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Charles Monroe Schulz was born on November 26, 1922. Less than a week later, he was nicknamed "Sparky" for the sad-eyed horse from the comic strip "Barney Google."
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When Charles Schulz was a small boy, the family got a little Boston Bull Terrier named Snooky, but it was the memory of their next dog, Spike, that would spur the antics of Snoopy for years to come.
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“My earliest recollection of drawing and getting credit for it and being complimented on it is from kindergarten. I think it was my first day, and the teacher gave us huge sheets of white paper, large black crayons, and told us to draw anything we wanted. I drew a man shoveling snow, and she came around, paused, looked at my picture, and said, ‘Someday, Charles, you’re going to be an artist.’ Now she wasn’t quite right – she didn’t say ‘cartoonist’ – but there was an interesting aspect to this."
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After spending his sophomore through senior years at St. Paul’s Central High School, Charles Schulz graduated on June 14, 1940.
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Sparky's mother, Dana, died unexpectedly of cervical cancer in 1943. Back at the time, doctors did not tell their patients when they had an incurable disease. Charles got a release from the army to visit her as she died.
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On May 1, 1945, Sparky was awarded a Combat Infantryman Badge. This was regarded by other soldiers as a "fighter badge." This was his most prized possession.
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Charlie Brown first appeared in Charles Schulz comic strip, Lil' Folks in 1947. But the comic strip "Lil' Folks" only lasted until 1950.
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Joyce Steele Halverson was Charles Schulz's first wife. She impacted him in more of a physical way. The family moved fairly often at Joyce's requests.
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Marking a true career achievement in cartooning, Charles Schulz won the coveted Reuben award for “Outstanding Cartoonist of the Year” from the National Cartoonists Society.
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In 1955, Charles Schulz won his first Reuben Award.In 1964, Sparky became the first cartoonist to win the Reuben twice.
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The Peanuts characters appeared on the front page of Time on April 9, 1965.
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On December 9, 1965, "A Charlie Brown Christmas," aired for the first time on T.V. It was the first televised "Peanuts" program.
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A Charlie Brown Christmas is awarded the George Foster Peabody Award on April 21, 1966.
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On May 22, 1966, Charles M. Schulz wins the Emmy Award for Outstanding Children’s Program for A Charlie Brown Christmas.
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Charles M. Schulz received a great honor in 1968 when he was approached by NASA to use Snoopy in the Manned Flight Awareness Program.
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Charles Schulz had an open-heart surgery in 1981. He was 59. It was successful - he was able to keep doing the things he loved, like tennis and hockey, after he had healed.
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The first Peanuts character balloon debuted in the annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City in 1968.
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Charles Schulz died in his sleep. He had created almost 18000 strips in more than 2600 newspapers. He died the night before he had planned to retire. His last strip (the picture in this event) was intended to comclude his works. Sparky had written Peanuts for nearly 50 years. He was 77 years old when he passed away.
