Sally Dryer

Now, years later, fans can get a behind-the-scenes look at the making of this Christmas favorite. Hosted by comedienne Whoopi Goldberg, this program includes interviews with some of the actors who brought the Peanuts gang to life, and archive footage of the creator himself, Charles Schulz.

Poor Charlie Brown. He can't fly a kite, and he always loses in baseball. Having his faults projected onto a screen by Lucy doesn't help him much either. Against the sage advice and taunting of the girls in his class, he volunteers for the class spelling bee...and wins!

School is out for the summer and Charlie Brown, Linus, Schroeder and Pig Pen are planning to spend it reading every comic book, watching television, practicing ballplay, and classical music, and having clean thoughts. However, Lucy tells them that she signed them up for camp. The girls are eager to go, but the boys hate the idea.(Linus adding that its like finding out that he was drafted.) The boys shove each other to get on the bus, while the girls line up in order. At camp, Charlie Brown is chosen captain of the boys camp. The boys and girls have a swim race which the girls win easily. Then they have a softball game, which the boys lose with only one run. Other competitions are just as lopsided. Afterwards, the boys sit around the campfire and reflect on how miserable they are. In one scene, the colors of the shirts of Schroder and Linus are mixed up during this scene.

When the gang loses patience with Snoopy's mischief, he suddenly finds himself back in obedience training. With a vengeance, Snoopy decides it's time to run away to Peppermint Patty's house, but soon realizes life might not be so bad with Charlie Brown after all.

With the school year coming to a close, Charlie Brown is trying to work up the courage to meet his dream girl, whom he only knows as "The Little Red Haired Girl." However, he's too nervous to go meet her upfront and all his attempts to impress her at school backfire disastrously. His friends, Linus and Peppermint Patty, try to help, but only aggravate the situation, while Charlie Brown desperately tries to find a solution to this romantic conundrum.

This classic "Peanuts" tale focuses on the thumb-sucking, blanket-holding Linus, and his touching faith in the "Great Pumpkin." When Linus discovers that no one else believes in the creature, he sets out to prove that the Pumpkin's no myth—by spending the night alone in a pumpkin patch.

After their humiliating 999th defeat, Charlie Brown's whole baseball team quits on him. All seems lost...until Charlie Brown learns that his team can join the Little League and become an official team with real uniforms! But as the team's enthusiasm sparks, Charlie Brown learns that neither girls nor Snoopy would be allowed to play. Charlie Brown faces the difficult decision of breaking this horrible news to his excited team.

When Charlie Brown complains about the overwhelming materialism that he sees amongst everyone during the Christmas season, Lucy suggests that he become director of the school Christmas pageant. Charlie Brown accepts, but it is a frustrating struggle. When an attempt to restore the proper spirit with a forlorn little fir Christmas tree fails, he needs Linus' help to learn the meaning of Christmas.

This documentary goes behind-the-scenes with Peanuts creator Charles M. Schulz. This film paved the way for the future success of the Peanuts animated television specials, bringing together for the first time Schulz, animator Bill Melendez, producer Lee Mendelson, and composer Vince Guaraldi.