Sure, Peppermint Patty went into a swivet when Charlie Brown’s Thanksgiving dinner consisted of popcorn, pretzels, jellybeans and toast (and Linus had seen him make toast). But she wouldn’t complain about what Abrams and Lee Mendelson Film Productions have served up in book and recorded form, respectively.

The Essential Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz: The Greatest Comic Strip of All Time by Mark Evanier (Abrams Comic Arts) is a lavish coffee-table book packaged with collectible bonus materials. It is stunning visually from cover to cover, from the iconic “warm puppy” image on the slipcase and “cloud dreams” scene from the Sunday strip (and later in the first feature, 1969’s A Boy Named Charlie Brown) on the book cover itself.

Mark Evanier, a person whom everyone reading this should already know about (and if not, visit his venerable daily blog, newsfromme.com), wrote the detailed text. Mark is quick to point out his discomfort having sole author credit, as so many people were involved, even before he was brought into the project.

“Up front here,” he said, “This book was really a team effort, and I don’t say that to sound humble.” By calculated coincidence, a new interview with Mark can be heard in an episode of POP Culture Classics Podcast with Greg Ehrbar called “A Celebration of Charles M. Schulz and Peanuts” (Please subscribe and “like” it on your favorite streaming service.)

The book is organized by era, providing a chronological context of Schulz’s life, art, and characters, as well as the world around him. To newer Peanuts fans or those interested in comics, animation, art, and all things that connect it, it is a valuable series of revelations. To those of us who see Peanuts as an organic part of their lives, it is both reaffirming and fascinating.

Several people adroitly offer their perceptions of Charlie Brown and the gang within their own lives and careers, but again, Mark Evanier eloquently express the scope and attachment we enthusiasts have for Schulz’s one-of-a-kind accomplishments. Of course, the genuine author is really Schulz himself, still astonishing us with his gift for combining character-driven writing that is infinitely quotable with an ability to convey humor and emotion in a manner so extraordinary, he is the real-life superhero of all comicdom.

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IT’S ARBOR DAY, CHARLIE BROWN / CHARLIE BROWN’S ALL-STARS
Original Television Soundtracks
50th Anniversary Extended Edition
Music by Vince Guaraldi
Lee Mendelson Film Productions LM26ADAS01 (stereo/mono) 12” LP (also download and CD).

Released in 2026. Producers: Sean Mendelson, Jason Mendelson. Musicians: Vince Guaraldi, Frank Snow, John Coppola, Eugene “Fuzzy” Firth, Eddie Duran. Liner Notes: Derrick Bang, Sean Mendelson, Jason Mendelson. Mastering: Vinson Hudson. Mixer; Clark Germain. Running Time: 33 minutes.

“It’s Arbor Day, Charlie Brown” Music: “Rerun’s Lament,” “Rerun’s Lament (Reprise),” “Ships Sail Into Arbor,” “Laughter In The Library,” “Flatten Patten (Baseball Theme),” “Young Man’s Fancy,” “Jay Sterling Morton Jazz,” “We’re The Visiting Team,” “Seeds For Thought (Joe Cool),” “Don’t Forget The Shovel,” “Sprinkle Your Bird,” “Snoopy At Bat,” “Lucy’s Home Run,” “Rain, Rain, Go Away (Rain, Gentle Rain),” “Happy Arbor Day, Charlie Brown,” “Jay Sterling Morton Jazz (Bonus Alternate Take),” “Happy Arbor Day, Charlie Brown (Bonus Alternate Take),” by Vince Guaraldi.

“Charlie Brown’s All-Stars” Music: “Charlie’s Run,” “Charlie Brown’s All Stars!” “Baseball Theme (Medley),” “Oh, Good Grief!” “Surfin’ Snoopy,” “Pebble Beach,” “Rain, Rain, Go Away,” by Vince Guaraldi.

By the time It’s Arbor Day, Charlie Brown aired on CBS in 1976, there were those who said, “Charlie Brown has officially run out of holidays.” How wrong they were. Happy New Year, Charlie Brown was still to come (that was in 1986), as well as shows related to events like It’s the Super Bowl, Charlie Brown (1994) and even some that revisited holidays, like 1992’s It’s Christmas Time Again, Charlie Brown (the original VHS of which was sold at Shell gas stations).

Arbor Day, which occurs on the last Friday of April has been around for well over a hundred years, observed by planting trees to make the earth a better place, certainly an accessible way for people, especially kids, to do something positive. Admittedly, it’s not as “big” as some other holiday, especially in retail terms, but it’s to the credit of Schulz, Mendelson, Melendez, and CBS that it was given due attention on a Peanuts TV special.

Now Lee Mendelson Film Productions, in their ongoing effort to release these treasured soundtracks on vinyl, CD, and streaming, have combined Vince Guaraldi’s superb music for Arbor Day with the soundtrack from the 1966 special, Charlie Brown’s All-Stars (which is explored by our colleague Mike Lyons in this fine Animation Cel-abration feature on Cartoon Research.

Charlie Brown’s All-Stars was only the second Peanuts animated special, and one of the more forgotten ones among the early classics. One reason is that it isn’t connected to a holiday, and another might be that it did not “score” as highly in the ratings over the years.

It’s also uniquely dated for a Peanuts special, because an offer to put Charlie Brown’s team in a real league with uniforms is withdrawn because of females on the team (in addition to a very highly unique dog).

Peppermint Patty, who had not made her indomitable debut in a special, would have surely confronted Mr. Hennessy himself. A remake of sorts was produced for video in 1996. It’s Spring Training, Charlie Brown, in which the team again loses its chance for uniforms but for a different (and amusing) reason.

Because Charlie Brown’s All-Stars contains less than ten minutes of music, and the special has become less evergreen (sorry) than It’s Arbor Day, Charlie Brown, the latter soundtrack is featured on the front cover with All-Stars on the back. They complement each other perfectly, both in story and music, with baseball being the main connector.

Like planting trees for a better tomorrow, get a copy of this new soundtrack, as sales dictate the reoccurrence of the kind of media we really want.

Nat King Cole sang it best: “Roll out those lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer!” That’s exactly what we will do over the next several days, as Memorial Day Weekend unofficially kicks off the summer season.
With this easygoing season comes summer vacation. In 2021, 2024, and 2025, summer was celebrated with classic cartoons centering on summer vacations.

From these articles came suggestions from Cartoon Research readers for more classic cartoons on summer vacation, and here are just three of them:

“The Land of Fun” (1941), Columbia – suggested by Paul Groh

This “Columbia Favorite,” directed by Sid Marcus, features a number of gags that take satirical jabs at vacationers. The short parodies a travelogue, opening with a book that previews activities on vacation. The narrator (Frank Bingham) tells us we’re going to see “charm, beauty and good taste everywhere.” At this point, we cut away from two women sunbathing to a man sitting on his luggage with a toe that pops out of his sock.

From here, it’s a parade of jokes, including a lovely waterfall that seems to go on forever, then ends with a vacationer catching a tiny drop in a cup, a sheep herder (Mel Blanc) on the highland passage, who is asked how’s it’s going and answers “Not Baaa-ad,” snow capped mountains that acknowledge each other with such greetings as “Hi Sierra,” a beach goer who must walk across the heads of sunbathers, as the beach is so jam-packed and fisherman who wait while a fish down below shaves with their electric razor that’s plugged into an electric eel.

There’s also the recurring gag of “Joe Tourist,” who continually attempts to pass the car in front of him on a dangerous mountain road, until finally giving up, leaves his car behind and rides away on a bicycle.

The short ends with the sun literally sinking into the horizon, boiling the water and burning the rear end of a duck floating by.

The Land of Fun features a number of well-timed gags, set against lush, beautiful backgrounds, both of which remind us that while vacations can be picturesque, they can also come with a lot of work and provide a lot of laughs.

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“Bee at the Beach” (1950), Disney – suggested by Tony Ginorio

This Jack Hannah-directed Donald Duck short brings the Disney star together with Spike the Bee, an entertaining supporting player from this era of Disney shorts.

As the short opens, Spike flies over a lovely background of the beach. He finds an open spot and is about to take it, when Donald (Clarence Nash) stakes his claim and puts up his umbrella, but Spike (James Mac Donald) still sets up his umbrella, (a flower), and a clam shell.

What then follows is Donald tormenting poor little Spike by stepping on him, and rinsing his towel off on him, while Spike gets revenge by using his stinger to poke holes in the straw of Donald’s soda bottle.

When Donald takes his raft out on the water, Spike deflates it. Donald manages to reinflate it but is surrounded by sharks. Spike seizes upon this situation and begins stinging holes in the raft, while Donald attempts to plug up the holes with his hands and webbed feet.

Spike cuts a hole in the bottom, causing Donald’s rear end to fall into the water, and the bee taunts the shark with the scent of one of Donald’s feathers, with the shark then pursuing Donald. This results in some good moments between Donald and the shark, including one with the shark’s tongue beckoning Donald to come forward.

It all ends with Donald being chased into the horizon by the shark, while Spike “buzzes” a laugh.

With animation from Bill Justice, Bob Carlson, Judge Whitaker, and Volus Jones, there is plenty of well-choreographed comedy here and solid animation of the two rivals. This Disney short also includes an opening shot of wall-to-wall beach umbrellas that will ring true with anyone who has ventured to the seaside during summer.

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“It Was a Short Summer, Charlie Brown” (1969) – suggested by Doug

In one of the opening scenes of this Peanuts special, Charlie Brown asks Linus if he knows why English teachers go to college for four years. When Linus replies, “No,” Charlie Brown answers furiously, “So they can learn how to make stupid little kids write stupid essays about what they did all stupid summer!”

So begins this Peanuts adventure, which actually opens on the first day of school and “flashes back” to summer vacation, as Charlie Brown (Peter Robbins), Linus (Glen Gilger), Lucy (Pamelyn Ferdin), and the gang write their essays about summer vacation when they were all together at camp.

While at camp, the boys and girls compete in various events, including swimming and softball. The boys are defeated in each. Looking for a win, the boys challenge the girls to an arm-wrestling contest, with Snoopy disguised as the mighty wrestler “The Masked Marvel.”

During the arm-wrestling competition, Snoopy kisses Lucy, and pins her arm, but Lucy declares the kiss a foul.

When we return to the first day of school, Charlie Brown receives a “C-“ on his essay. “Oh well,” says Linus, “it was a short summer, Charlie Brown.” To this, Charlie Brown responds, “And it looks like it’s going to be a long winter.”

Directed by Bill Melendez, It Was a Short Summer Charlie Brown brings the usual on-point humor from Charles M. Schulz, (evidenced by such lines as when Charlie Brown says “I feel like I’ve been drafted!,” when he finds out that Lucy has signed everyone up for Camp). And all of this is combined with nostalgia and memories that those who have ever attended summer camp will no doubt feel.

Here’s the first three minutes…

And, as we enter these longer days and endless nights, feel free to drop more of your favorite cartoons that celebrate summer vacation in the comments below. Wishing all a safe and happy summer.

The opening of Charlie Brown’s All-Stars! sums up the title character perfectly.

Charlie Brown is on the pitcher’s mound. He pitches the ball, and the batter hits it. In an attempt to catch the ball, Charlie Brown runs into the outfield, has to hop a fence, runs up and down the bleachers, through someone’s backyard, past some of the girls playing jump rope (he stops and jumps rope himself), he runs into a house, up to the second floor, then finally winds up running out to the backyard and when he finally tries to catch the ball, it drops onto the grass and he misses it.

The whole Peanuts gang then gathers round and yells, “You blockhead, Charlie Brown!”

Poor Charlie Brown. He tries so hard, always just misses, and his friends don’t give him a break. That’s at the center of Charlie Brown’s All-Stars!, celebrating its 60th anniversary this summer. The second prime time Peanuts TV special, following A Charlie Brown Christmas, and the first special not themed to a holiday.

Set during the summer, and based around Charlie Brown’s favorite sport of baseball, Charlie Brown’s All-Stars! centers on Charlie Brown’s baseball team, which is not doing well. In fact, the whole team quits, but Linus comes to the rescue. He gets Mr. Hennessey, who owns the local hardware store, to sponsor uniforms for the team.

Charlie Brown (Peter Robbins) is so excited that he tells the team, and Lucy (Sally Dryer) says that if he can really get the uniforms, they will all give him another chance and rejoin the team.

However, after this, Mr. Hennessey calls and lets Charlie Brown know that it’s against league rules to have a dog or girls on the team and tells Charlie Brown that if he can get the girls and the dog to leave, he will support the team and get the uniforms. But Charlie Brown stands his ground and refuses this, telling Mr. Hennessey thanks, but no thanks.

Charlie Brown elects not to tell the team about this, but he confides in Linus (Christopher Shea). Thinking that if he doesn’t tell them, Charlie Brown hopes their spirits will still be lifted, and they might win their next game. Sadly, they don’t, and it’s Charlie Brown who loses it for them by getting tagged out at home.

It’s after this that Charlie Brown confesses to the team what Mr. Hennessey said, and that the deal with them playing in the league and the uniforms is off.

Everyone is furious with Charlie Brown, and they all storm off. After, Linus tells the team why Charlie Brown did this, and the team feels bad.

Searching for a way to make it up to Charlie Brown, they create a managers uniform using Linus’ blanket.

They present Charlie Brown with the special uniform bearing the words “Our Manager,” and he is so touched that he sheds a tear.

He tells his team he knows that they’ll win the game the next day. But it rains, and the game is canceled. Charlie Brown, dressed in his new manager uniform, goes out to the field anyway and stands on the mound, in the pouring rain.

Linus comes out to the field to tell Charlie Brown that no one will be coming and reveals that the manager’s uniform was made using his blanket. So, Charlie Brown gives him a corner of the uniform. Holding a portion of the blanket and sucking his thumb, Linus stands there, alongside Charlie Brown, rain coming down on the baseball field, as the special ends.

Directed by Bill Melendez and written by Charles M. Schulz, with animation by Ed Love, Bill Littlejohn, and others, Charlie Brown’s All-Stars!, like the Christmas special that preceded it, does perfect work of melding Schulz’s comic strip panels with the world of animation.

Of note is the gag where Charlie Brown, as the pitcher, finds himself flipped in the air, his clothes flying off, as the ball hit by the batter soars past him with such force. This had been used by Schulz in the comic strip, over the course of several panels, and segues perfectly to a cartoon sight gag.

Schulz also brings his pointed humor, which is peppered nicely throughout All-Stars. There are subtle moments, such as Charlie Brown wondering if he should resign as manager, followed by Snoopy (Melendez) appearing to hand him a pencil and paper.

This is coupled with sharp dialogue, such as Charlie Brown saying, “For one brief moment victory was within our grasp,” to which Linus replies, “And then the game started.”

Charlie Brown’s All-Stars! also features the familiar, comforting music of Vince Guaraldi (for more about the soundtrack, read Greg Ehrbar’s 2017 article). For the fiftieth anniversary, the score was recently re-released.

Essentially a summer-themed remake of A Charlie Brown Christmas (Charlie Brown attempts to be a leader for his friends, who turn on him, and Linus steps in to make them all aware of Charlie Brown’s good intentions), Charlie Brown’s All-Stars! is still an entertaining half-hour filled with all the hallmarks audiences have come to love and expect from Peanuts specials. Snoopy even gets his moment, as he fantasizes about being a great surfer.

Originally airing on June 8, 1966, on CBS, the special may not have had the staying power of the Peanuts holiday outings, but sixty years later, Charlie Brown’s All-Stars! most definitely has its fans who, like Linus, would stand out in the rain alongside Charlie Brown.

Big Nate’s relief pitchers, a true comic strip crossover, not a boring Van Boring collection, the comic strip bad guys, and valuable comic strip art. Relieving Big Nate This past weekend it was noted that Wallace the Brave had replaced the discontinued Big Nate daily comic strip in The Washington Post. Mike Rhode at Comics […]