Credit: Apple TVAn iconic episode featuring Charlie Brown has officially been addressed, according to the latest trailer from Apple TV.
The Peanuts is a beloved American comic strip created by Charles M. Schulz that made its debut in 1950 and ran for nearly 50 years. This endearing series revolves around the lives of iconic characters like Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Lucy, Linus, and many others. Set in a suburban neighborhood, the strip humorously explores the trials and tribulations of childhood, touching on themes of friendship, love, and the enduring pursuit of happiness.
Though the cartoons were, perhaps, at their highest level of popularity in the 1960s and 1970s, they continue to live on today. A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965), It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown (1966), and A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving (1973) are among the animated specials that brought these characters to life on television and have become timeless classics.
Now, nearly more than 50 years later, Apple TV officially addressed a scene from the 1973 Thanksgiving special that stirred some controversy a few years ago, including thousands of remarks from social media users who accused the episode of racism.
In the latest trailer released by Apple TV, it was unveiled that Franklin will be getting his own TV special titled Welcome Home, Franklin.
At the end of the trailer, there is a scene that depicts a different scenario from that in the 1973 special. The scene shows Franklin being invited to the table to sit with Charlie Brown, Linus, and Sally.
This is in contrast to the scene from the Thanksgiving special, where Franklin is sitting at the table but by himself.
“The scene would not have had nothing to do with Sparky, because it was purely the animators and the directors working on it,” Jean Schultz, wife to the late Charles Schulz, explained in a 2020 interview. (“Sparky” was Schulz’s childhood nickname.) “The director parcels out the scenes to the animators, and the animators who drew that scene aren’t alive anymore or we don’t know how to find them. The [controversy] first popped up a couple of years ago. I’ve probably watched the special a dozen times, and I hadn’t noticed it. But I wouldn’t notice it: It’s to be noticed now.”
Black cartoonist Robb Armstrong revealed that Schulz had asked permission to give Franklin his last name (Armstrong) in the late 1990s and also noted that he believes the character was “underdeveloped.”
“I can’t believe how accurate that drawing is — I feel like I’m that dude on that side of the table to this day,” remarked Robb Armstrong, the creator of the comic strip, Jump Start and a close friend of Schulz. “I know people are like, ‘That’s racist!’ First of all, Charles Schulz named that dude after me — he is not a racist. He is a wonderful human being who decided to put Jesus on a CBS Christmas special. He wanted Franklin to be that, but he knew he didn’t have it in him. Franklin is still an underdeveloped character… but the guy knew his limits.”
The new Apple TV cartoon will give the character that opportunity.
The official description for Welcome Home, Franklin can be read below:
“The origin story for one of Peanuts’ most beloved characters, Franklin, follows how he approaches making new friends. Franklin’s family is always on the move with his dad’s military job, and everywhere he goes Franklin finds support in a notebook filled with his grandfather’s advice on friendship. But when Franklin tries his usual strategies with the Peanuts gang, he has trouble fitting in. That’s until he learns about the neighborhood Soap Box Derby race. According to his grandfather, everyone loves a winner! He’s sure that winning the race will also mean winning over some new friends. All he needs is a partner, which he finds in Charlie Brown. Franklin and Charlie Brown work together to build a car and in the process become good buddies. But as the race nears, the pressure mounts — can their car and their newfound friendship make it to the finish line?”
Snoopy Presents: Welcome Home, Franklin will premiere on February 16.