Charles M. Schulz: Timeline
Nov. 26, 1922 | Charles Monroe Schulz was born in Minneapolis as the only child of Dena and Carl Schulz, a hard-working St. Paul barber. An uncle nicknamed him ``Sparky'' after Sparkplug, a horse in the Barney Google comic strip. | |
1920s | His kindergarten teacher at Mattocks School in St. Paul told him, "Some day, Charles, you are going to be an artist." | |
1930s | As a boy, Schulz was interested in comics, especially Popeye and the characters created by Walt Disney. | |
1934 | The Schulz family was given a black and white dog that was the inspiration for Snoopy. His name was Spike. | |
1939/40 | Schulz enrolled in a correspondence cartoon course with Federal Schools (later known as Art Instruction Schools) during his senior year in high school. | |
1940 | Schulz graduated from high school. The drawings he contributed to the school yearbook were not included in the publication. | |
1943 | At 20, Schulz was drafted into the Army. While in basic training his mother died of cancer. Schulz served as a machine-gun squad leader in Germany, France and Austria. He later wrote, ``The Army taught me all I needed to know about loneliness.'' | |
1945 | Discharged from the Army, Schulz returned to St. Paul. | |
1947 | Schulz's career as a cartoonist began with the publication of his panel cartoon, ``Li'l Folks,'' in the St. Paul Pioneer Press. | |
1948 - 1950 | Schulz sold 17 panel cartoons to the Saturday Evening Post. | |
1950 | After several rejections, Schulz sold his strip to United Feature Syndicate. The syndicate renamed his strip, Peanuts, a title he never liked. | |
Oct. 2, 1950 | Peanuts debuted in seven newspapers. The syndicate paid Schulz $90 for his first month of strips. | |
1951 | Married Joyce Halverson. After a brief move to Colorado Springs, CO, the family returned to Minneapolis. | |
1952 | The first Sunday Peanuts page published; the strip was then featured in over 40 U.S. newspapers. The first book collection, Peanuts was published. | |
1955 | Kodak was the first product sponsor - using the Peanuts characters in a camera handbook. Schulz won his first Reuben Award from the National Cartoonists Society. | |
1958 | Schulz left Minnesota and moved his wife and five children to Sebastopol, California. Peanuts appeared in 355 U.S. and 40 foreign newspapers. The first plastic Snoopy was produced. | |
1960 | Hallmark produced Peanuts greeting cards. Peanuts art and animation used for Ford Falcon advertising campaign. | |
1962 | Happiness is a Warm Puppy was published. Peanuts named Best Humor Strip of the Year by the National Cartoonists Society. | |
1964 | Schulz became the first cartoonist to be awarded two Reubens by the National Cartoonists Society. | |
1965 | Peanuts featured on cover of Time magazine. TV carried Schulz's first animated TV feature, A Charlie Brown Christmas. It later won a Peabody Award and an Emmy. | |
1966 | Schulz' father Carl Schulz died while visiting in California. Fire destroyed Schulz's Sebastopol studio. | |
1967 | The stage musical, You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown, opened off Broadway. It became the most-produced musical in America. | |
May 24, 1967 | Then-Gov. Ronald Reagan greeted the cartoonist at the Capitol in observance of the legislature-proclaimed ``Charles Schulz Day.'' | |
1969 | Charlie Brown and Snoopy accompanied astronauts on Apollo X. Schulz opened his Redwood Empire Ice Arena in Santa Rosa, California. | |
1972 | Charles and Joyce Schulz divorced | |
1973 | Schulz and the former Jean Forsyth Clyde were married. Schulz received Emmy Award for writing television special A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving. | |
1974 | Schulz served as the grand marshal of the Rose Parade in Pasadena. | |
1975 | Peanuts celebrated 25 years. It was carried in approximately 1480 U.S. and 175 foreign newspapers with 90,000,000 readers. Television special, You're a Good Sport, Charlie Brown won an Emmy. | |
1978 | International Pavilion of Humor in Montreal named Schulz Cartoonist of the Year. | |
1979 | Happy Birthday, Charlie Brown, by Lee Mendelson and Schulz published. | |
1980 | Charlie Brown, Snoopy, and Me by Schulz and R. Smith Kiliper published. Television special, Life Is a Circus, Charlie Brown received an Emmy. | |
1983 | Television special, What Have We Learned, Charlie Brown? won a Peabody Award. Camp Snoopy opened at Knott's Berry Farm in California. | |
1984 | Peanuts qualified for place in Guinness Book of World Records after being sold to 2000th newspaper. | |
1985 | You Don't Look 35, Charlie Brown published. The Oakland Museum of California opened anniversary exhibit The Graphic Art of Charles Schulz. | |
1986 | Schulz inducted into Cartoonist Hall of Fame by the Museum of Cartoon Art. | |
1989 | Good Grief: The Story of Charles M. Schulz, a biography by Rheta Grimsley Johnson in cooperation with Schulz, published. | |
1990 | The government of France named Schulz a commander of arts and letters. Snoopy in Fashion exhibit opened at the Louvre. This Is Your Childhood, Charlie Brown - Children in American Culture exhibit opened at The National Museum of History in Washington, D.C. | |
1992 | Snoopy, The Masterpiece exhibit opened at the Montreal Museum of Fine Art. Schulz awarded the Order of Merit from the Italian Minister of Culture. | |
1995 | The 45th anniversary of Peanuts is marked by exhibit Around the Moon and Home Again: A Tribute to the Art of Charles M. Schulz at the Space Center in Houston. | |
June 28, 1996 | Schulz got his own star on the Hollywood Hall of Fame. | |
Oct. 16, 1997 | Schulz and wife Jeannie announced they would give $1 million toward the construction of a D-Day memorial to be placed in Virginia. World premiere of Peanuts Gallery by composer Ellen Taaffe Zwilich held at Carnegie Hall. | |
1999 | Schulz's Peanuts: A Golden Celebration published. You're a Good Man Charlie Brown opened in a new production on Broadway. Peanuts appeared in more than 2,600 newspapers worldwide. Over 20,000 products had been developed based on Peanuts. | |
December 14, 1999 | Because of health problems Schulz announced his retirement. | |
Jan. 3, 2000 | Schulz's final original daily comic strip appeared in newspapers. | |
Feb. 7, 2000 | California lawmakers declared Sunday, Feb. 13 ``Charles M. Schulz Day.'' | |
Feb. 12, 2000 | Schulz died in his sleep at his home. | |
Feb. 13, 2000 | Schulz's final Sunday strip appeared in newspapers around the world. | |
May 17, 2001 | First Day Issue of U.S. Postal Service Peanuts Stamp at Charlie Schulz's Redwood Empire Ice Arena in Santa Rosa CA. | |
Posthumous awards include: The Milton Caniff Lifetime Achievement Award presented by the National Cartoonists Society in May, 2000 and the Congressional Gold Medal on June 7, 2001. |