Notable quotes on Charles Schulz and ‘Peanuts’

“I think for me it was the dry tone that stuck out. It wasn't slapstick. It was smart, heady, stuff that put faith in you, the reader, to fully understand. Plus, the characters, particularly Charlie Brown, had a depth that was way beyond other characters on the comics page. More akin to great literary characters like Huck Finn and Holden Caulfield.” -- Stephan Pastis of Santa Rosa, creator of “Pearls Before Swine,” 2022.

“From the very beginning, Schulz was an advocate for strong, independent females. Characters like Lucy and Peppermint Patty refused to be defined or dominated by the boys, whether in social interactions, school, or sports.” -- Blake Scott Ball, “Charlie Brown’s America,” 2021.

“For 50 years, his keen eye, his good and generous heart, and his active brush and pen have given life to the most memorable cast of characters ever to enliven our daily papers. The hopeful and hapless Charlie Brown, the joyful Snoopy, the soulful Linus—even the ‘crabby’ Lucy—give voice, day after day, to what makes us human.” – former president Bill Clinton, 2000.

"I have memorized the first 20 years of the 'Peanuts' canon. Almost every day I can quote some strip that fits the moment. Schulz was that great a talent." – author Jonathan Franzen, 2019.

“"Today, as a generation of artists who grew up during the 'golden age' of 'Peanuts' come to prominence, its presence in the ideas and ambitions of contemporary art seems more powerful and relevant than ever." -- Claire Cattarall, senior curator for the Somerset House Trust, London, 2019.

“The reader doesn’t just look at Charlie Brown, Linus, Lucy, and Snoopy but reads them as musical notes in a silently heard composition of hilarity, cruelty, and occasional melancholy.” – graphic novelist Chris Ware in The New Yorker, 2019.

““For decades, 'Peanuts' was our own daily security blanket,” former president Barack Obama, 2016.

“I like to think that Peanuts and identity politics grew up together in America. By 1960, the main characters — Charlie Brown, Linus, Schroeder, Snoopy — had their roles and their acolytes. Even Lucy had her fans.” – Sarah Boxer, The Atlantic, 2015.

“’Peanuts' was a group of high I.Q. orphans and Charlie Brown was for sure an image of his creator. Laid-back and quietly amusing, and when he introduced that funny dog, all hell broke loose.” -- Hank Ketcham, creator of “Dennis the Menace,” 2001.

“Peanuts was the first (and still the best) postmodern comic strip. Everything about it was different.” -- cartoonist Garry Trudeau, creator of “Doonesbury,” 2000.

“In the sharp-edged reality of today, Schulz's pen-and-ink world is an island of comfort, familiarity and warmth. Happiness is a warm puppy.” – Sharon Waxman, Washington Post, 1996.

“You know what I love? When Lucy puts up the stand and gave psychiatric treatment for a nickel. That was great.” -- Cher, 1979.

“Charlie Brown does have his problems. Charlie Brown is not quite up to it; he does not hit the home run. And he doesn’t quite make it. Because of that, we identify with him.“ -- actor Jack Lemmon, 1967.

You can reach Staff Writer Dan Taylor at dan.taylor@pressdemocrat.com or 707-521-5243. On Twitter @danarts.