The Complete Peanuts Family Album. Andrew Farago

he sets out determined to run a winning team.

      His teammates, however, have a much more lackadaisical

      approach. Each season, they manage to set new records in

      futility. Despite their losing record, Charlie Brown’s love

      of baseball and his friends fill him with a renewed sense

      of optimism every season.

      “

      Z

      ”

      35CHARLIE BROWN

      opposite, bottom: Design by Cameron + Co | above left: Spot

      art from strip – Charles M. Schulz | above right: Peanuts lunch-

      box, manufactured by King Seeley Thermos, c. 1975 – CMSM

      “

      X

      ”

      36

      THE COMPLETE PEANUTS FAMILY ALBUM

      “There’s always something that keeps me home . . . something that

      makes me stay . . . That ol’ supper dish!”

      —Snoopy

      C

      harlie Brown loves Snoopy unconditionally. Snoopy,

      on the other hand, is a complicated, independent

      dog who doesn’t always remember his owner’s name and

      seems to appreciate Charlie Brown’s ability to fill a supper

      dish more than his other qualities. Deep down, he loves his

      faithful owner, even if he won’t openly admit it.

      “Snoopy is a very contradictory character,” observed

      Charles Schulz. “In a way, he’s quite selfish. He likes to

      think of himself as independent, and he has dreams of

      doing great things. Without Charlie Brown he couldn’t

      survive, but Snoopy won’t even give Charlie Brown the

      love and affection he deserves. That’s part of the humor.”

      The boy and his dog

      “

      Z

      ”

      37

      “Having a dog for a friend can make an ordinary life a beautiful life.” —Charlie Brown

      opposite, left: Peanuts, Issue #9, Boom! Studios comic book covers – CSCA | opposite, right: Suppertime, Peanuts Digital Edition – CSCA

      top: Style Guide art, 2011 – CSCA | center: Style Guide art, 2011 – CSCA | bottom left: Peanuts, Issue #1, Boom! Studios comic book cover – CSCA

      | bottom right: LIFE® magazine cover, March 17, 1967 – CMSM

      CHARLIE BROWN

      “

      X

      ”

      38

      THE COMPLETE PEANUTS FAMILY ALBUM

      The Lovable Loser

      “As soon as I get up in the morning, I feel I’m in over my head ” –Charlie Brown

      above left: Style Guide art, 2012 – CSCA | above right: Comic-Con postcard, 2013 – CSCA | opposite: Style Guide art – CSCA

      C

      harlie Brown rarely comes out on top, but he never

      stops trying. When he strikes out with the bases

      loaded in the bottom of the ninth inning, misspells the

      word “beagle” in the spelling bee, and fails to get even

      a single piece of candy when he’s trick-or-treating, we

      can all relate, even if our own failures pale in comparison

      to Charlie Brown’s.

      Charles Schulz drew from personal experience when

      creating tales of Charlie Brown’s comic mishaps, but often

      exaggerated the results. “Charlie Brown is a caricature,”

      he observed. “We all know what it’s like to lose, but

      Charlie Brown keeps losing outrageously. It’s not that

      he’s a loser; he’s really a decent little sort. But nothing

      seems to work out right.”

      “

      X

      ”

      39CHARLIE BROWN

      YOU’RE A GOOD MAN,

      CHARLIE BROWN

      I

      n 1967, the musical comedy

      You’re a Good Man,

      Charlie Brown

      , featuring music and lyrics by

      Clark Gesner, debuted. A loving tribute to

      Peanuts

      ,

      the beloved musical has been performed worldwide

      in venues from New York’s Broadway to London’s

      West End, and remains a popular stage production

      to this day.

      Charles Schulz counted himself among the

      musical’s biggest fans. “[

      You’re a good Man, Charlie

      Brown

      has] become the most performed musical

      in the history of American theatre . . . every school

      and church and high school and grade school and

      kindergarten you can think of has put this thing on

      and it had taken a terrible beating but it survives.

      And, of course, the music is good and it’s not cute.

      That was the main thing. It was incredible that they

      could have made so many mistakes putting it together,

      but everything just fell right into place just right

      and that’s very gratifying. I used to go down to the

      theatre in San Francisco and it was a great pleasure

      to stand out in

      the lobby when

      the show was

      over and seeing

      the families

      coming out

      and everybody

      smiling because

      they had had a

      good time.”

      top: Style guide art –

      CSCA

      | left and

      right: Theater posters

      for You’re a Good Man,

      Charlie Brown, performed

      at