My family are not hardcore about most traditions, but there are a few that we still honor for old time's sake, and they usually either involve food, games or watching a movie.
One of our favorite annual family activities is gathering around the TV and watching the iconic It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown every October. Fall just wouldn't be complete without this ritual.
Based on Charles Schulz's PEANUTS comic strip, It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown was the first Halloween special of its kind when it was released on October 27, 1966 on CBS.
The animated film, which centers around the Peanuts gang getting ready to go trick-or-treating and Linus' belief that an imaginary being called "The Great Pumpkin" rises out of the pumpkin patch on Halloween and flies all over the world delivering toys to all good children, was an instant hit just like its predecessor A Charlie Brown Christmas.
It featured nearly everyone from the original cast of the Christmas special and the characters were voiced by children.
Like my family, many households across the United States also hold this yearly tradition dear, which is why ABC has been airing the special every year right around Halloween season.
The network recently announced that the Peanuts classic will have its 52nd run on Thursday, October 18 at 8 p.m. E.T.
If that seems a bit too long of a wait, here's an interesting fact to distract you once you've finished marking your calendar.
If the mysterious "Great Pumpkin" sounds similar to another fictional figure, it is because originally it was about religion.
According to the book Schulz and Peanuts: A Biography, the Halloween special was created to demonstrate the ridiculousness of believing in Santa Claus.
You can also grab a copy of the illustrated It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown from Amazon to tide you over for the next few weeks.
Are you excited to re-watch the classic film?
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