What Does Charlie Brown's Teacher Say

It's hard to remember a time when A Charlie Brown Christmas wasn't a part of the cultural fabric of this country, but just in time for our annual collective viewing of the classic underdog tale, Jennings Brown over at New York Magazine did a fascinating deep dive into the history of the holiday special.

According to Brown, the idea for the special came after producer Lee Mendelson tried and failed to make a documentary about Peanuts creator Charles Schulz. Mendelson then came up with—and sold—the idea for a holiday special before even talking to Schulz.

When he called Schulz to tell him the news, "Schulz said, 'What's that?'" he remembered. "And I said, 'It's something you're going to write tomorrow.'"

Inspired by Hans Christian Andersen's The Fir-Tree, Mendelson proposed the show focus around a Christmas tree, and a sad one at that. The rest, as they say, is history.

But throughout the production, television execs were hesitant, unsure of the jazz score, the untrained children actors, and the character's elevated vocabulary. Brown cites this quote from Charlie Brown as indicative of their concern: "Don't think of it as dust. Think of it as maybe the soil of some great past civilization. Maybe the soil of ancient Babylon. It staggers the imagination. Maybe carrying soil that was trod upon by Solomon, or even Nebuchadnezzar."

In the end, executives let it run (after all, the TV guides had already been printed), but they "were certain it would flop, never to run again." Fortunately, Charlie Brown proved everyone wrong, bringing in both a huge audience and exceptional critical reviews.

Mendelson credits at least some of the program's success to the young actor who plays Linus. "That 10-year-old kid who recited that speech from the Bible was as good as any scene from Hamlet," he said.

"If we ever have to fight bullying, at so many levels, this is it."

And while the special has aired every December for the last 50 years—President Obama even called it "one of our country's most beloved traditions"—Mendelson thinks the program will resonate perhaps more intensely year. "These people identify with Charlie Brown maybe more than ever after this election season. He keeps fighting back and keeps enduring," he said. "If we ever have to fight bullying, at so many levels, this is it."

"Hopefully," he said, "this positive program will be soothing at a time of uncertainty."

A Charlie Brown Christmas will run on ABC on December 1, but in the meantime, go ahead and give Christmas Time is Here a listen:

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Head over to New York Magazine for the full, fascinating backstory.

Caroline Hallemann Digital News Director As the digital news director for Town & Country, Caroline Hallemann covers everything from the British royal family to the latest episodes of Outlander, Killing Eve, and The Crown.

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What Does Charlie Brown's Teacher Say

Source: https://www.townandcountrymag.com/leisure/arts-and-culture/news/a8688/charlie-brown-christmas-history/

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