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source: wikipedia.org
26 Nov, 1922
12 Feb, 2000
Heart attack
American
Cartoonist
77
If you’ve read the comic strip “Peanuts”, then you’ve probably heard the name Charles M. Schulz. He was the cartoonist behind the popular comic strip. Schulz was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and was the only child of Carl Schulz and Dena Halverson. He was nicknamed “Sparky” by his uncle after the horse Spark Plug from the comic strip Barney Google.
Schulz loved to draw right from his childhood. He especially loved to draw his family dog, Spike, who ate unusual things such as pins and tacks. In 1937, Schulz drew a picture of Spike and sent it to Ripley’s Believe It or Not! His drawing appeared in Robert Ripley’s syndicated panel with the caption: “A hunting dog that eats pins, tacks, and razor blades is owned by C. F. Schulz, St. Paul, Minn.” and “Drawn by ‘Sparky’”
Schulz went to Richards Gordon Elementary School where he skipped two half-grades. Being the youngest in class resulted in him becoming a shy and timid teenager. He once sent drawings to his high school yearbook staff only for them to be rejected. However, 60 years later, a five-foot statue of Snoopy was placed in the school’s main office.
In 1943, Schulz’s mother died after a long battle with cancer. Around the same time, he had enlisted in the United States Army. Schulz returned to Minneapolis after his discharge in 1945. He did lettering for a Roman Catholic comic magazine, Timeless Topix. A year later, he took up a job at Art Instruction Inc., reviewing and grading lessons submitted by students.
Charles M. Schulz published his first group of cartoons titled Li’l Folks from 1947 to 1950 in the St. Paul Pioneer Press. It was in this comic strip that he first used the name Charlie Brown for a character.
Schulz showcased his best work from Li’l Folks to United Feature Syndicate in 1950. By that time, he had developed a new comic strip, and United Feature Syndicate preferred that version. The comic strip went on to become one of the most popular comic strips of all time.
Peanuts ran for nearly 50 years in over 2,600 newspapers across 75 countries. In 1999, Schulz suffered a stroke, and it was later discovered that he had colon cancer. He underwent chemotherapy, which made it difficult for him to read or see clearly. He announced his retirement in 1999. He passed away in his home a year later at the age of 77.
Charles M. Schulz
Charles M. Schulz
Male
Heart attack
Minneapolis, Minnesota, U.S.
Santa Rosa, California, U.S.
Mediator: Charles Schulz was both curious and shy. He loved to know what was going on around him but he didn’t want to be the center of attention.
Schulz’s father was passionate about the funny papers and would go to the Pioneer Press building to watch the Sunday comic pages roll off the huge rotary presses.
Charles Schulz was nicknamed Sparky at just two days old after a comic strip character - a racehorse named Spark Plug who was called Sparky.
Schulz originally named his comic strip Li’l Folks but publishing company editors said it sounded too much like “Li’l Abner” and “Little Folks”. They renamed the strip to Peanuts much to Schulz's dismay. He lobbied for a name change but it stuck.
His friend Shermy was one of his most faithful readers. When Schulz launched Peanuts, Shermy was one of his original characters.
In the first comic strip for Peanuts, Shermy declared his hate for Charlie Brown. Schulz later said that this was the only comic strip he regretted drawing since it was wrong.
He was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal in 2000
Shulz was awarded the World War II Victory Medal
He was inducted into the United States Figure Skating Hall of Fame in 2007