One of the most beloved of these is “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown.”
The 1966 TV special features the “Peanuts” gang enjoying Halloween fun … well, most of them.
What happens comes as a surprise to everyone, especially the delighted audience.
That enraged fans who didn’t want to pay for the privilege of seeing Charlie Brown in action.
ET (viaUSA Today).
Back in the mid-’60s, dime-store charactercostumeslike the Beatles, Flipper, and “The Man From U.N.C.L.E.”
were popular (viaMeTV), despite the fact that the outfits were flimsy and horribly uncomfortable.
(Those plastic masks always pinched around your eyes.)
But homemade costumes like Lucy’s and Pig-Pen’s were just as common.
How many moms today can watch the show without thinking, “Does nobody here worry about kidnappers?”
Lucy, in particular, is given more independence than a typical child her age.
(PerPeanuts Fandom, the older “Peanuts” children are around six or seven.)
She leads the group on their candy rounds and takes charge at Violet’s Halloween party afterward.
No wonder she’s so grouchy all the time all that responsibility takes its toll, you know.
“You owe me restitution!”
Lucy is another character who has the makings of a future lawyer.
A LOT of bullying goes on
Harder to ignore is the cruelty throughout “Great Pumpkin.”
Charlie Brown is the perpetual outcast, and his so-called friends never let him forget it.
(It’s a wonder the poor boy doesn’t suffer permanent spinal cord damage.)
From there, it just goes downhill.
The (unseen) adults are awful, too
Granted, kids can be cruel.
But what the adults do in “Great Pumpkin” is worse.
(Mini-candy bars and allergy-safe alternatives weren’t a thing 50 years ago.)
But what do they give to good ol' Charlie Brown?
Or is every grown-up in this town a sicko determined to make this one child’s life miserable?
Let’s not forget Linus and Lucy’s parents, either.
Did they evertryto set Linus straight on the existence of the Great Pumpkin?
Lucy is the one who finally saves him from hypothermia.
So where were the senior Van Pelts when all this was happening?
Did they drink too many Mummy Martinis at their own Halloween party and pass out on the couch?
Or were they passing around rocks for the neighbors to toss into Charlie Brown’s bag?
The production team finally agreed, and the show became an Emmy-winning classic.
In “Great Pumpkin,” Linus once again acts as the gang’s spiritual anchor.
Despite his friends' teasing, he maintains his trust in a powerful being whom he’s never seen.
(viaSubslike Script).
In the closing scene, we see him declaring, “Just wait till next year, Charlie Brown.
The Great Pumpkin will appear!
And I’ll be waiting for him!
I’ll be there!”
