"It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown (Full Screen)"

Although hundreds of Halloween TV specials bombard us each October with cartoons and shows but this is my personal all-time favorite. Charles Shultz was a visionary artist. He transcends time and race barriers to create these wonderful characters anyone can identify with. This one has it all! Wonderful hand drawn animation with warm watercolor backgrounds that capture the essence of Autumn so vividly along with the terrific scoring by jazz musician Vince Guarldi.

For those of you that already know, I like for you to reminisce with me here but if you don't know you get poor Charlie Brown and his misfortune to always get a rock instead of candy on Halloween night! Linus and his misguided Great Pumpkin worship. Lucy and her mean streak! Sally and her unrequited love. Snoopy and his alter-ego the Red Baron! SO many good memories are made by watching these specials. It's not only the characters of Charlie Brown, Linus and Lucy that keep you in hysterics, but Sally .. she steals the show. She's not only cute and lovable, but can whip out sarcasm with the best of em. I think she can even give Lucy a run for her money!

Now before I continue, is it me or is that moon mighty huge on the pumpkin patch field. I was always at awe every time that scene came up. If you have kids (or are kids at heart) this is a no-brainer. Start (or continue) your Holiday tradition right with "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" today!

Oh, Great Pumpkin--where are you?

Question for those who are enjoying the horror fest this month I need to know "Who is your favorite character and why?" You get a extra treat if your able to answer it. Happy Halloween!

Yes, you read correctly: four stars. Not five. Why, might you ask? Am I crazy? No, I am not. At least I don't think I am :)

I am a huge fan of Peanuts. Every year, I look forward to the holiday specials on television. IT'S THE GREAT PUMPKIN, CHARLIE BROWN is one of them. Yet, I must admit: much like A CHARLIE BROWN THANKSGIVING and IT'S THE EASTER BEAGLE, CHARLIE BROWN, this show is kind of dated. I do still love it -- the characters and classic Peanuts gags we have all come to cherish. But truth be told, the animation in these earlier specials is sort of crude and the timing between a lot of the dialogue is very very very offbeat. So much so that it can actually get boring at times.

Yet I still love them. There is just something about these shows that we can all relate to again and again. Yes, the later films, tv shows and specials are all better drawn, and the timing is right on the dot; and some have a much smoother feel.

But these, I think, contain a certain nostalgic feeling. And that's why they are "classics."

Anybody who's read or watched Peanuts knows that Linus Van Pelt believes in the Great Pumpkin, who (allegedly) rises from the most sincere pumpkin patch in the world and gives presents to all the world's children. So you can guess what happens in "It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown," an enchanting little Halloween tale with lots of rocks, pumpkins and a World War I flying ace.

Autumn has come, and the Peanuts gang is embracing the season -- carving jack-o-lanterns, jumping into leaf piles (with wet suckers), and Charlie Brown kicking the football. It also means that Linus is writing his yearly letter to the Great Pumpkin and planning to sit in the pumpkin patch being sincere while all the other kids are out trick-or-treating. Since Sally has a crush on him, she plans to sit out there as well.

So while Sally and Linus are out there being sincere (much to the scorn of Lucy), the other kids congregate for a round of rather disappointing trick-or-treating ("I got a rock") before going on to an equally disappointing party. Meanwhile, the World War I flying ace (aka Snoopy) is shot down over enemy lines, and wanders through the French countryside. The real question is: will the Great Pumpkin appear?

"It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" is one of those delightful Peanuts specials that everybody has seen, but somehow they never get stale or boring. And though nothing major or groundbreaking happens here, the humor is in the little running jokes that Charles Schulz littered his series with -- particularly in Linus' deep, devout belief in the Great Pumpkin.

So there's lots of funny dialogue ("You didn't tell me you were gonna kill it!" Linus howls when Lucy starts scooping out pumpkin goop), hilarious scenes (guess who all the little ghosts are!), and the occasional joke that highlights the humorous maturity of the little gang ("Funny thing about this document... it was never notarized"). It's a bit like taking a guided tour of the most fun memories of your childhood.

Sally Brown is especially funny here, since she's a sharp-tongued little firecracker who says... well, whatever's on her mind, while Linus' faith in the Great Pumpkin drives him to brave others' mockery (even though nobody has ever seen the Great Pumpkin, or gotten any toys from him). As for poor Charlie Brown, you can guess how the Halloween festivities go for him.

There's also an extra special on this, "It's Magic, Charlie Brown": Snoopy starts experimenting with magic tricks, but accidentally turns Charlie Brown invisible. Though understandably he's upset about this, Charlie Brown soon realizes that there are some benefits to invisibility.

So to celebrate the arrival of the Great Pumpkin, sit in the most sincere pumpkin patch you can find and watch "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown." When he comes, not IF!