Fifty years ago, race relations in the United States were tense. After Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated on April 4, 1968, the long-simmering problem of segregation and racial discrimination reached a boiling point. This civil unrest lead to riots in the streets, and America seemed doomed to repeat the negative patterns of the past.
One school teacher from Los Angeles, California was so discouraged by what she saw in society, she decided to reach out to an unlikely hero for help: cartoonist Charles M. Schulz.
A Los Angeles schoolteacher named Harriet Glickman wrote to Schulz on April 15, 1968, urging him to introduce a black character into Peanuts. This began a correspondence between Schulz and Glickman that led to Schulz’s creation of Franklin.
When syndicators insisted Charles Schulz remove Peanuts’ Black character Franklin, Schulz said: “Either you print it just the way I draw it or I quit.”
It’s pedantic, but I prefer “birth anniversary” when describing the number of years since birth for people who are no longer alive. An alternate construction is “would have been his XXth birthday”. I still use “birthday” when I mention the date a person was born, living or not.
Back in the ’60’s a friend and I won a book prize voucher in a high school science contest. I imagine we were expected to go out and buy science books but we went straight to the biggest bookstore in town and bought as many Peanuts Comic books as we could to share. I think we chose wisely.
“I first drew Charlie Brown just wearing a little white T-shirt. But he didn’t bounce off the page. So I gave him that little jagged stripe, and he’s had it ever since. The stripe sets Charlie Brown apart. I think character identification is very important in a comic strip so the reader always knows immediately whom he’s looking at.”
I was about to object to this pseudo-scientific exposition, but she carried on. “And thus, you see, you are experiencing the grief of those close to you, as a result of your untimely withdrawal from their company. Your withdrawal from them, occasioned by your harmonic response to nearby events, has left them bereft of your company, not entirely by the facts of the matter, which are hardly of deep consequence, but by their ability to perceive and resonate with the world about them. None of it is real. It is all imaginary. But that imaginary existence resonates and influences your behaviors and your awareness. You feel cut off from your life and your world, and those close to you feel a sense of loss at that. You cannot immediately reconnect and eliminate all consequence of external events. It will take time to move your connections to a new paradigm. The absence of the supporting force of a neighboring existence has allowed motion in your own toward that direction, much like those strings mentioned earlier, that create pressure by their motions and to which pressure other nearby strings may respond in resonance. Your friends and family are actually in a state that is in harmonic resonance with shock and grief beyond their own experience.”
Schulz inspired countless cartoonists who came after, not the least of which was Bill Watterson. I learned to read from the Peanuts books instead of Dick and Jane, and collected them as they were published. His characters were human and charming and real and relatable, but even as a child Lucy’s narcissistic abuse bothered me, although I could not have told you why at the time. In spite of this, his strip remains one of my favorites to this day. Happy birthday, Charles M. Schulz!
Find other tributes here: https://www.dailycartoonist.com/index.php/2022/11/26/comics-salute-to-schulz-a-paean-to-peanuts/ Kindly point out any additional comics that participated but weren’t listed.
Superfrog over 1 year ago
“Don’t worry about the world coming to an end today. It’s already tomorrow in Australia.”
Radish the wordsmith over 1 year ago
Fifty years ago, race relations in the United States were tense. After Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated on April 4, 1968, the long-simmering problem of segregation and racial discrimination reached a boiling point. This civil unrest lead to riots in the streets, and America seemed doomed to repeat the negative patterns of the past.
One school teacher from Los Angeles, California was so discouraged by what she saw in society, she decided to reach out to an unlikely hero for help: cartoonist Charles M. Schulz.
A Los Angeles schoolteacher named Harriet Glickman wrote to Schulz on April 15, 1968, urging him to introduce a black character into Peanuts. This began a correspondence between Schulz and Glickman that led to Schulz’s creation of Franklin.
When syndicators insisted Charles Schulz remove Peanuts’ Black character Franklin, Schulz said: “Either you print it just the way I draw it or I quit.”
prettyfeet over 1 year ago
Love it!
painedsmile over 1 year ago
Honoring Charles M. Schulz in the exquisitely lamerrific style of Frog Applause.
Mad-ge Dish Soap over 1 year ago
And he smiled (✿^‿^) at you, Tee! Grade A+.
Randy B Premium Member over 1 year ago
It’s pedantic, but I prefer “birth anniversary” when describing the number of years since birth for people who are no longer alive. An alternate construction is “would have been his XXth birthday”. I still use “birthday” when I mention the date a person was born, living or not.
Superfrog over 1 year ago
Back in the ’60’s a friend and I won a book prize voucher in a high school science contest. I imagine we were expected to go out and buy science books but we went straight to the biggest bookstore in town and bought as many Peanuts Comic books as we could to share. I think we chose wisely.
Randy B Premium Member over 1 year ago
“I first drew Charlie Brown just wearing a little white T-shirt. But he didn’t bounce off the page. So I gave him that little jagged stripe, and he’s had it ever since. The stripe sets Charlie Brown apart. I think character identification is very important in a comic strip so the reader always knows immediately whom he’s looking at.”
—Charles M. Schulz
Rotifer NOT GETTING RUBEN BOLLING’S PIN Thalweg Premium Member over 1 year ago
And no typos!
(you get a gold star, Teresa!)
Brass Orchid Premium Member over 1 year ago
I was about to object to this pseudo-scientific exposition, but she carried on. “And thus, you see, you are experiencing the grief of those close to you, as a result of your untimely withdrawal from their company. Your withdrawal from them, occasioned by your harmonic response to nearby events, has left them bereft of your company, not entirely by the facts of the matter, which are hardly of deep consequence, but by their ability to perceive and resonate with the world about them. None of it is real. It is all imaginary. But that imaginary existence resonates and influences your behaviors and your awareness. You feel cut off from your life and your world, and those close to you feel a sense of loss at that. You cannot immediately reconnect and eliminate all consequence of external events. It will take time to move your connections to a new paradigm. The absence of the supporting force of a neighboring existence has allowed motion in your own toward that direction, much like those strings mentioned earlier, that create pressure by their motions and to which pressure other nearby strings may respond in resonance. Your friends and family are actually in a state that is in harmonic resonance with shock and grief beyond their own experience.”
3hourtour Premium Member over 1 year ago
…old faux Peanuts cartoon punchline: And you wouldn’t kiss Snoopy…
…one very nice tribute, Mz. Burritt…
…great art…
…is there such a thing as ‘good’ grief?…
…I used to have a Charlie Brown t-shirt…
…but I don’t have a round head…
…I’m more of a block head…
…saw Snoopy working for NASA via Macy’s yesterday…
…but he wasn’t even in the dog show…
Zebrastripes over 1 year ago
Happy Birthday Charles! ❤️The world shines brighter with your Peanuts gang and memories to last a lifetime!
I’ve been reading Charlie Brown since its creation! ☺️
The Old Wolf over 1 year ago
Schulz inspired countless cartoonists who came after, not the least of which was Bill Watterson. I learned to read from the Peanuts books instead of Dick and Jane, and collected them as they were published. His characters were human and charming and real and relatable, but even as a child Lucy’s narcissistic abuse bothered me, although I could not have told you why at the time. In spite of this, his strip remains one of my favorites to this day. Happy birthday, Charles M. Schulz!
Teresa Burritt (Frog Applause) creator over 1 year ago
Find other tributes here: https://www.dailycartoonist.com/index.php/2022/11/26/comics-salute-to-schulz-a-paean-to-peanuts/ Kindly point out any additional comics that participated but weren’t listed.
Howard'sMyHero over 1 year ago
I was going to complain about that Charlie Brown theme song as being an ear worm … but soon realized it’s NOT …!
( grief good! )
Radish the wordsmith over 1 year ago
Go look at Dick Tracy’s salute to Snoopy, high larious.
6turtle9 over 1 year ago
Good Lame, Grace the Face! I’m enjoying a nice frothy root beer today, in honor of Schulz and my hero, Snoopy.
Mad-ge Dish Soap over 1 year ago
FA is aaas fffs hummmm…
Ohh Facebook it, I know nothing… Hogan’s Heroes,
Schultz
Sisyphos over 1 year ago
The famous zigzag. The immortal chevron. The distinctive Winkelband.
And the unmistakable color scheme, black and yellow.
Gotta be that round-headed kid.
In lamest honor of his creator, whose 100th birthday this would have been!