51 years later, Linus still awaits Great Pumpkin
Show of hands — who has never seen It’s The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown? Hmm. A few of you still haven’t, so I won’t give away any spoilers about the dramatic ending.
In a season full of killer clowns, slasher film reruns and lots of screaming, it’s good to have a family Halloween show you can watch with your kids or grandkids.
It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown aired Oct. 19, but if you missed your annual dose of this Halloween tradition, here’s an encore opportunity to watch it a bit closer to the holiday. Check it out at 7 p.m. today on ABC.
If you want to have the spit scared out of you, there’s It, currently in theaters. Yep, there’s something really creepy about an ancient, shape-shifting evil that comes out of the sewers every 27 years to prey on the kiddies.
Also playing is Happy Death Day and the classic A Nightmare on Elm Street. A Haunting in Salem is showing on local screens, as is The Snowman. There’s nothing like a good ol’ sociopathic killer on the loose to get you in the mood for Halloween on Tuesday.
Maybe, if your taste runs closer to Casper and Beetlejuice than Pennywise, Charlie Brown and the gang will do just fine. The Peanuts TV specials are based on the Charles Schulz comic strip that launched in seven newspapers in 1950 and went on to be a global phenomenon.
It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown premiered Oct. 27, 1966. Having just started college, I probably missed the debut and didn’t mind that much that it pre-empted My Three Sons on CBS.
Being a classic means the special is old-school animation, which can seem delightfully nostalgic for us older folks and charming for the kids. Today’s computer-generated animation can make the characters so real that we don’t need live actors anymore.
The Great Pumpkin was the third Peanuts special following A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965) and Charlie Brown’s All Stars! (June 1966) and earned an Emmy nomination.
A long list of specials followed through the decades, with the most recent being 2010’s Happiness Is a Warm Blanket, Charlie Brown. CBS aired The Great Pumpkin annually through 2000, when ABC picked up the rights.
The reason the special has so long endured could be its timeless themes of raking leaves, picking out a jacko’-lantern, trick-or-treating and, of course, having Lucy pull the football away when Charlie tries to kick it. That never gets old. Also never old is Snoopy fighting the Red Baron, Charlie’s happy dance and bag of rocks, and Linus’ enduring faith in the existence of The Great Pumpkin.
As he’s writing his annual letter, Linus reminds us there are three things he’s learned never to discuss with people — “religion, politics and The Great Pumpkin.”
Sage advice for us all in these days of ubiquitous and divisive social media.
To fill out the hour, tonight’s special is followed by an edited version of You’re Not Elected, Charlie Brown, a 1972 offering (and the 10th Peanuts special) that features Linus running for class president and invoking The Great Pumpkin.
Superior Donuts, 8:30 p.m. Monday on CBS. The sitcom finally returns for a second season and 13 episodes. It completes the new CBS Monday night lineup.
The Big Bang Theory moves to Thursdays this week and is paired with Young Sheldon. That means that starting Monday at 7 p.m., the CBS shows will be 9JKL; Kevin Can Wait; Me, Myself & I; Superior Donuts; and Scorpion.
In case you missed Season 1, Superior Donuts stars Judd Hirsch as grumpy Chicago doughnut shop owner Arthur Przybyszewski who refuses to update his 1969 menu with trendy items popular in the rapidly gentrifying neighborhood.
Fast-talking Franco Wicks (Jermaine Fowler) worms his way into being hired and is working on getting Arthur to modernize.
Among Arthur’s loyal customers is police officer Randy DeLuca, played by Katey Sagal.
Monday’s episode, “What the Truck?,” introduces Diane Guerrero as Sofia, a young upscaler who parks her health-conscious food truck in front of the doughnut shop every day.
Tiny House, Big Living, 8 p.m. Monday on HGTV. Season 7 kicks off with yet another example of extreme downsizing from houses to glorified campers.
For me, it’s always fascinating how they squeeze so much into so little square footage. Our humble home has 40 years worth of junk crammed into every corner. Moving to a tiny house would require renting a huge storage unit to keep our stuff.
American Masters: Edgar Allan Poe, 8 p.m. Monday on AETN. Check today’s TV Week insert cover story for details.