A Boy Named Charlie Brown facts for kids
Quick facts for kids A Boy Named Charlie Brown |
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Theatrical release poster
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| Directed by | Bill Melendez |
| Produced by | Lee Mendelson |
| Written by | Charles M. Schulz |
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| Distributed by | National General Pictures |
| Release date(s) | December 4, 1969 |
| Running time | 79 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $1.1 million |
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A Boy Named Charlie Brown is an animated musical comedy-drama film from 1969. It was the very first movie based on the popular Peanuts comic strip by Charles M. Schulz.
The film was directed by Bill Melendez and produced by Cinema Center Films. It was a big hit, earning $12 million at the box office. This movie was also the last time Peter Robbins voiced the character of Charlie Brown. He had voiced Charlie Brown in all the TV specials before this film.
Contents
What Happens in the Movie?
When Charlie Brown's baseball team loses their first game, he feels like a total loser. His friend Linus tries to cheer him up. Linus says people learn more from losing.
But Charlie Brown is still sad. He says that makes him "the smartest person in the world." Linus then beats Charlie Brown at tic-tac-toe, which doesn't help!
That night, Snoopy has a wild dream. He imagines himself as a World War I flying ace. He even takes over Charlie Brown's bed, making Charlie Brown wonder why he can't have a normal dog.
The next morning, Charlie Brown visits Lucy's psychiatric booth. She shows him slides of all his faults. This just makes him feel even worse.
Charlie Brown's Big Chance
On the way to school, Lucy jokingly suggests Charlie Brown enter the school spelling bee. Linus thinks it's a great idea. He encourages Charlie Brown, even though Lucy and other kids like Violet and Patty make fun of him.
Charlie Brown is very nervous. But he surprises everyone by winning his class spelling bee. He spells "insecure," a word he feels describes him.
As Charlie Brown gets ready for the school championship, he and Linus sing a spelling song. Snoopy plays along on a Jew's harp. The next day, Charlie Brown almost freezes when he has to spell "perceive." But Snoopy's music outside helps him remember.
Charlie Brown wins the school championship! All the kids follow him home, singing "Champion Charlie Brown." Lucy even says she's his agent.
The National Spelling Bee
His friends tell him he has to go to the National Spelling Bee in New York City. Charlie Brown gets nervous again. As he leaves, Linus gives him his special blanket for good luck.
Back home, Linus really misses his blanket. He asks Snoopy to go to New York City to get it back. They find Charlie Brown in his hotel room. He doesn't know where the blanket is.
Linus searches the New York Public Library. Meanwhile, Snoopy does a fun ice-skating dance. Linus and Snoopy find each other and return to Charlie Brown. They find him using the blanket to shine his shoes!
Linus and Snoopy watch Charlie Brown compete in the spelling bee. The other kids watch on TV at home. One by one, other kids are eliminated. Only Charlie Brown and one other boy are left.
Charlie Brown spells many words correctly. But then he accidentally spells "beagle" wrong. He spells it B–E–A–G–E–L. He is eliminated.
Coming Home
Charlie Brown is very sad as he travels home with Linus and Snoopy. No one is there to greet them. The next day, Sally tells Linus that Charlie Brown has been in his room all day.
Linus tells Charlie Brown that everyone missed him at school. He also says the baseball team finally won a game. But Charlie Brown says he will never go back to school.
As Linus leaves, he points out that the world didn't end because Charlie Brown failed. Charlie Brown thinks about this. He gets dressed and goes outside. He sees the other kids playing. He spots Lucy with a football, the same one he always fails to kick. He tries to kick it, but she pulls it away, as always. Lucy welcomes him home.
Who Are the Voices?
Here are some of the main actors who voiced the characters in the film:
- Peter Robbins as Charlie Brown
- Pamelyn Ferdin as Lucy van Pelt
- Glenn Gilger as Linus van Pelt
- Andy Pforsich as Schroeder
- Sally Dryer as Patty
- Bill Melendez as Snoopy
- Anne Altieri as Violet
- Erin Sullivan as Sally Brown
- Lynda Mendelson as Frieda
- Christopher DeFaria as Pig-Pen
Other characters like Shermy and Peppermint Patty appear in the film but do not have speaking roles.
The Music of the Film
A Boy Named Charlie Brown was special because it included original songs with singing. Before this movie, most Peanuts music was just instrumental. Songs like "Failure Face," "I Before E," and "Champion Charlie Brown" were new.
Rod McKuen wrote and sang the main title song. He also wrote "Failure Face" and "Champion Charlie Brown."
The background music was composed by Vince Guaraldi. He created the jazz tunes heard in many Peanuts TV specials. For the movie, his music was given a bigger, more "theatrical" sound. John Scott Trotter helped arrange these songs. He also wrote "I Before E."
Some familiar tunes from earlier specials were used, like "Skating" and "Baseball Theme." The filmmakers wanted a "big screen music" feel. So, they added more instruments to Vince Guaraldi's jazz.
For the second Peanuts movie, Snoopy Come Home, different composers were used.
During the ice-skating scene, American figure skater Skippy Baxter helped create the movements. In a scene where Schroeder plays Beethoven's Sonata Pathétique, Ingolf Dahl played the piano.
Snoopy also plays a Jew's harp in the film to help Charlie Brown spell. In the French version of the movie, the title song is sung by Serge Gainsbourg.
Two soundtrack albums have been released for the film. One in 1970 had dialogue from the movie. A full music version was released on CD in 2017.
How the Film Looks
A Boy Named Charlie Brown was directed and produced by the same team as the TV specials. But it had many unique visual styles.
For example, in Snoopy's ice-skating scene, you can see faint outlines of real hockey players. This technique is called rotoscoping. Some backgrounds have a pop art style, which was popular in the 1960s. This is seen in the "The Star-Spangled Banner" sequence. The scene where Schroeder plays piano has a dream-like quality, similar to Disney's Fantasia.
Many backgrounds are painted with watercolors or drawn with simple lines. Sometimes, colors change suddenly and wildly, like in Snoopy's "Red Baron" dream. These different art styles made the movie visually exciting.
Awards and Nominations
The film was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Song Score. However, it lost to The Beatles' movie Let It Be.
