It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown

It's The Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown!
Also known as	A Charlie Brown Easter
Genre	Animated television special
Created by	Charles M. Schulz
Directed by	Phil Roman
Voices of	Todd Barbee Melanie Kohn Stephen Shea Lynn Mortensen Greg Felton Jimmy Ahrens Linda Ercoli Bill Melendez
Theme music composer	Vince Guaraldi
Opening theme	"Easter Theme"
Ending theme	"Easter Theme"
Composers	Vince Guaraldi John Scott Trotter Johann Sebastian Bach Ludwig van Beethoven
Country of origin	United States
Original language	English
Production
Executive producer	Lee Mendelson
Producer	Bill Melendez
Editors	Chuck McCann Roger Donley
Running time	25:05
Release
Original network	CBS
Picture format	4:3
Audio format	Monaural
First shown in	April 9, 1974
Chronology
Preceded by	It's a Mystery, Charlie Brown (1974)
Followed by	Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown (1975)

It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown! is the 12th prime-time animated TV special based on the comic strip Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz.^[1] In the United States, it debuted on CBS on April 9, 1974 at 8 PM.^[2]

It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown received an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Children's Special at the 27th Primetime Emmy Awards in 1975. It was one of two Peanuts specials nominated that year, along with Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown, but they both lost to Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus (another Bill Melendez production).^[3]

Summary[]

While most of the Peanuts gang is busy getting ready for Easter, Linus futilely tries to convince them that it is all a waste of time, and that the "Easter Beagle" will take care of everything. Only Charlie Brown's sister, Sally, believes him, although she remains skeptical after their Great Pumpkin misadventure on Halloween.

Peppermint Patty and Marcie attempt to color Easter eggs, but as it is Marcie's first time, she does not know how. Their first attempt fails as Marcie fries all the eggs on a griddle (making fried eggs). The second attempt fails when she tries cooking more eggs on a waffle iron (for 4 of the eggs), then in a toaster (for 1 of them, which is unsuccessful because the egg cannot fit in one of the toaster's slots), and baking the remaining 8 (the same egg she tried toasting, and the remaining 7) in the oven. In the third and final attempt, Peppermint Patty spends the last of her allowance on a third carton of eggs. In doing so, Peppermint Patty (after spending the last of her money with the third and final dozen of eggs) explains to Marcie about how the eggs must be cooked. The eggs are to be neither fried, roasted, toasted, nor waffled. They are supposed to be boiled. However, Marcie boils them as told, but does it incorrectly, instead cracking the eggs into her pot of water. This results in egg soup. Peppermint Patty has an outrage then screams to Marcie that she made egg soup. So that final attempt ends in failure. At the end, Peppermint Patty has spent her whole allowance, is out of money, and cannot buy any more eggs. Therefore, she and Marcie end up with no colored eggs and are unable to make any more attempts due to Marcie's ignorance.

Woodstock wakes up shivering in his nest after a cold spring rain. He goes for help to Snoopy, who buys him a birdhouse. At first Woodstock hates it, but soon makes it over into a bachelor pad, complete with television, contemporary artwork, a sunken bed, modern furniture, and a quadrophonic stereo system. Curious to see more of the inside, Snoopy gets his nose stuck in the entry hole and accidentally shatters the birdhouse, and so he buys Woodstock another house.

Much to Schroeder's chagrin, Lucy believes that Easter is the "gift-getting season", so she decides to have her own private Easter egg hunt, painting and then hiding the eggs herself to find them on Easter morning (using a paper pad and pencil to write down their locations). But unknown to her, Snoopy follows close behind and snatches up each one. Easter morning arrives, and so does the Easter Beagle, tossing eggs to everyone including Woodstock in his new birdhouse, to Lucy (whose hand Snoopy furtively shakes), and even Peppermint Patty and Marcie. But by the time he gets to Charlie Brown, Snoopy has run out of eggs, and he gives Charlie Brown an embarrassed smile instead (in addition to his now-empty basket).

At the end, when everyone (except Charlie Brown) has received Easter eggs, Sally (when she and Linus reunite with Lucy), tells Linus that he was right. There is an "Easter beagle". But Lucy responds angrily (saying, "SOME EASTER BEAGLE!"). She reluctantly believes Linus that an Easter beagle exists and angrily says that he gave her an egg that was one of her own eggs (saying, "HE GAVE ME MY OWN EGG!").

When everyone (minus Charlie Brown) has received an Easter egg from the "Easter beagle" (Snoopy), Marcie then asks Peppermint Patty what they should do with their eggs now that they have them. Peppermint Patty instructs Marcie that after you receive the eggs, you put a little salt on the eggs and eat them. Marcie does so (without removing the shell) and says that it tasted terrible which makes Patty face-palm. After the Easter Beagle's visit, Sally becomes a believer. But as for Lucy, she quickly realizes that the Easter Beagle gave her one of her own eggs. Because of that, she is still brooding about it ten weeks later, and Linus suggests that she go and talk about it with Snoopy. She visits Snoopy's doghouse to pick a fight, but Snoopy takes the fight out of her with a disarming kiss on the cheek. Lucy smiles at that because Easter still made her happy. Then she says, "The Easter Beagle!" as the special ends.

Voice cast[]

• Todd Barbee as Charlie Brown
• Melanie Kohn as Lucy van Pelt
• Stephen Shea as Linus van Pelt
• Greg Felton as Schroeder
• Linda Ercoli as Peppermint Patty
• Lynn Mortensen as Sally Brown
• Jimmy Ahrens as Marcie
• Bill Melendez as Snoopy/Woodstock

Production notes[]

Music score[]

The music score for It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown was composed by Vince Guaraldi (except where noted) and conducted and arranged by John Scott Trotter.^[4] The score was recorded by the Vince Guaraldi Trio on February 12, 20, 26 and March 14, 1974, at Wally Heider Studios, featuring Seward McCain (bass) and Eliot Zigmund (drums).^[5]

The song "Snoopy and Woodstock" featured is an uptempo reworking of "Mystery Theme," the primary theme of It's a Mystery, Charlie Brown (1974) which was broadcast two months prior to It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown.^[4]

No official soundtrack for It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown has been released. However, in the mid-2000s, recording session master tapes for seven 1970s-era Peanuts television specials scored by Guaraldi were discovered by his son, David Guaraldi. This resulted in the release of "Snoopy and Woodstock" (aka Cue 4; version 1) and "Kitchen Music" (version 2, aka Cue 19, Take 1)^[6] being released on the compilation album, Vince Guaraldi and the Lost Cues from the Charlie Brown Television Specials, Volume 2 (2008).^[7][6] In addition, a live version of "Woodstock's Pad" (mistitled "Then Came You") was also released in 2008 on Live on the Air from a Vince Guaraldi Trio concert originally recorded on February 6, 1974 (two years to the day before Guaraldi's untimely death).^[7][8]

Voice talent[]

It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown was the last special for Todd Barbee; He would be replaced by Duncan Watson.

Television[]

CBS aired It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown annually during each Easter season from 1974 to 2000.

ABC ran the special annually on ABC from 2001 up to April 11, 2006.^[9] In 2007, the network, without any explanation, did not air the program, but it returned on March 18, 2008, as filler programming against American Idol. The TV special was watched by 6.32 million viewers, in fourth place behind Idol, NCIS and The Biggest Loser, and fifth place if Spanish-language Univision is counted.^[10] ABC didn't air the special in 2011 or 2012, but it aired on Easter Sunday 2013 along with Charlie Brown's All-Stars (1966), watched by 2.56 million people, tied for fourth place behind the end of the NCAA Championship Basketball Game between Duke and Louisville and a rerun of The Voice.^[11][12] The special aired again with Charlie Brown's All-Stars on Easter Sunday in 2014. To date this is the last broadcast airing of the special.

Beginning with the 2021 season, Apple TV+ will hold exclusive rights to the special along with all other Peanuts productions. It was not included among the specials that Apple TV+ must provide for free in short windows surrounding their holidays and thus it will only be available to subscribers.^[13]

Home media[]

It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown was released to DVD twice, first on March 4, 2003 by Paramount Home Entertainment and again on February 19, 2008 on a Remastered Deluxe Edition DVD from Warner Home Video. It was also released in the UK by Firefly Entertainment in 2004, with Life Is a Circus, Charlie Brown.

Earlier home media releases of It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown have, in the past, been available in 1982 on the CED format, on VHS in 1986 and 1988 from Media Home Entertainment and subsidiary Hi-Tops Video, respectively and by Paramount Home Video on March 9, 1994 in a slipcover package and on October 1, 1996 in clamshell packaging.

References[]

External links[]

• It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown at IMDb