Liars and Saints

We're heavy into "Charlie Brown" season. In case you missed the news, PBS will air the "Charlie Brown Thanksgiving" special tomorrow (Sunday) night. This is your one chance to see the special in a way that does not support the tyranny that is Apple-Plus. "Thanksgiving"--my husband's favorite CHARLIE BROWN episode--involves a despotic Peppermint Patty, an odd "popcorn dinner," and a final-act surprise, in which Snoopy unveils a turkey feast. It's therapeutic to follow Charlie, at Halloween and at Thanksgiving:  contending with Lucy and the football, repeatedly finding rocks in his "treat" bag, losing control of himself with a white bedsheet and a pair of scissors. He doesn't often learn, but he does persist. I love that guy. I look forward to tomorrow night.

 The world is such a mess, and today may be a particularly ugly day. But it's also November, and it's an opportunity for thanksgiving. Here is the gay dad edition: *Gratitude for the following writers/artists: Jerry Pinkney, Nicole Rubel, James Marshall, Susan Meddaugh, Marc Brown, and Chris Van Allsburg (especially "Two Bad Ants") *Gratitude for Daylight Savings Time, because it means your baby starts going to sleep an hour "earlier," which would have seemed impossible otherwise *Gratitude for the passage of weeks, because certain things actually get easier, e.g. feeding *....For fall walks and Linus and the Great Pumpkin * ....For the person in your child's life who bakes you pumpkin bread, puts your child in mouse ears on Halloween, takes your child to the pool, introduces "drumming" and "French lessons" into the daily routine, and donates a sweater from the "Tommy Hilfiger" Baby Autumn lineup, for fun. These are all wond...

“A Charlie Brown Christmas” airs Thursday ..... so get ready. A few thoughts: *This is the first of the holiday specials, and it’s the best, if you ask me. I think that mainly because of the Vince Guaraldi score. I especially like the weirdly sad anthem, “Christmastime Is Here.” That’s the music of my childhood. *There’s tension throughout the episode between crass materialism and a wish for something transcendent. Sally writes to Santa: “Just send money.” A Christmas decoration contest has ads that start with this line: “Win money, money, money!” It’s worth noting that Charlie Brown, in his resistance to all of this, is genuinely irritating. He is drawn to neurotic self-sabotage. When he buys a crappy tree, and the tree falls apart, he more or less admits, “I *knew* this was going to happen.” It’s the resident philosopher Linus--less crazy than Charlie, at least in this half hour--who saves the day and reminds everyone about “peace and good will toward men.” (A useful reminder...

Some notes: *It's airing the day BEFORE Thanksgiving. And, weirdly, the famous Christmas special will be very early in December. (Check ABC listings.) *"Thanksgiving" was the third holiday-themed special; "Christmas" came first, then, pretty quickly afterward, the "Great Pumpkin" saga happened. A gap of a few years separates "Pumpkin" from "Thanksgiving." The voice actors have changed. Oddly, vocal music is prominent in "Christmas," disappears from "Pumpkin," and resurfaces in "Thanksgiving." ("Little Birdie," "Over the River....") *Critical responses to "Thanksgiving" did not match the effusiveness that followed "Pumpkin" and "Christmas"--though I think "Thanksgiving" is my husband's favorite. A main theme--Charlie's askew nature, as established by his screwy Halloween costume and his tiny fir tree--is carried forward: Charlie se...

What a treat to watch “The Great Pumpkin” last night. A few thoughts: *Is that a reference to Monet--the image of Snoopy (as a WWII fighter) asleep on a haystack in the French countryside? And the sketches of tiny trick-or-treaters in a pack--are those meant to evoke thoughts of Bruegel? (Oh, gosh. Sweaty!) *A great highlight is the passionate conversation between Charlie and Linus at the end. Both gentlemen are defeated. Each defeat has its own character. Charlie’s defeat seems to be a statement on life’s random malignancy: There truly is no reason why he, and he alone, would receive so many rocks in his treat bag, at so many houses. Linus’s defeat is different: Linus has been a fool, and he has suffered accordingly, and yet he can’t quite admit he has been a fool. This is how we end the show: With Linus fighting mightily against the tug of humbling self-knowledge. (Who could fail to relate?) What I really love is the gestures assigned to these two: They’re holding their faces in ...

Things for dads to know: *"It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" will air on Oct. 22 (ABC) this year. It will air again on Oct. 27 (part of a CB double bill)--! *If you're making a Halloween costume, felt squares, super glue, and sweat pants are your friends. I was a Kindergarten teacher for a long while: I actually have more to say about felt squares. If you're mass-producing cut-out shapes (and this is basically a big part of what you do, in education), then you want to STAY AWAY FROM THE CIRCLE. A circle is a pain in the ass to cut out. Substitute triangles: They're easier, and they'll give your piece an arty, semi-abstract look. Also, think about negative space. Let's say you're making a flower costume. Instead of cutting out blossom after blossom after blossom, just TRIM THE CORNERS OF YOUR FELT SQUARE. So much quicker and easier. This really is what you learn when you are a teacher (in case you were wondering). *Children are hypnotized...

One of my favorite musicals--and a show I'm so excited to present to my son--is "A Charlie Brown Christmas." Some thoughts: *This isn't really a conventional musical. There's no "I Want" song. Characters do not (consistently) lean on music in times of great emotion. You don't get a big solo from the star. *Still, "A Charlie Brown Christmas" uses music, and it tells a story, so I'm putting it in the "musical" category. *ACBC concerns depression. Charlie Brown can't "get happy" in the Christmas season because everything has "gone commercial." Lucy, Charlie's shrink, diagnoses Charlie and offers advice: "Get involved. Become part of the stream of life." To do this, Charlie directs the local Christmas play. A catastrophic idea, everyone is consumed with ego and distracted, etc. Despairing, Charlie asks the resident philosopher, Linus, to remind him what Christmas is all about. And we get...