Lessons from A Charlie Brown Christmas
Posted on : 11-30-2009 | By : Og | In : Art, Artists
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I’m starting to feel like if a Suit tells you not to do something, that’s a sure sign you SHOULD do whatever it is. Just do the opposite, and you’ll be fine.
At Ken Levine’s blog today is the story of the Charlie Brown Christmas special. Did you know at first CBS hated this thing? They thought the jazz score was inappropriate for children. They thought the whole thing was too depressing, and just WHAT was that bit about Linus and all the Jesus stuff!? In a CHRISTMAS SPECIAL?
Somehow it got on the air and was a HIT. It played year after year – with CBS taking credit for this great piece of holiday entertainment, of course - and CBS learned a very important lesson that they immediately forgot: that the executives don’t always know everything.
Maybe you can learn from this lesson, eh? Next time a suit gives you notes you disagree with, think of John Allen and Bill Meléndez. Somebody has to stick to their guns. What better time than when you’re right?
There’s so much that’s amazing about this special. They had to whip up the presentation in less than a week! Melendez heard from Coca-Cola on a Wednesday and they had to be in Atlanta with a presentation on Monday!
They had no idea how to animate these characters, they had to figure it out. And after it was accepted, I think they had 6 months to produce it.
The network also hated the fact that real children’s voices were used. And what a hit.
It’s a great story all around about perseverance and doing what you think is best. People who know me know I’m nuts for Peanuts and this special is like my favorite thing in the whole world.
I highly recommend “A Charlie Brown Christmas – The Making of a Tradition” by Lee Mendelson with reminiscences by Bill Melendez if anyone is interested in the full story.
I’m not sure this ever made it to germany
Some other films did and they just been huge…i still miss the peanuts on tv , the series and features were awesome. Nowadays i think they aren’t aired anymore because of pacing and the philosophical quality it had…
as i write the wonderful piano tune they had plays in my head!
Y’know I only just learned the story behind the name “Peanuts”? Shultz was gonna call it “li’l folk” but one of the sindicate directors suggested “peanuts” because he called his daughter “peanut” and that, according to him, was what everyone called their kids. Shultz didn’t get it… but submitted to the name change.
At least that’s the story I heard…