In an election year, people of all persuasions are united by a common quest for something to believe in. What better time, then, to remember one of America’s most ardent idealists?
In the world of Peanuts, Linus Van Pelt is the lone follower of the Great Pumpkin. Year after year, he chooses to spend the night keeping watch in the pumpkin patch instead of trick-or-treating or going to Violet’s Halloween party with his friends. And every year, I await the gift-bearing pumpkin with him during the annual broadcast of It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown.
One of my favorite segments comes early.
That kind of wide-eyed humor is what makes all of the Peanuts specials classics. And though the story is certainly bittersweet, watching Great Pumpkin always makes me feel a little better about being slightly weird.
It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown airs tonight at 8 p.m. ET on ABC. Will you be watching?
