You can celebrate the arrival of 2012 by watching Happy New Year, Charlie Brown together with She's a Good Skate, Charlie Brown streaming over the Internet from either hulu.com or ABC.com.
Update: Happy New Year, Charlie Brown is no longer available on Hulu this January (2012). Check back next January...
December 30, 2011
December 28, 2011
Reminder: Happy New Year, Charlie Brown Airs Thursday Dec 29 on ABC
It's the last Peanuts holiday specials of the season: Happy New Year, Charlie Brown, followed by slightly shortened version of She's a Good Skate, Charlie Brown will be broadcast Thursday, December 29, 2011 from 8 - 9 PM (Eastern/Pacific) on ABC.
December 27, 2011
Happiness Is... Peanuts: Friends Forever DVD Now Available
Like the previous "Happiness is... Peanuts" DVD releases, the Friends Forever DVD contains one prime-time Peanuts TV special and one episode of the Saturday morning cartoon show, The Charlie Brown and Snoopy Show.
The Charlie Brown and Snoopy Show episode is Lucy Loves Schroeder, featuring the following short sketches:
- "Kite-Eating Tree" - Charlie Brown goes to Lucy's psychiatry booth for advice on fighting the kite-eating tree.
- "Sally" - Snoopy pretends to be the World War I Flying Ace and steals important enemy papers - that is, Sally's report for school.
- "Camp" - Charlie Brown gets sent home from camp for being a trouble-maker.
- "Lucy Loves Schroeder" - Lucy bugs Schroeder at the piano, including taking the piano and putting it in the washer and dryer.
- "Scared Snoopy" - Snoopy refuses to pay his psychiatry bill after consulting Lucy about noises he's been hearing at night.
The Charlie Brown and Snoopy Show: Lucy Loves Schroeder has never been released on DVD in the United States before.
Unfortunately, the prime-time special is 1967's You're in Love, Charlie Brown, which has already been released by Warner Home Video on DVD... twice. It already appears on the Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown Deluxe Edition DVD and the Peanuts 1960's Collection DVDs box set.
Unfortunately, the prime-time special is 1967's You're in Love, Charlie Brown, which has already been released by Warner Home Video on DVD... twice. It already appears on the Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown Deluxe Edition DVD and the Peanuts 1960's Collection DVDs box set.
So purchasers should be aware that they may well already own one of the two shows on this DVD, and should judge accordingly whether the new DVD is worth purchasing.
The DVD contains no bonus features, has a total running time of 47 minutes, and has a suggested retail price of $14.97.
December 21, 2011
Reminder: I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown airs again Thursday Dec 22 on ABC
In case you missed it the first time (or just want to enjoy it again), I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown will be broadcast again on Thursday, December 22, 2011 from 9 - 10 PM (Eastern/Pacific) on ABC.
(Yes, the odd, late broadcast time of 9 - 10 PM Eastern/Pacific is correct.)
(Yes, the odd, late broadcast time of 9 - 10 PM Eastern/Pacific is correct.)
December 20, 2011
Snoopy guest stars in Mariah Carey's "When Christmas Comes" video
"When Christmas Comes," Mariah Carey's video for a song from her new holiday album, Merry Christmas II You, features an unusual guest star... Snoopy. The video also includes short clips from A Charlie Brown Christmas, even though the song doesn't seem to have anything to do with the classic Peanuts TV special. You can see the video on YouTube:
(Snoopy appears from approximately 1:25 through 2:00 of the video.)
Mariah's new album does include a cover version of Vince Guaraldi's song "Christmas Time is Here" (although the track is titled "Charlie Brown Christmas"), but somehow Snoopy ended up in this video instead...!
December 15, 2011
Reminder: Happiness is a Warm Blanket, Charlie Brown airs Friday Dec 16 on FOX
The newest Peanuts animated special, Happiness is a Warm Blanket, Charlie Brown, is being shown again Friday, December 16, 2011 on FOX from 8 - 9 PM (Eastern/Pacific). If you missed it when it was shown Thanksgiving evening, now's your chance to watch it!
Speaking of Happiness is a Warm Blanket... over the past few months, the Peanuts folks made some very amusing YouTube videos to promote the special - if you haven't seen them already, they're definitely worth checking out:
Department of Security Public Service Announcement
Security Blanket Infomercial
Happiness is a Warm Blanket, Charlie Brown "Art House" Trailer
Speaking of Happiness is a Warm Blanket... over the past few months, the Peanuts folks made some very amusing YouTube videos to promote the special - if you haven't seen them already, they're definitely worth checking out:
Department of Security Public Service Announcement
Security Blanket Infomercial
Happiness is a Warm Blanket, Charlie Brown "Art House" Trailer
Reminder: Unedited A Charlie Brown Christmas on TV Thursday Dec 15
The complete, unedited A Charlie Brown Christmas airs Thursday December 15, 2011, from 8-9 PM on ABC (Eastern/Pacific). It will be accompanied by Charlie Brown's Christmas Tales and a Prep & Landing short.
Watch I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown online on Hulu or ABC.com
December 13, 2011
A Vince Guaraldi Christmas, Live at the Middletree album from The Ornaments
This year, in addition to their continuing concerts, they've released an album titled A Vince Guaraldi Christmas, Live at the Middletree, featuring nine tracks of their interpretations of the classic holiday tunes.
A Vince Guaraldi Christmas, Live at the Middletree is available on CD from CDBaby or as a download from iTunes. For more information about the album and The Ornaments, visit The Ornaments' Facebook page or read this article from ArtNow Nashville.
We here at FiveCentsPlease.org haven't heard the album yet (although we do plan to check it out), but we wanted to let you know about it before the holiday season ended.
December 11, 2011
Reminder: I Want a Dog For Christmas, Charlie Brown airs Monday, December 12 on ABC
ABC will broadcast I Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown on Monday, December 12, 2011 from 8 - 9 PM (Eastern/Pacific).
If that broadcast time isn't convenient, the special will air again on December 22.
If that broadcast time isn't convenient, the special will air again on December 22.
December 8, 2011
Watch A Charlie Brown Christmas online on Hulu or ABC.com
You can now watch the complete, unedited A Charlie Brown Christmas together with Charlie Brown's Christmas Tales streaming over the Internet from either hulu.com or ABC.com .
(Yes, even though ABC's December 5 broadcast of A Charlie Brown Christmas on TV was edited, the online streaming version of the show is complete. The unedited special will be broadcast on TV on December 15.)
Update: A Charlie Brown Christmas is no longer available on Hulu this year (2011). Check back next December...
(Yes, even though ABC's December 5 broadcast of A Charlie Brown Christmas on TV was edited, the online streaming version of the show is complete. The unedited special will be broadcast on TV on December 15.)
Update: A Charlie Brown Christmas is no longer available on Hulu this year (2011). Check back next December...
December 7, 2011
Update adds new scenes to A Charlie Brown Christmas app
Loud Crow Interactive has released a free "director's cut" update for their popular A Charlie Brown Christmas interactive digital storybook app for the iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch. The update adds 4 new scenes from the classic TV special that weren't included in the original release of the app, including the gang trying to catch snowflakes on their tongues and Sally's Christmas list.
You can see more screenshots of the new scenes on Loud Crow's Facebook page. To get the "director's cut," download the newest update of the app from the App Store (the update is free if you've already purchased the app), run the app, and click the "Visit Store" button inside the book cover to get the free in-app update.
The app update also offers new ornament theme packs that you can purchase to add more variety when decorating the Christmas tree inside the app, and various bugfixes. Currently the update and director's cut is only available for the iPad and iPhone version of the apps.
Loud Crow also announced a "12 days of A Charlie Brown Christmas" promotion, which is "an in-app scavenger hunt for your chance to win an iPad 2 loaded with Loud Crow apps." Starting December 13, you can search the app for a special ornament each day for your chance to win. For more details, visit the Loud Crow Interactive website or Facebook page.
The A Charlie Brown Christmas interactive storybook app costs $6.99 and can be purchased from the Apple App Store . For more information about the app, see our previous blog post or Loud Crow Interactive's website.
You can see more screenshots of the new scenes on Loud Crow's Facebook page. To get the "director's cut," download the newest update of the app from the App Store (the update is free if you've already purchased the app), run the app, and click the "Visit Store" button inside the book cover to get the free in-app update.
The app update also offers new ornament theme packs that you can purchase to add more variety when decorating the Christmas tree inside the app, and various bugfixes. Currently the update and director's cut is only available for the iPad and iPhone version of the apps.
Loud Crow also announced a "12 days of A Charlie Brown Christmas" promotion, which is "an in-app scavenger hunt for your chance to win an iPad 2 loaded with Loud Crow apps." Starting December 13, you can search the app for a special ornament each day for your chance to win. For more details, visit the Loud Crow Interactive website or Facebook page.
The A Charlie Brown Christmas interactive storybook app costs $6.99 and can be purchased from the Apple App Store . For more information about the app, see our previous blog post or Loud Crow Interactive's website.
December 6, 2011
A Charlie Brown Christmas articles in the Washington Post
The Washington Post's website published two timely articles about A Charlie Brown Christmas in the past couple of days.
The first, "‘A CHARLIE BROWN CHRISTMAS’: The gospel truth behind how a humble ‘Peanuts’ holiday classic defied the odds", the story of how the TV special came to be, was actually published in the Washington Post last year. But the article's worth reading if you haven't already, and the Post says there are "several new additions to the story" in this year's version.
The second, and less serious, article is "Shermy in ‘A Charlie Brown Christmas’: A tribute to an unsung holiday pop culture hero." As you might guess from the title, it focuses on one of the less famous Peanuts characters in the holiday classic.
The first, "‘A CHARLIE BROWN CHRISTMAS’: The gospel truth behind how a humble ‘Peanuts’ holiday classic defied the odds", the story of how the TV special came to be, was actually published in the Washington Post last year. But the article's worth reading if you haven't already, and the Post says there are "several new additions to the story" in this year's version.
The second, and less serious, article is "Shermy in ‘A Charlie Brown Christmas’: A tribute to an unsung holiday pop culture hero." As you might guess from the title, it focuses on one of the less famous Peanuts characters in the holiday classic.
December 4, 2011
Reminder: A Charlie Brown Christmas (short version) airs Monday, December 5 on ABC
A Charlie Brown Christmas will be broadcast Monday, December 5 from 8:00 - 8:30 PM (Eastern/Pacific) on ABC.
However, this will be a shortened version with several minutes removed because more commercials are shown per half-hour than in 1965.
However, this will be a shortened version with several minutes removed because more commercials are shown per half-hour than in 1965.
If you want to see the complete unedited special, tune into ABC on Thursday December 15 from 8-9 PM instead.