It’s The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown

When I was growing up this was a must-watch in October. It’s The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown was first released in October 1966.

Great Pumpkin

Charlie Brown is invited to Violet’s Halloween party. Before the party, the Peanuts gang plan to go trick or treating, with Snoopy, who is dressed as the WWI flying ace, taking his Halloween disguise to an extreme. The one person who won’t be joining them for the trick or treating or the party is Linus, who will be waiting in his local pumpkin patch for the arrival of the Great Pumpkin to give toys and candy to all the girls and boys.

This year he talked Sally, Charlie Brown’s sister, into coming with him while the others went out. Linus and Sally stays at the pumpkin patch all night until Lucy gets up in the middle of the night to take Linus back home. The next day, Charlie Brown and Linus about the night’s events. Charlie Brown assures Linus that he’s done his share of stupid things too. This upsets Linus, who vows that the Great Pumpkin will appear next year.

Charlie Brown and Linus at the Wall

It’s The Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown was adapted from Schulz’s newspaper strip, which he had conceived as a metaphor for some of the hope and disappointment associated with Santa Clause. Schulz didn’t like the idea of kids getting their hopes up about a lot of presents when many families could only afford one or two gifts for the holidays. “The Great Pumpkin is really kind of a satire on Santa Claus, when he doesn’t come, Linus is crushed.”

Growing up, there was no other cartoon I looked forward to more than The Peanuts. Every holiday I was there watching the gang. I would also read the  Sunday paper to see the Peanuts strip.

Everything from Linus telling us the true meaning of Christmas, Sally and Linus waiting for the Great Pumpkin, Lucy pulling that football from Charlie Brown, Snoopy being WWI flying ace, Lucy being a Psychiatrist, and Charlie Brown getting that sad-looking Christmas tree…we got to peek into that kids only world and listen to the wisdom that was going on while Linus and Charlie Brown discussed life.

Charlie Brown and Linus wall

The Peanuts taught us about life. We lose more than we win therefore everyone is Charlie Brown to an extent. Every person has failed at a big moment or many of the small ones. We felt for Charlie Brown because we could relate.

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Author: Badfinger (Max)

Power Pop fan, Baseball, Beatles, Alternative music, old movies, and tv show fan. Also anything to do with pop culture in the 60s and 70s... I'm also a songwriter, bass and guitar player. Not the slightest bit interested in politics at all.

23 thoughts on “It’s The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown”

    1. What I liked about them the most….is they talked to kids…no grown ups were allowed except to say “wah wah wah” or whatever…only the kids voices could be understood.

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      1. I’m going to Half Price books today and will look for those DVDs. I have “It’s A Wonderful Life” and the collectors edition of Lonesome Dove and Hard Days Night, and my Sony DVD Blue Ray player. Old school I guess.

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      2. Yea it’s worth having…I don’t like the networks at all… what I do is get the dvd and rip them to video…that way no scratches ever…

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  4. As I just commented on Colin’s site, I really have little patience with, or interest in, Halloween… but this show I do like a lot and try to catch. I think I’ll look for the DVD (I do have the Christmas one thankfully) since it seems to not show up on air anymore, probably as Phil says, it’s exclusive to Disney. one of Schulz’s best works, funny thing is I never equated it with the Santa story directly, but it makes a lot of sense in that light.

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    1. I like the holiday because of kids….but no I don’t get much enjoyment out of it anymore. I did go to my ex-brother in laws halloween party which was cool but I never get kids to the door…too far out in the sticks lol

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  5. We here are huge Peanuts fans (though my second set of kids born mid-to-late 80s are less so). I think Schulz was the same caliber of Godsend to kids that Mister Rogers was. I have the Peanuts Christmas DVD, and for many years we had a Charlie Brown Christmas tree (a small wimpy almost bare pine) in the side yard. We decorated it with an enormous round ornament, but darn it, that tree has gone all healthy on us in the past couple of years.. *sigh.. 😊

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    1. Yes the comparison to Mister Rogers is correct. The Peanuts talked to us kids without grown ups interrupting.
      We have an artificial Charlie Brown tree…but a real one would be best… lol healthy…maybe by Christmas it will get a little under the weather.

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  7. Schulz knew how to wrap his ultimately pessimistic (though realistic) message up with a dash of darkhumour, and that’s the best humour. There is that ying yang of hope/deflation that leaves you smiling and yet thinking.
    Sheesh, on reading back that sounds a load of waffle. Oh well, whatever, the smile lingers on. I do think only Calvin And Hobbes comes close to the consistent high levels of kidswise humour that Schulz set.

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  8. These Peanuts cartoons are just adorable. I remember they were also shown on TV back in Germany. What I don’t remember are holiday specials. A Halloween special would have been unlikely, given Halloween wasn’t a thing in Germany. But I also don’t recall any Christmas specials.

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