It’s Memorial Day, Charlie Brown?

As most of you probably know, Monday is Memorial Day, the federal holiday during which we commemorate the military men and women who died in service of our country.  Before I continue, let’s have a moment of silence for these fine folks, because this post actually has very little to do with them.  And writing a post that uses the word “Memorial Day” in its title, while not actually discussing the true meaning of the holiday AT ALL, might actually have the unintended side-effect of making me feel like a Totally Insensitive Poopy Head.  . .

So, I’m going to try to make a half-assed attempt to remedy that right now, OK?  Here it comes . . . Shhhhh!  No talking . . .

Thank you.  On to the post . . .

So, as I said, Monday is Memorial Day, a national holiday.  And do you know what I tend to think about when approaching a national holiday?  (Aside from “Thank GOD I finally have a day off!”  . . . because, of course, I ALWAYS think about that first . . .) 

I think about Charlie Brown!  Why, you ask?  Because EVERY national holiday comes with its own Charlie Brown television special!

Thanks for the vid, fishfreak!

Correction:  Evey holiday EXCEPT Memorial Day! (And, actually, I think July 4th . . . random, right?)

Personally, I think this is an issue that needs to be remedied ASAP, Peanuts people!  And just to prove what you’re missing, Memorial Day (and July 4th!), here’s a brief look at the holiday calendar, as seen through the eyes of Peanuts cartoons . . .

Happy New Year, Charlie Brown!

Honestly, as far as Peanuts holiday installments go, this one is quite lame.  I think this has a lot to do with the fact that Peanuts gang is so YOUNG!  So, they can’t truly enjoy this holiday the way it was intended to be enjoyed.  Would you believe, the premise of the episode ACTUALLY involves Charlie Brown reading Tolstoy’s War and Peace?  

Correct me if I’m wrong here, but isn’t Charlie Brown supposed to be like EIGHT?  Do you know what I was reading at age 8?

Clearly, Charlie Brown went to a better Elementary School than I did .  . . which I find strange, considering that none of his teachers seemed to have a particularly solid grasp of the English language.

Actually, my favorite “part” of “Happy New Year, Charlie Brown,” is the unofficial “promotional poster” for it, which always seems to find its way into holiday cards, and the like.  I enjoy it immensely!  Because, unlike the actual “Happy New Year, Charlie Brown,” this poster features our main characters, Charlie Brown and Linus, impliedly doing what most of us regular folk do on New Year’s Eve — namely, get completely wasted and make bad life choices.

In Charlie Brown’s case, his “bad choice” comes in the form of deciding to wear a highly unflattering Trucker Cap . . .

Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown!

This one may very well be my favorite Charlie Brown holiday special of them all!  Unlike the New Year’s episode, which featured the Peanuts doing things I would NEVER do on that particular holiday, Charlie Brown’s Valentine’s Day looks just like mine always does!  In it, Linus develops the hots for his teacher!

Those of you who watched Dawson’s Creek back in the day, probably understand (and hopefully enjoy) the above reference. Those who DIDN’T, are undoubtedly wondering why the guy from Fringe is sporting such a ridiculous haircut . . .

During the special, Charlie Brown gets NO VALENTINES AT ALL (until the end of the show, that is, when some random girl gives him one out of pity)!  Inappropriate crushes, rejection, and self pity.  It’s just like MY Valentine’s Day, Charlie Brown!

It’s the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown!

Unlike the dream-killing Halloween Charlie Brown episode (to be discussed below), where the legendary Great Pumpkin NEVER actually makes an appearance, we actually DO get to see the titular Easter Beagle in this one!  (It’s only Snoopy, of course . . . but it’s better than nothing.)  So, you would think that being the Owner and Best Friend of the “Beagle in Charge,” would ensure that Charlie would be entitled to at least ONE Easter egg.  But NO!  He gets none . . .

 

On a lighter note, I LOVE the trippy, surprisingly “meta” scene from this episode, in which Snoopy engages in a dance with some very happy Easter Bunnies (Or DOES he?) .  Watch the clip and listen closely, because in it, Snoopy utters the ONLY WORD he will ever speak during the ENTIRE PEANUTS series!

Thanks for posting chickiechickie!

Personally, I think this “Easter Egg” is the KEY to deciphering the Flash Sideways World on Lost . . .

It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown!

Of all the Charlie Brown holiday shows, this one is probably the best known. Whenever people talk about, “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown,” they always seem to want to discuss, Linus’s fruitless all-night vigil in the pumpkin patch for the Great Pumpkin, who never arrives.  However, when I think of “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown,” this scene is always the first to come to my mind . . .

Thanks digitmarketing!

I’m guessing the “rock” is not considered “wrapped candy,” so Charlie Brown’s mom is probably going to have to throw all those away.  It’s too bad, because, with all those rocks, Charlie could have made a pretty awesome “Great Pumpkin” shrine . . .

Happy Thanksgiving, Charlie Brown!

This was probably the only Peanuts Special that made me really jealous of Charlie Brown.  After all, I was a really picky eater as a kid.   So, Iwasn’t a big fan of most of the food at MY Thanksgiving table.  But a dinner comprised of toast, pretzels, popcorn and jellybeans?  I would have been TOTALLY down with that!

A Charlie Brown Christmas

This Peanuts episode was kind of a downer for most of its duration.  (I know it probably seems, based on my descriptions of the Specials, that they were ALL downers.  But that is simply not true!)  In this Special,  Charlie Brown’s purchase of the saddest little Christmas tree alive, threatens to ruin the ENTIRE school’s Christmas pageant!

Admittedly, the entire show is a bit preachy, what with its hammering home the lesson that Christmas has become overly commecialized, and its constant discussions (damn you and your lessons, Linus!) of the “true meaning of Christmas.”  However, the last few minutes of “A Charlie Brown Christmas”  are guaranteed to be the BEST THING YOU WILL EVER WATCH ON TELEVISION during Christmas time!

I’m only a little embarrassed to say that I watched this video about eight times in a row this evening, in a feeble attempt to try and mimic each character’s dance moves . . .  DO NOT TRY THAT AT HOME!

So, there you have it folks, a calendar year, as seen through the lens of Peanuts Holiday Specials . . .

Dear Memorial Day,

       Consider yourself SCHOOLED!

                      Love,

                    The Peanuts Gang!