Today in History—February 13: Farewell to Peanuts

Written by

Amy Tikkanen

Fact-checked by

Britannica Editors

History

The funny pages weren’t so funny on this day in 2000.

That morning, readers around the world turned to the comic section to discover that Peanuts had ended. The final strip featured a quiet farewell from creator Charles M. Schulz. His health was failing, and he could no longer continue the cartoon. No one else was taking over.

After nearly 50 years, there would be no new adventures for Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Linus, Lucy, and the rest of the gang.

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And that wasn’t the only heartbreak. Schulz, who once said that drawing Peanuts was “his life,” had died just hours before the last strip appeared.

As Charlie Brown might have said, “Good grief!”

When Peanuts debuted on October 2, 1950, there was little to suggest that it would become one of the world’s most beloved—and influential—comic strips. The cartoon had started three years earlier as Li’l Folks in a Minnesota paper. For a nationwide distribution deal, Schulz begrudgingly changed the name to avoid confusion with Li’l Abner and Little Folks.

That’s where the similarities with other comic strips ended. Schulz took a minimalistic approach. His illustrations were so simple that people often assumed Charlie Brown was bald, though Schulz insisted that he just had really blond hair.

Even more unconventional was the content. Peanuts avoided slapstick humor and outlandish plotlines and focused on the everyday lives of children. With honesty and humor, Schulz explored their fears, insecurities, and disappointments. Charlie Brown, Schulz’s everyman alter ego, was a lovable loser who kept trying despite repeated failures. He expected the worst but hoped for the best—whether he was battling a kite-eating tree or trying to kick a football.

Fun Fact

Snoopy’s doghouse had a pool table and van Gogh painting—until they were destroyed in a fire.

What initially seemed understated proved revolutionary. Peanuts built an immense and devoted following. By the time of Schulz’s death, the strip appeared in more than 2,500 newspapers in 75 countries, reaching more than 350 million readers. It also expanded beyond the comics page into books, films, merchandise, and TV specials, including the enduring holiday classic A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965).

Peanuts may have ended more than 25 years ago, but Charlie Brown and his friends live on. He keeps trying, and we’re still cheering for him.