Perhaps it was through the Sunday comics — or through a holiday special on TV — that you were first introduced to Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Linus, and Lucy. These great cartoon characters that have at one point or another touched the lives of every American, young and old alike, were the creation of artist Charles “Sparky†Schulz.
Born Charles Monroe Schulz, he moved his readers for 50 years with his Peanuts comic strip. Through his lovable characters, Schulz explored the emotional territory of friendship, disappointment, and faith. “Comic strips are an art form: a means of expressing an idea of great truth in an abbreviated space,†Schulz noted in 1985.
“Speak Softly and Carry a Beagle: The Art of Charles Schulz†celebrates the cartoonist’s life, creative process, and artistic focus. The show opened its national tour at the Norman Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge on Nov. 3, and will run through to May 5. After May 5, the exhibit will move on to the Appleton Museum of Art, in Florida on June 14.
“We are pleased to present our visitors with the opportunity to experience the art of Charles Schulz, [a] beloved American artist who had a deep and lasting influence on the way we saw ourselves in the 20th century,†stated Laurie Moffatt, director of the Norman Rockwell Museum.
The exhibition follows Schulz from his Minnesota roots to his life in California and tracks the development of his Peanuts characters. More than 40 original drawings, quotes from Schulz, a time line of his life, and selected Peanuts collectibles are on display. The exhibit also includes a viewing area for related videotapes, a reading area for children, and a series of original works placed at a child’s eye level to promote easier viewing.
“With intelligence, honesty, and wonderfully expressive artwork, Charles Schulz gave the comics a unique world of humor, fantasy, warmth, and pain,†wrote Bill Watterson, creator of Calvin and Hobbes, in 1989.
At the Nov. 3 opening, guest speaker Jan Eliot, creator of Stone Soup, called Peanuts “deep and poignant; as original and unique as its creator.â€
For 50 years, Schulz wrote and drew each Peanuts strip that appeared in daily and Sunday newspapers. From comic strip’s beginning in 1950, when it first appeared in seven newspapers, Peanuts’ popularity and influence rapidly grew. By year 2000, the strip had appeared in more than 40 languages, 2,600 newspapers, with over 355 million readers in 75 countries. In total, Schulz produced 17,897 Peanuts strips.
The comic strip was also the inspiration for over 40 television specials. While Schulz wrote and drew all of the Peanuts strips that appeared in newspapers, Eliot said that “I think the only work he hadn’t done the artwork for was the animation. [However], Sparky wrote all the stories for the animation.â€
Ruth Gardner-Begell, director of the Charles M. Schulz Museum, who also spoke at the opening, added that “some of the earlier storybooks†art was drawn by other artists.
In addition, Peanuts was also the motivation behind two plays, a symphonic concerto, books, and other licensed products. Peanuts products became a $1-billion-a-year worldwide industry for United Features. Schulz became the highest paid and most widely read cartoonist ever, and, per Gardner-Begell, showed his generosity and philanthropy through “donations to a multitude of charitable organizations.â€
Schulz officially retired in December 1999. On Feb. 12, 2000 at age 77, just hours before the final Peanuts comic strip appeared in Sunday newspapers around the world, Schulz died at his home in Santa Rosa, Calif.
Following his death, tributes ran in papers across the country and in cities around the world, including one from President Bill Clinton in USA Today: “The hopeful and hapless Charlie Brown, the joyful Snoopy, the soulful Linus, even crabby Lucy, give voice, day after day, to what makes us human.â€
Many educational programs and events for students, children and families, and adults will be held at the Norman Rockwell Museum in conjunction with the exhibition including a juried national invitational exhibition entitled “New Digs for the Dog: Build a Better Doghouse for Snoopy.†The three-dimensional works of art encouraged by this exhibition will expand upon Snoopy’s original doghouse design and will be on display at the Norman Rockwell Museum from April 6 to May 5 of next year.
“Speak Softly and Carry a Beagle: The Art of Charles Schulz†is organized by the Minnesota Museum of American Art in Saint Paul, Minn., and the Charles M. Schulz Museum in Santa Rosa, Calif. The national tour of the exhibit is sponsored by Hallmark and is also supported by The Community Foundation for the Capital Region’s Pamela Deely Van De Loo Advised Fund.
The Norman Rockwell Museum is open daily year-round. For more information, call 298-4100 or visit www.nrm.org.
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Windsor Man Promoted to Major in National Guard
WINDSOR, Mass. — Corbin Lounsbury of Windsor was recently promoted to major in the New York Army National Guard.
Major Gen. Ray Shields, the adjutant general for the state of New York, announced the recent promotion of members of the New York Army National Guard in recognition of their capability for additional responsibility and leadership.
Lounsbury, assigned to Cyber Protection Team 173, received a promotion Sept. 5 to the rank of major.
Army National Guard promotions are based on a soldier's overall performance, demonstrated leadership abilities, professionalism, and future development potential. These promotions recognize the best-qualified soldiers for a career in the New York Army National Guard.
There are 20,000 members in New York's Army, Air National Guard, the Naval Militia, and the New York Guard. They are managed by the New York State Division of Military and Naval Affairs, the state's executive agency responsible to the governor.
Guardsmen and women are eligible for monthly pay, educational benefits, international travel, technical and leadership training, health and dental insurance, and contributions towards retirement programs similar to a 401(k).
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