A Charlie Brown (And Milo and Binkley) Thanksgiving

It’s tradition around Running and Rambling HQ that when the holidays roll around, we break out the Charlie Brown videos – and more often than not, I embed a clip from one of the holiday specials here.

So it is again this year, in a brilliant 5-minute clip that features classic Vince Guaraldi music, heartfelt gratitude in recognition of the holiday, some of the finest Snoopy moments on film … and Thanksgiving around a ping pong table.

“Thanksgiving Around a Ping-Pong Table” (click to play):

And while we’re on the subject of animation that has greater significance, there’s an old Bloom County strip that’s been on my mind a lot lately.  You’ll have to click to enlarge:

More to follow on this shortly.  In the meantime, Happy Thanksgiving to everyone.  Don’t eat too much popcorn and jellybeans.

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Toast Masters

(Admin note: in case you weren't aware, it's something of a holiday tradition around here to show clips from old Peanuts specials; don't worry, there will be plenty of time for the running and gear stuff later.)

Every year, as my kids and I sit and watch A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, the following scene never fails to crack us up. For all their quirks and foibles, one thing is certain: that Peanuts gang could whip up a mean batch of toast.

It's also inevitable that one of us ultimately says, "One year we need to have toast, popcorn, jellybeans and pretzels for Thanksgiving." We haven't ever followed through on this promise - sort of like how Charlie Brown never quite manages to kick the football - but one of these years we just might surprise ourselves.

Excerpt from A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving (click to play):



Happy Thanksgiving, everyone.






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Giving Thanks

Linus: “We thank God for our homes and our food and our safety in a new land. We thank God for the opportunity to create a new world for freedom and justice."

Peppermint Patty: “Amen.”

- From A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving

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I’m not sure exactly what this says about me, but one of my favorite aspects of the holiday season is watching Charlie Brown cartoons.

More specifically, I’m the member of the family who says “Hey, it’s October 3rd already – why haven’t we watched The Great Pumpkin yet?” As soon as the calendar turns to November, A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving goes into heavy rotation in the DVD player – and once we all wake from our turkey comas on Thanksgiving weekend, one of the first things we do to mark the season is watch A Charlie Brown Christmas (which is still, hands down, the best Christmas special of all time – it’s not even a discussion.)

Predictably, dialogue from the cartoons has become a part our children’s lexicon. Between October and January, the lines fly quickly and frequently: “I got a rock” while trick or treating; “Well … I … uh … “ when talking on the phone; “My grandmother lives in a condominium” when driving to Grandma and Grandpa’s house; “It’s not such a bad little tree …” when strolling through a Christmas tree farm. Add about 30 more lines to the list and you get an idea of how we’ve been passing time around the house lately.

Even more appealing – to me, at least - is how Charles Schulz never lost track of the message amidst the festivities. The cartoonist often referred to Linus as the conscience of the Peanuts strip, and that’s never more apparent than in the Christmas special, when the blanket-clutching philosopher recites Scripture from the Gospel of Luke. (This shouldn’t shock you, but I wrote a whole post about that clip once.)

A similar scene takes place in A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, when Linus reminds us of the origin of the holiday:



Happy Thanksgiving to everyone. If you need us, the kids and I will be enjoying an early meal of pretzels, toast, jellybeans, and popcorn before heading over to Grandma’s house.

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