Donna Johnson
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Donna Mae Johnson is the maiden name of Donna Wold, who was Charles M. Schulz's inspiration for the character "the Little Red-Haired Girl," Charlie Brown's crush in the "Peanuts" comic strip. Co-workers at an art correspondence school in the late-1940s, Johnson was supposedly engaged to Schulz at one point, but ended up choosing another suitor, whom she married. Despite this, Schulz and Wold remained lifelong friends.
A photo of Johnson with Schulz, along with the only known drawing Schulz did of the little red-haired girl can be found in the 2003 book Peanuts: the Art of Charles M. Schulz, published by Patheon Books. It was drawn long before the Little Red-Haired Girl was mentioned in "Peanuts". The girl in the drawing strongly resembles Patty, a character who was prominent in the early days of the strip.
"I'd like to see Charlie Brown kick that football, and if he gets the little red-haired girl, that's fine with me", Donna Wold said around the time Schulz announced his retirement in 1999.
