‘edited’ or cancelled altogher by the networks for “the fear that it may offend someone.”
We have ALL been trying to clean up WAPO for many years. As of now, we have failed
lol
Today, a Charlie Brown Christmas wouldn’t be made. Can’t offend the perpetually offended godless lefties.
I’ve watched this program every year. It’s timeless.
Linus quoted the scripture he didn’t need to read. If possible I believe it best to quote scripture when they are used in a Church Christmas program. I tell if Linus can do so should we.
Boy do I love Charlie Brown’s Christmas.
As one of the people (albeit quite small at the time) who were in front of one of those 50% of all televisions in 1965, it still gives me a pang in the heart to see it - especially when put in the context of today’s miserable, nasty, sh$%-stained world.
I will say, that I watched it for the first time on a 19” black and white television. I most recently watched it on a 60” plasma about 2 inches thick.
“To Coca-Cola’s credit, Mendelson says, the corporate sponsor never balked at the idea of including New Testament passages. The result — Linus’s reading from the Book of Luke about the meaning of the season — became “the most magical two minutes in all of TV animation,†the producer says.”
That was in 1965.
Today, it would never happen.
Melendez got his start at Disney where he got sacked in the early 40’s for being a socialist and a labor agitator. The incident left Walt an ardent anti communist.
CC
That and “The Snowman” are two that I watch multiple times each year.
The tool at the link works pretty well.
Does Wapo do that on purpose when it gets copied and pasted?
You would need to replace all of the apostrophes with ' and quote marks with " ", as opposed to the slanted ones.
Also, long dashes with - or --
Below is an example of both types of apostrophes and quotation marks in a pre-post composition AND the result after posting or previewing both:
A Charlie Brown Christmas: 25 min
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2cgz0g_a-charlie-brown-christmas_fun
You can turn this off in MS Word:
1. Click Office Button
2. Click “Word Options”
3. Click “Proofing”
4. Click “Autocorrect Options”
5. Uncheck “Straight Quotes” with “Smart Quotes”
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.