Today I offer an especially awesome treat! Brace yourselves!
Today I offer a solid hour of 1980s Halloween TV greatness. Today I present the 8pm to 9pm programming block from CBS on October 30, 1985. What makes this hour so special? Because it contains two Halloween heavyweights.
The 8 to 8:30pm program is the debut of Garfield's Halloween Adventure! Yes, this is the very first time the special aired. It's becomes highly revered by GenXers and millenials in recent years, so this is a big deal!
But that's not all.
In the 8:30 to 9pm slot--It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown.
I KNOW, RIGHT???
And if that wasn't enough--the hour includes commercials.
HOLY HALLOWEEN!
Sit down in a comfortable chair, take a deep breath, relax and---enjoy!
You can watch this awesomeness embedded below and directly on Dailymotion here.
Hello one and all! This is just a quick note to let you know that Halloween night is only 100 days away! This is my yearly reminder to let you know that the blog is still active and will take part in the Countdown to Halloween 2023! It's my blog's biggest event of the year, and I look forward to scaring you and entertaining you this year.
This Halloween looks to be another great one, with products such as:
Hello! Summer 2021 is in its final throes. Let me make a summer-themed contribution before we go back to school in a couple weeks!
Way back in 1983, McDonald's--the unofficial official restaurant of this blog--released a line of collectible drinking glasses based on the Peanuts characters--Peanuts being the unofficial official comic strip of this blog. More so, the glasses tied in with the then-recent launch of Camp Snoopy, the theme park within a park at Knott's Berry Farm in California. There were five glasses in all, one available per week: Charlie Brown, Linus, Lucy, Snoopy, and Woodstock.
Being both a huge fan of Peanuts and McDonald's, I was thrilled to get these glasses every week. I was also disappointed when every glass we owned broke, usually in the dishwasher. However, my wife managed to find two of the five glasses on Facebook Marketplace recently, the Linus and Snoopy glasses, for the bargain price of $5 for the two of them!
Aren't they beautiful?
Here are a few of the TV commercials promoting the glasses. Enjoy! Have a great rest of the summer!
Hello everyone! It's officially February. The first month of the new year is already in the past. We welcome the new month with the forgotten TV special A Charlie Brown Valentine.
This special, not to be confused with the more famous Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown, features several vignettes starring the Peanuts gang in various instances of unrequited love. This special doesn't have the gravitas that Be My Valentine does, but for a Peanuts fan like me, any holiday Peanuts special is welcome.
Get warmed up for this Sunday's airing of A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving with the soundtrack to the special below. It's Vince Guaraldi at his groovy 70s best. It's a good bit different from the sound of Peanuts specials from the 60s, but I dig it.
Hello everybody! Sorry for the long time posting since the Countdown, but this is such a busy time of year. I'm glad to be back, even if it's to mention an unfortunate development in the world of entertainment.
As you likely know, ABC has lost the broadcast rights to the Peanuts TV specials to the online streaming service Apple TV+. The service is now the exclusive TV distributor of all of the previously created Peanuts TV programs as well as future specials and series. This is the first year since each special's debut broadcast that It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, and A Charlie Brown Christmas will not air on free broadcast TV. Apple will make each of these three specials available to non-subscribers for a three-day window, but other than that, you must be an Apple TV+ subscriber to watch these specials.
Being a huge Peanuts fan in general and of these three specials in particular, I was heartbroken to learn this news. These specials are in fact very special, especially A Charlie Brown Christmas. To me, these specials have such innocence and heart that they should always be available to all people free of charge. I feel they are a right, like single payer healthcare. To lose these specials from broadcast TV so unceremoniously, especially without warning (the announcement was made halfway through October when we all were expecting an air date for Great Pumpkin on ABC), was just, well, crappy.
Having said that, I don't hold as much animosity towards Apple as you might think. In fact, I kind of admire their interest in the franchise. They realize that to be a major player in the streaming world, they need a big name family franchise to be competitive. Disney has their many classic characters, HBO Max has Looney Tunes, and Netflix has Dreamworks Animation properties. Having Peanuts exclusively on their service helps Apple TV+ be an attractive service for families. Apple's interest is a compliment to the Peanuts legacy!
So if there's any silver lining to the loss of Peanuts from broadcast TV, it's that. Plus, the holiday specials are readily available on DVD and Blu-Ray, so it's not like the specials are locked away in some private vault to remain unseen by anyone.
It's just...you know. Different. Weird. Not right.
There's something about being on broadcast TV that makes viewing the specials a communal event. It's a different experience when you know that millions of other families are enjoying the programs the same time you are. Even having the commercials adds to the communal aspect. Yes, the commercials are trying to sell products, but they're also an acknowledgment that millions of homes are watching.
Today is the second of two Peanuts-themed articles this year. This is a compilation of several short Peanuts cartoons created by current Peanuts IP owners Wildbrain Entertainment. The lead cartoon features Snoopy, who develops a fear of the dark after watching a scary movie with Charlie Brown and Linus. Several other characters face their fears in this compilation.
Every year, I always include one article related to Peanuts and Halloween during the Countdown. To help fill the void left by the absence of Great Pumpkin from broadcast television this year, I will be doing two Peanuts-related articles this year. Me, you, and two other people will be the only ones that notice, but I need to do my part!
Today I offer the Great Pumpkin soundtrack. Although this is an official release, the quality is not great, as the soundtrack contains some sound effects from the special, which is unusual for a TV soundtrack. Still, it's lovely music. Please especially enjoy "The Great Pumpkin Waltz," which is one of the most warm and soothing pieces of music I've ever heard. Perfect for fall, perfect for anytime.
Enjoy!
Unless you're an Apple TV+ subscriber, you might want to get yourself a copy of the special as well as the soundtrack.
Tonight is the first of two airings of It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown on ABC this year (8pm/7pm ET/CT), and in blog tradition, I offer a Peanuts-related post. This year, it's a truncated version of a story from the Saturday morning cartoon series The Charlie Brown and Snoopy Show.
In this episode, Linus once again is committed to spending Halloween night in the pumpkin patch to wait for the Great Pumpkin, with Sally once again in tow (what is she thinking?). Charlie Brown and Peppermint Pattie, however, forego trick or treating on Halloween night to take part in a kids bowling tournament (what are they thinking?). When the two plotlines intersect, you'll be bowled over with laughter!
Sorry.
Unfortunately, this YouTube video, recorded by pointing a video camera at a TV screen, only contains a few scenes from the cartoon, but you'll get the gist of the story. Enjoy!
After a couple weeks' break for the holidays, I'm back, at least for this post. Things may be slow this month as I continue to get back into the swing of things, but I will be back full time soon.
Today I offer a brief clip of two of my favorite performers: Dick Van Dyke, and the Peanuts gang. This momentous occasion occurred on the five-night special CBS On The Air, which aired during 1978 for CBS' 50th anniversary. Here, Van Dyke dances with the Peanuts characters similarly to the way he did with the animated characters in Mary Poppins. A cute treat I was happy to find by accident without knowing it existed.
Today I present, later than I usually do in a season, a round of classic Christmas commercials. Some may not understand my fascination with TV commercials, as they are usually something people complain about, but there's something about an old commercial, especially with a Christmas theme, that takes you back to good memories and celebrations just like a TV program can.
Here's hoping this year's showcase does the same for you!
First up, this sweet spot for Burger King from 1976.
Next, a series of promos for various CBS Christmas specials such as Charlie Brown, Rudolph, and 'Twas The Night Before Christmas, among others.
I never thought to sing "Deck The Halls" with the name of M&Ms inserted, but now that's all I can do!
This may be the "hardest sell" Christmas commercial I've ever seen, and I just discovered it days ago. The first Tim Burton Batman film was the hottest selling VHS tape of 1989, and this commercial pulls no punches in emphasizing how urgent a gift this was!
Everyone is still lamenting the loss of Toys R Us this year, and their classic Christmas commercial is one of the all-time greats, but this commercial for the even longer expired toy chain Kiddie City isn't shabby either!
Finally, this last commercial is the most recent of the bunch, being from 2014, but it deserves to be noted as being as wonderful as ringing Hershey's Kisses or Santa sliding on snow on an electric razor. In this Apple Computers commercial, an infamous and lonely figure tries to make peace with the townsfolk by embracing the holidays with them. Things nearly go awry, but the magic of the holidays sets in. What a great commercial!
Tomorrow night marks the first of two nights this month in which ABC will air A Charlie Brown Christmas at 8pm ET/PT; it will also air Thursday, December 20th at 8pm ET/PT. In honor of this most important of pop culture events, here is a brief but informative look behind the scenes at the making of the special.
Put together in only 6 months, it is now, in my humble opinion, the finest half hour of television ever made. Not just out of Christmas programs, but of all TV ever. Don't @ me, as the kids say.
DVR ALERT! Tonight is this season's first showing of It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown at 8pm ET/PT on ABC! It will also air next Friday, October 26th at 8pm ET/PT along with You're Not Elected, Charlie Brown. Watch it both times! Then watch it on DVD! Then replay it in your head!
In honor of the special's airing, I present another Peanuts special that isn't Halloween-related, but it's pretty close. It's Magic, Charlie Brown first aired April 28, 1981, and features Snoopy picking up magic as a new hobby, causing trouble for Charlie Brown. Snoopy turns ol' Chuck invisible and can't change him back! Magic run amok--that's pretty scary!
Warner Bros. Home Video, which currently owns the home video distribution rights to the Peanuts specials, agrees with me. This special is currently featured as a bonus on the latest edition of Great Pumpkin on DVD.
Today I offer an 8-minute medley of some awesome commercials that aired on CBS on October 26, 1984, between the premiere airing of Garfield in the Rough (memories of which escape me) and the Halloween perennial, It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown.
When such specials took over prime time, kids felt special themselves; choice TV real estate normally devoted to adults was now the terrain of kids, and we loved it! Even the commercials were evidence that this was our time. Some great examples here include ones for McDonald's Happy Meals, Frosted Flakes, a fantastic one for Bubble Yum bubble gum (clearly inspired by the video for the Cars song "You Might Think"), and, being just a few days before Halloween, an ad for Paas Halloween Make-Up Kits. This set instantly takes me back.
Speaking of Halloween, I should note that the 2018 Countdown to Halloween starts two weeks from today! Consider this an ever-so-slight teaser for the celebration.
Beaches! Bathing suits! Sunburn! Humidity! Mosquitos! Camping! Ice cream! All this and more await us the next three months!
Welcome to Summer 2018!
Summer is the time of year for children to be out of school, people to take time off from work, and time to crank the A/C way high. The season has some drawbacks, but for the most part, it's a great time of year. Why not celebrate the first day of summer the Me and You way?
First up, the YouTube channel Defunctland does a great job celebrating beloved, and sometimes infamous, tourist attractions and amusement parks of days gone by. Here, Defunctland breaks down the notorious New Jersey water attraction Action Park!
Next up: the trailer to one of my favorite summer-themed movies, Race For Your Life, Charlie Brown. I wrote about the film as a Tuesday's Overlooked Film entry before, so I might as well put that link back up as well.
Back in the 80s and early 90s, Country Time Lemonade advertised their beverage with wistful, laid back commercials meant to evoke sulty, sleepy summer days and nights spent downing glasses of ice cold Country Time. Here is one of the original songs used as background in the commercials. Listening to it does indeed make me feel like sitting on my non-existent porch with Country Time in hand!
Lastly, my unofficial theme song of the first day of summer, "Are You Ready For The Summer" by the kids of the great summertime comedy movie Meatballs!
Have a great and safe Summer 2018, and stay tuned here for more fun in the virtual sun!
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Hello everyone to another great Christmas season at Me and You! I really need this Christmas season, and it couldn't have come at a better time. My body is ready!
First up, my annual collection of Christmas commercials. We start with a fun Christmas commercial from blog stalwart McDonald's. Their gift certificates are great for the Hamburglar in your family!
Not to be outdone, here comes Burger King!
After all that fast food, you may need some Alka-Seltzer to calm things down. Here are two great commercials, one featuring the late Sammy Davis Jr!
Up next, a quick network promo for two of the best animated Christmas specials of all time, A Charlie Brown Christmas and 'Twas The Night Before Christmas!
Speaking of Charlie Brown, here is a commercial from 1991 for Shell Oil which had a promotion with Peanuts that year, selling VHS copies of A Charlie Brown Christmas.
Finally, here is a great local commercial for Ben Franklin's 5 and 10 store promoting their Christmas decorations and novelties. Local commercials such as these may not have the best production values, but they make up for it in charm and warmth. I love it!
I'll feature more commercials in the season if I can. If not, check out my archives from Christmases Past for other great ones.
Thanks, and stay tuned. There's plenty of Christmas cheer on the way!
I've had both my semiannual dental cleaning and oral surgery within the past couple of weeks, and I go back to my dentist this weekend for more work. Needless to say, my teeth have been on my mind a lot lately. Your teeth will be on your mind too after you see today's findings.
Here are two educational short films for children's dental health produced by the same people that created the Peanuts TV specials. In the first, Charlie Brown learns how to properly brush his teeth, and then he learns to floss in the second. Snoopy provides hilarity along the way, as he usually does.
As a huge Peanuts fan, I love finding Peanuts-related material I didn't know about, and these films certainly fit the bill.
With October 31st mere days away, I'm running out of both time and material. So today I just want to give you a few small treats that I think you will enjoy that may not necessarily warrant a blog post unto themselves. Consider these items Halloween hors d’oeuvres to tide you over until the full course of
Halloween night. Let’s get to it!
By the way, I had to Google how to spell “hors d’oeuvres.”
See how much I love you fine folks?
First up: the Muppets’ own Dr. Bunson Honeydew and Beaker go
ghost hunting—with hilarious results!
Next, here is an adorable video about how to greet deaf or hard-of-hearing trick-or-treaters this season!
Here is the recording of the great Vincent Price's voiceover for Michael Jackson's Thirller without the music, plus with extra text that didn't make it into the single. You really get to hear how amazing Price's work is on the song--not that you couldn't tell that with the music. This is further evidence that Vincent Price was the ultimate pro!
You've never heard the theme from Alfred Hitchcock Presents until you've heard it played on the banjo!
Here is a fun TV promo for the much beloved 80s horror series Tales From The Darkside!
Speaking of TV promos, I can't let a Countdown to Halloween season go by without mentioning It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown at least once!
Finally, here is by far the most bizarre and graphic clip I have for you today. This is John Carpenter's The Thing as recreated with characters from the foreign children's program Pingu the penguin. Even if you're not familiar with Pingu--and you probably aren't--you should find this both disturbing and hysterical! VIEWER DISCRETION ADVISED!
WELLLLLLCOOOOOOOOME TO THE COOOOOOOUNTDOOOOOOWN TO HALLLLLLLLLLOWEEEEEEEEN!
Hi.
I am thrilled to take part yet again in this multi-blog event. All month long, I and my Halloween blogging sisters and brothers will give you thrills, chills, spills, and other words that end in "ills." You'll see spooky TV commercials, weird movies, creepy images, and all-around Halloween fun. Maybe even a surprise or two!
Be sure to check out the host site of the event, where you will find dozens of participating blogs! A hearty hallowed thanks to curator John Rozum for organizing this event every year!
I'm getting a late start considering I'm writing this at 7 o'clock at night, but better late than never. Let the Countdown to Halloween officially begin!
Tonight at 8pm ET/PT, ABC airs the Halloween TV special to end all specials, It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown. Of course I'm extremely excited, being a lifelong Peanuts fanatic, but I do wish ABC showed the unedited version. The edited version has awkward cuts and left-out jokes. Fortunately, I have the unedited special on DVD, but I like the communal aspect of watching it live. No matter, The Great Pumpkin is a Halloween must regardless of how you watch it.
Today, I offer you a way to read it, specifically from the comic strip that spawned the special.
Very few if any of the TV specials are comprised of original material; they are almost always adaptations of storylines taken directly from the newspaper comic strip, with just some threadbare wraparound material keeping the story together. This is in no way a criticism, just a statement of how the specials are written.
Here I present some of the comic strips that inspired the TV special. I recommend listening to the beautiful "Great Pumpkin Waltz" by the Vince Guaraldi Trio while you read them to help convey the warmth of the special. Click on the individual strips for greater clarity. Enjoy!
The first ever Great Pumpkin strip! It's not a part of the special, but I had to include it.
This last one isn't part of the special either, but I needed some closure to the story.
Before you go: in other Great Pumpkin-related news, McDonald's is now offering Great Pumpkin Happy Pails in honor of the special's 50th anniversary! Get yours as soon as you can--I know I will!
