10 things you didn’t know about ‘A Charlie Brown Christmas’

1. The four creators of the Charlie Brown Christmas special were veterans of the U.S. military. 

Charles Schulz, the creator of Charlie Brown and the writer of the script for the Christmas special, was a U.S. Army combat veteran of World War II. The show’s producer, Lee Mendelson, served in the United States Air Force. Vince Guaraldi, who composed the music for the special, was a U.S. Army veteran, as was the program’s director and animator, Bill Melendez. When an interviewer asked Schulz what his proudest accomplishment was, Schulz pointed to a framed military award he kept on his studio wall — his Combat Infantryman’s Badge, which is awarded to infantrymen who have fought in active ground combat. 

2. CBS executives were dismayed when they first screened ‘A Charlie Brown Christmas’  

The executives were shocked by the animation’s poor quality and by the show’s amateur voice talent. They were dismayed by the use of jazz music in a Christmas special and by the absence of a laugh track (something Schulz had refused to insert). The executives were particularly put off by the show’s overt religiosity ("The Bible thing scares us!"). They concluded by pointedly telling Lee Mendelson, the show’s producer, that they would not be ordering any more specials from him or Schulz. 

3. Neil Reagan, President Ronald Reagan’s older brother, played a role in the special’s production.  

In 1965 Neil Reagan, the older brother of Ronald Reagan, was plotting his brother’s first run for political office. Neil was also the West Coast manager of Coca-Cola’s advertising firm. When the TV special was in the pre-production stage, the adman was shown the storyboards for the holiday program and a rough version of the animation.  

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Reagan was aghast at the show’s slow plodding. He told Schulz and Mendelson, the show’s producer, that if he gave his honest opinion of the program to his superiors back in New York City, they would shut down the production immediately. Mendelson pleaded that the show would be much better once it had a soundtrack and when color was added to the animation. Reagan pondered for a long time before responding, "OK, it might cost me my job, but I’m not going to say anything." 

 "A Charlie Brown Christmas" has become an iconic part of every Christmas season. (Photo by ABC Photo Archives/Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty Images)

4. The Peanuts characters were very difficult to animate  

Charles Schulz’s "Peanuts" characters were incredibly difficult to render in animation. They had large round heads, making it difficult to gather them together in a scene without their oversized skulls banging into one another. Their arms couldn’t reach the top of their heads, restricting certain movements, and their short stubby legs made walking look awkward.  

Ironically, the minimalism of Schulz’s drawing also made them more difficult to animate. Because there were so few reference points on their faces, if an eye were a little too far to the left or right, the character would look disfigured.  

5. The special contains many continuity errors  

For example, when Lucy approaches her psychiatric booth it has no snow on it, but when she arrives, she has to wipe away snow before sitting down to consult with Charlie Brown. In the same scene, her sign sometimes says "The Doctor is Real In" while at other times it says "The Doctor is In."  

In a later scene, Charlie Brown’s nose disappears when he is addressing Lucy and discussing the need for a Christmas tree. Also, at times, the sad Christmas tree has three branches, while at other times it has six or more. 

6. In the climactic scene of ‘A Charlie Brown Christmas,’ Linus’s blanket plays a key but little-noticed role 

During the special’s climactic scene, when Linus recites from the Gospel of Luke, he drops his security blanket at the exact moment he utters the words "fear not." The moment is handled subtly, but it is rich with significance, both in the context of the character and the words being spoken.  

Linus had been clinging to the blanket since its introduction into the comic strip on June 1, 1954. The words "fear not" or "be not afraid" are reportedly the most common phrases in the Bible, found 365 times in Scripture. 

7. A Mexican immigrant directed and animated the special

Jose Cuauhtemoc "Bill" Melendez immigrated to Arizona with his mother and siblings as a young boy before relocating to Los Angeles. An excellent student, Melendez mistakenly thought that since he was not a U.S. citizen, he could not attend college at UCLA, so he went to work at a lumberyard.  

His talent for drawing led him to the animation training program at Disney in the 1930s. Melendez was drafted into the Army during World War II where he was sworn in as a U.S. citizen. Melendez first animated the "Peanuts" characters for Ford commercials in the 1950s. He quickly developed a close friendship with Schulz and became the only person Schulz would ever entrust to animate his cartoon characters. 

The cover of Michael Keane's book, "Charlie Brown's Christmas Miracle: The Inspiring, Untold Story of the Making of a Holiday Classic."

8. The Golden Gate Bridge played an important role in the special’s soundtrack

In 1963, Mendelson was working on a documentary about Schulz and was desperately in need of finding music for the show’s soundtrack. While driving across the Golden Gate Bridge and listening to his car’s radio, he heard a captivating tune — "Cast Your Fate to the Wind" by jazz musician Vince Guaraldi.  

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Mendelson reached out to Guaraldi and asked him to compose the music for the documentary. Just a few days later, while Guaraldi himself was driving across the Golden Gate Bridge, inspiration would strike the musician. He rushed home and sat down at his piano and played the tune that had entered his head. The melody became known as "Linus and Lucy" and is the signature song of the Peanuts franchise. 

9. Schulz insisted on keeping Linus’s recitation from Scripture in the special, against objections  

When Schulz proposed having Linus recite from the Gospel of Luke in the Christmas special, he was met with objections by both the producer, Mendelson, and the show’s director, Melendez. "We can’t do this, it’s too religious," said Melendez. Mendelson agreed, arguing that religion didn’t belong in a cartoon.  

Ironically, the minimalism of Schulz’s drawing also made them more difficult to animate. Because there were so few reference points on their faces, if an eye were a little too far to the left or right, the character would look disfigured.  

Schulz’s proposed scene would expose the special to attacks from both religious and non-religious viewers. Churchgoers might object that animating from the Bible and having its sacred verses spoken by cartoon characters was sacrilegious. Those who were less religious might be turned off by what they perceived to be preachy moralizing. Schulz, however, was insistent. "If we don’t do it, who will?" he asked.  

10. Some of the child actors were too young to read their scripts  

Some of the children who were the voice talent for the special, when handed their scripts with their lines of dialogue, stared back at Melendez, the special’s director, in stunned silence. They had not yet learned how to read.  

This necessitated Melendez having to recite the lines to his young talent, and then having each actor repeat the words back. At times, a single word had to be broken down into bite-sized syllables, even for the actors who could read. The end result was that much of the dialogue in the special has an uneven, choppy cadence to it.  

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Michael Keane is the author of "Charlie Brown’s Christmas Miracle: The Inspiring Untold Story of the Making of a Holiday Classic," recently published by Center Street.