A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving

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'A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving'
Directed by Bill Melendez
Phil Roman
Produced by Bill Melendez
Lee Mendelson
Written by Charles M. Schulz
Starring Bill Melendez (Snoopy & Woodstock)
Todd Barbee (Charlie Brown)
Stephen Shea (Linus)
Hilary Momberger (Sally)
Robin Kohn (Lucy)
Christopher DeFaria (Peppermint Patty)
James Ahrens (Marcie)
Robin Reed (Franklin)
("Little Birdie" sung by Vince Guaraldi)
Music by Vince Guaraldi
Distributed by CBS
Release date(s) 20 November 1973
Running time 30 min.
Language English
IMDb profile

A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving is one of many prime-time animated TV specials based upon the popular comic strip Peanuts, by Charles M. Schulz. It was originally aired on the CBS network in 1973, and won an Emmy Award the following year. As of 2007, the special is aired every November in prime time on the ABC network.

Contents

[edit] Summary

The special opens with Lucy taunting Charlie Brown, holding a football for him to kick off the fall football season. Wishy-washy Charlie Brown is talked into it (like always), and once again Lucy pulls the ball away, sending Charlie Brown sprawling and landing flat on his back. (this is the only time Lucy appears in this special)

Charlie Brown and Sally are preparing to go to their grandmother's place for Thanksgiving dinner when Charlie Brown gets a phone call from Peppermint Patty who invites herself over to Charlie Brown's house for the holiday dinner. Two quick subsequent phone calls add Marcie and Franklin to the guest list, and since Charlie Brown can't get a word in edgewise with Patty, he quickly finds himself in a quandary with no easy solution -- at least not until Linus shows up.

Linus suggests to Charlie Brown that he could have two dinners: the first one for Patty and her friends, and then the second one at his grandmother's home, forcing Charlie Brown to admit that all he knows how to make is "cold cereal and maybe toast." Regardless, Linus recruits Snoopy and Woodstock to set up a ping-pong table and chairs in the backyard (setting the table has its own problems as Snoopy goes toe-to-toe with an uncooperative folding chaise longue). Snoopy and Woodstock set the table, then go to help Charlie Brown and Linus with the food. When the food is readied, Snoopy and a defiant Woodstock go to Snoopy's doghouse and dress in pilgrim clothing, which catches Charlie Brown somewhat off-guard.

The guests arrive, and they all make their way to the backyard for the "feast". Linus leads the group in prayer, and Snoopy serves up the food:

Each person gets:

  • Two slices of buttered toast (though Peppermint Patty mentions only one)
  • Some pretzel sticks,
  • A handful of popcorn, and
  • A few jelly beans.

At first Patty is shocked, but her shock quickly turns to outrage, and she angrily berates Charlie Brown for the "meal". Embarrassed and dejected, Charlie Brown timidly leaves the table and goes back into the house. Patty's tirade continues until Marcie gently reminds her that Charlie Brown didn't invite her to dinner; she invited herself -- along with Marcie and Franklin. Realizing Marcie is right, Patty comes to her senses and begs Marcie to go and apologize to Charlie Brown on her behalf. Marcie reluctantly does so, but Patty soon follows her and apologizes to Charlie Brown herself.

In the midst of the quasi-feast, Charlie Brown loses track of the time -- he and Sally are supposed to be at their grandmother's home for dinner in half an hour. So he calls his grandmother to tell her that they're going to be a little late and to explain the situation -- that he has friends over and none of them have eaten yet. But his grandmother (voiced only by "tromboning", the specials' trademark muted trombone) suggests that he bring all his friends with him for Thanksgiving dinner; the idea is welcomed with cheers from everyone.

After Charlie Brown and the gang (sans Lucy) leave, Snoopy and Woodstock go to the doghouse and cook up their own traditional Thanksgiving meal complete with all the trimmings (they pull apart the wishbone, with Woodstock getting the bigger piece). Over the end credits the two friends each devour dessert -- a large piece of pumpkin pie, and then sit back patting their respective stomachs.

[edit] Quotes

[en route to Grandma's, the gang sing "Over The River & Through The Woods (To Grandmother's House We Go)". At the end of the song Charlie Brown says:]

Charlie Brown: Well, there's only one thing wrong with that.
Linus: What's that, Charlie Brown?
Charlie Brown: My grandmother lives in a condominium.

[edit] Censorship

  • To make room for their long commercial breaks during modern airings, ABC made cuts to two scenes:
    • Snoopy and Woodstock go into Snoopy's doghouse to dress up as pilgrims, and when Woodstock walks away, Snoopy stretches out his arm cartoon style, and scolds Woodstock. Then, both go to the door and Snoopy knocks on it with his foot ("hand").
    • In the scene where Marcie apologizes to Charlie Brown on Patty's behalf, the pendulum on the grandfather clock in the background is permanently stuck to the right, and moments later stuck to the left.
  • The scene in the end credits where Snoopy and Woodstock are eating turkey is cut in later airings, going straight to them eating pumpkin pie during the end credits.

[edit] Links


Preceded by
“There's No Time for Love, Charlie Brown”		 Peanuts television specials Followed by
“It's a Mystery, Charlie Brown”
v • d • e
Peanuts television specials
1960s
1970s
1980s
1990s
2000s