For only the second time in 57 years, A Charlie Brown Christmas - the most beloved of all animated Christmas specials - will not air on network television. This groundbreaking special forever changed how networks treated all specials and introduced new and lasting songs, as well as Christmas icons. Historically speaking, however, this special was not without its controversy and has continued to be so in recent years.In 1965, CBS made a bold move to air an animated Christmas special. Although this is common today, at the time, specials were not a thing, at least at CBS. The networks did not want to interrupt their viewers weekly schedules. Three things changed to clear a path for the special. First, in 1964, NBC aired the stop-motion special Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer to positive reviews. Second, CBS made a change of leadership. Lastly, and most importantly, Coca-Cola came on board and wanted to sponsor a family friendly Christmas special. Suddenly, Charles Schulz and his team at CBS had six months to put the show together.Schulz had a couple demands. First, he wanted the TV show to accurately portray his comic strip; and, he insisted it show the true meaning of Christmas. When asked why the Christmas message was so important, he answered, “If we don’t do it, who will?” Just three years earlier, in 1962, the Supreme Court had ruled in Engel v. Vitale that school-led prayer in schools was unconstitutional. In the following years, many religious practices were being removed from public spaces. In this environment, Schulz wanted to stand up for his beliefs.The next issue was the show itself. When CBS first saw it, they thought it was awful. Not only did they think it would bomb, but they worried about killing the Peanuts. Everything seemed wrong. The animation was rough, the music was a jazz soundtrack, there was no laugh track and untrained children were playing the parts which came off unprofessional. As for the story, it was too slow with little to no action, and of course, a two-minute sermon by Linus about the birth of Jesus. Executives in 1965 did not believe American audiences wanted religion in their programs. They considered canceling the special, but Coca-Cola had already given the money and it was listed in the TV guide. Also, Schulz believed in it. CBS decided to go ahead and show the program with the expectation that ...
