The Great Pumpkin
Encyclopedia
Comic strip
A comic strip is a sequence of drawings arranged in interrelated panels to display brief humor or form a narrative, often serialized, with text in balloons and captions....
Peanuts
Peanuts
Peanuts is a syndicated daily and Sunday American comic strip written and illustrated by Charles M. Schulz, which ran from October 2, 1950, to February 13, 2000, continuing in reruns afterward...
by Charles M. Schulz
Charles M. Schulz
Charles Monroe "Sparky" Schulz was an American cartoonist, whose comic strip Peanuts proved one of the most popular and influential in the history of the medium, and is still widely reprinted on a daily basis.-Early life and education:Born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Schulz grew up in Saint Paul...
.
The Great Pumpkin is a holiday figure (comparable to Santa Claus
Santa Claus
Santa Claus is a folklore figure in various cultures who distributes gifts to children, normally on Christmas Eve. Each name is a variation of Saint Nicholas, but refers to Santa Claus...
or the Easter Bunny
Easter Bunny
The Easter Bunny or Easter Rabbit is a character depicted as a rabbit bringing Easter eggs, who sometimes is depicted with clothes...
) that seems to exist only in the imagination of Linus van Pelt
Linus van Pelt
Linus van Pelt is a character in Charles M. Schulz's comic strip Peanuts. The best friend of Charlie Brown, Linus is also the younger brother of Lucy van Pelt and older brother of Rerun van Pelt. He first appeared on September 19, 1952; however, he was not mentioned by name until three days later....
. Every year, Linus sits in a pumpkin patch on Halloween
Halloween
Hallowe'en , also known as Halloween or All Hallows' Eve, is a yearly holiday observed around the world on October 31, the night before All Saints' Day...
night waiting for the Great Pumpkin to appear. Each year the Great Pumpkin invariably fails to appear, and a humiliated but undefeated Linus stubbornly vows to wait for him again the following Halloween.
The Great Pumpkin was first mentioned by Linus in Peanuts in 1959, but the premise was reworked by Schulz many times throughout the run of the strip, and also inspired the 1966 animated television special It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown
It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown
It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown is a 1966 American prime time animated television special based on the comic strip Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz....
. The best-known quote regarding Linus and the Great Pumpkin, originally from the comic strip but made famous by the TV special, is: "There are three things I have learned never to discuss with people: religion, politics, and the Great Pumpkin."
Characteristics
According to Linus, on Halloween night, the Great Pumpkin rises out of the pumpkinPumpkin
A pumpkin is a gourd-like squash of the genus Cucurbita and the family Cucurbitaceae . It commonly refers to cultivars of any one of the species Cucurbita pepo, Cucurbita mixta, Cucurbita maxima, and Cucurbita moschata, and is native to North America...
patch he deems most "sincere
Sincerity
Sincerity is the virtue of one who speaks and acts truly about his or her own feelings, thoughts, and desires.-Sincerity in Western societies:Sincerity has not been consistently regarded as a virtue in Western culture...
." He then flies through the air delivering toys to all the good little children in the world. Linus believes that the Great Pumpkin is very sensitive and easily offended and will bypass anyone who denies or doubts his existence, which is why a person should never say "If the Great Pumpkin comes," but always "When the Great Pumpkin comes." In writing to the Great Pumpkin, while trying to convince him that one's pumpkin patch is sincere, one must not ask for anything specific, but rather wait and accept whatever he brings.
Differences between the Great Pumpkin and Santa Claus
In the daily strip of October 25, 1960, Lucy is convinced that Linus is confusing the Great Pumpkin with Santa Claus. But Linus is adamant that he can tell them apart. Santa Claus is simply doing his job giving toys as it is expected of him, the Great Pumpkin gives away toys because he is fulfilling a moral obligation. Charlie BrownCharlie Brown
Charles "Charlie" Brown is the protagonist in the comic strip Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz.Charlie Brown and his creator have a common connection in that they are both the sons of barbers, but whereas Schulz's work is described as the "most shining example of the American success story", Charlie...
makes a similar observation in a 1965 strip.
Others characters' views of the Great Pumpkin
Throughout the duration of the comic strip, Peanuts characters besides Linus at one time or another showed some belief in the Great Pumpkin, though this never lasts very long. It usually ended the morning after Halloween when the Great Pumpkin had not appeared.- Charlie BrownCharlie BrownCharles "Charlie" Brown is the protagonist in the comic strip Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz.Charlie Brown and his creator have a common connection in that they are both the sons of barbers, but whereas Schulz's work is described as the "most shining example of the American success story", Charlie...
does not profess a belief in the Great Pumpkin; like others in the strip, Charlie Brown cannot bring himself to believe in the Great Pumpkin as he has never seen him. Nevertheless, on at least three occasions he accompanies Linus in his pumpkin patch as an observer. In the series from November 1959, when the Great Pumpkin was first mentioned, Charlie Brown (with Lucy watching) uncharacteristically poked fun at Linus for his belief in the Great Pumpkin. In the Sunday strip of October 29, 1961, Linus claims the Great Pumpkin has in fact been seen by people other than him in patches all across the country, if not the world. On other occasions, however, Linus' belief brought Charlie Brown close to exasperation; in a Halloween series from 1965, Charlie Brown's friendship with Linus was strained when he called Linus "stupid". They soon reconciled. In the November 1, 1961 strip, Charlie Brown gives evidence that points that the Great Pumpkin might actually exist, stating he had heard on the radio that the Great Pumpkin had appeared in a "very sincere" pumpkin patch owned by a man named Freeman in New JerseyNew JerseyNew Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
, much to the hilarious fury of Linus, who then screamed at the sky and Great Pumpkin.
- Linus' sister LucyLucy van PeltLucille "Lucy" van Pelt is a fictional character in the syndicated comic strip :Peanuts, written and drawn by Charles Schulz. She is the main bully and the older sister of Linus and Rerun. Lucy is a crabby and cynical eight-year old girl, and often bullies the other characters in the strip,...
never directly expressed belief in the Great Pumpkin. Conversely, she usually has the most vehement criticism of Linus's belief, although on select occasions she does profess belief, but her ulterior motive is personal gain. Case in point, the Sunday strip from October 28, 1962 shows Lucy building a pumpkin patch for herself and Linus to sit in, but she confides in Charlie Brown that she's thinking more of the presents and publicity she can get. But when Linus sees Lucy's handiwork he rebukes her saying, "This is the most hypocritical pumpkin patch I've ever seen!" The last frame of the strip sees Lucy sighing in a pile of the same pumpkins she bought to build her patch and futilely selling them for fifty cents a piece. Another Sunday strip, from October 24, 1965, shows Linus writing another letter to The Great Pumpkin with Lucy right by his side the whole time criticizing him. But in the final panel, after Linus mails the letter and walks off, Lucy asks "Did you tell him I've tried to be good, too?".
- Linus tries to pass on his belief to his younger brother RerunRerun van PeltRerun van Pelt is Linus and Lucy's younger brother in Charles M. Schulz's comic strip Peanuts.-Introduction:Rerun started as a minor character in the Peanuts universe, only becoming a main character in the last decade of the comic strip...
in a 1996 strip. Rerun responds with "You're just trying to mess with my mind, aren't you?" But Rerun goes along with Linus as he goes door-to-door telling others about the Great Pumpkin, often trying his best to keep his distance.
- Charlie BrownCharlie BrownCharles "Charlie" Brown is the protagonist in the comic strip Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz.Charlie Brown and his creator have a common connection in that they are both the sons of barbers, but whereas Schulz's work is described as the "most shining example of the American success story", Charlie...
's little sister, SallySally BrownSally Brown is the younger sister of Charlie Brown in the comic strip Peanuts by Charles Schulz. She was first mentioned in early 1959 and throughout a long series of strips before her first appearance in August 1959.-Appearance:...
, is usually the one person whom Linus most often convinces to sit in the pumpkin patch with him. The number of Sally's pumpkin patch vigils is second only to Linus himself. Sally's belief in the Great Pumpkin is quashed every year she waits in the pumpkin patch, yet the next time, presumably out of love for Linus, she believes in the Great Pumpkin just as strongly. The animatedAnimationAnimation is the rapid display of a sequence of images of 2-D or 3-D artwork or model positions in order to create an illusion of movement. The effect is an optical illusion of motion due to the phenomenon of persistence of vision, and can be created and demonstrated in several ways...
television specialTelevision specialA television special is a television program which interrupts or temporarily replaces programming normally scheduled for a given time slot. Sometimes, however, the term is given to a telecast of a theatrical film, such as The Wizard of Oz or The Ten Commandments, which is not part of a regular...
It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie BrownIt's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie BrownIt's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown is a 1966 American prime time animated television special based on the comic strip Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz....
depicts the first time she joined Linus instead of going out for tricks or treats with the others. Yet the 1981 Halloween strip series gives the premise an ironic role reversal: it is Sally, not Linus, who tells another character, her friend Eudora, about the Great Pumpkin and brings her to the pumpkin patch. When the Great Pumpkin again fails to appear, Eudora berates Sally for wasting her time in the same manner that Sally usually turns on Linus.
- Peppermint PattyPeppermint PattyPatricia "Peppermint Patty" Reichardt is a fictional character featured in Charles M. Schulz's comic strip Peanuts. A freckle-faced auburn/brunette, she is one of a small group in the strip who lives across town from Charlie Brown and his school friends...
, on at least two occasions, has been depicted waiting in the pumpkin patch for the Great Pumpkin, doing so because by her own admission she is very superstitious, trusting and, she also admits, a little stupid. One on occasion she bought a dozen pumpkins from a supermarket and set up her own patch, but was informed by Roy that Linus thinks this might be insincere. When she telephones Linus for advice, he is left struggling for an answer to her "theological problem". In the series of Halloween strips from 1975, Peppermint Patty informs Linus that she wrote and asked the Great Pumpkin for a baseball glove. Outraged, Linus banishes Peppermint Patty from the pumpkin patch for "doing the worst thing a person could do: offending the Great Pumpkin".
- MarcieMarcie (Peanuts)Marcie is a bespectacled fictional character featured in Charles M. Schulz's comic strip Peanuts. She serves as comedic foil and best friend to tomboy Peppermint Patty, plays a supporting role in some of Snoopy's heroic fantasies, and displays a romantic interest in Charlie Brown, who seems to love...
sat with Linus in the Pumpkin patch on at least one occasion, and generally shows some belief in the Great Pumpkin by, on other occasions, walking door-to-door with Linus giving out Pumpkin tracts. Marcie repeatedly calls it the "Great Squash" or the "Great Grape", much to Linus' annoyance and quick correction.
- Outside of Sally, it was SnoopySnoopySnoopy is an fictional character in the long-running comic strip Peanuts, by Charles M. Schulz. He is Charlie Brown's pet beagle. Snoopy began his life in the strip as a fairly conventional dog, but eventually evolved into perhaps the strip's most dynamic character—and among the most recognizable...
who was perhaps most often seen in the pumpkin patch with Linus, though his presence might have been through manipulation by Linus, either being taken against his will or coerced through bribery. In one strip when he was having his picture taken with Charlie Brown and Lucy to help interest "non-believers", Snoopy was thinking, "From this moment on, I'm known as Rex". There was one occasion, however, where it suggests that Snoopy was there willingly. Lucy had said to Linus "Anyone who sits in a pumpkin patch for five days waiting for the Great Pumpkin is crazy!" She then sees Snoopy sitting in the pumpkin patch, looking rather embarrassed, indicating that he had indeed been sitting there for five days waiting for the Great Pumpkin.
Objects Linus mistakes for the Great Pumpkin
Over the years, Linus mistook varying objects for the Great Pumpkin:- October 30, 1960: In the first instance, Linus and Charlie Brown spent the evening waiting in the pumpkin patch. When they heard rustling nearby and then saw something rising out of the patch Linus, thinking it was indeed the Great Pumpkin, faints, at which point Charlie Brown notices it's only Snoopy. After coming to, Linus asks Charlie Brown if the Great Pumpkin left any toys, to which Charlie Brown replies, "No toys. Just a used dog". This strip's storyline was the basis for the main plot in It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, only Charlie Brown was replaced with Sally.
- October 31, 1967: This time Snoopy was sitting with Linus in the patch when they heard rustling. Linus automatically thought it was the Great Pumpkin while a terrified Snoopy was thinking he should have never left the Daisy Hill Puppy Farm. The next day's strip, however, revealed that it was just a "bird hippieHippieThe hippie subculture was originally a youth movement that arose in the United States during the mid-1960s and spread to other countries around the world. The etymology of the term 'hippie' is from hipster, and was initially used to describe beatniks who had moved into San Francisco's...
".
- October 30, 1982: During an important bowling tournament, Charlie Brown accidentally threw his ball out the front door of the bowling alley. Linus and Sally both got knocked over by the ball as it plowed through the pumpkin patch. Two strips later, Linus was still convinced that it was the Great Pumpkin. This strip's storyline was the basis for the main plot in The Great Pumpkin, a short featured on The Charlie Brown and Snoopy ShowThe Charlie Brown and Snoopy ShowThe Charlie Brown and Snoopy Show is an animated television series featuring characters and storylines from the Charles M. Schulz comic strip Peanuts. It aired Saturday mornings on the CBS network from 1983 to 1985. It re-aired on The Disney Channel and Nickelodeon in the 1990s...
.
- October 31, 1983: Spike was traveling cross-country with his cactusCactusA cactus is a member of the plant family Cactaceae. Their distinctive appearance is a result of adaptations to conserve water in dry and/or hot environments. In most species, the stem has evolved to become photosynthetic and succulent, while the leaves have evolved into spines...
to visit his brother Snoopy. By the time Halloween came around, Spike's story was still being told in parallel with the Halloween-preparations strips. The two stories concluded together when Spike finally arrived in Snoopy's city: he wandered into the pumpkin patch and Linus mistook his cactus to be the Great Pumpkin.
- October 31, 1993: Again, Sally sitting with Linus out in the pumpkin patch when a Jack-o'-lanternJack-o'-lanternA jack-o'-lantern is typically a carved pumpkin. It is associated chiefly with the holiday of Halloween and was named after the phenomenon of strange light flickering over peat bogs, called ignis fatuus or jack-o'-lantern...
rises in the air on the end of a stick. It turns out to be Snoopy playing a prank on Linus.
- October 31, 1996: Linus, this time in the pumpkin patch alone, sees something he does not immediately recognize. When he asks if it's the Great Pumpkin, it turns out to be Rerun with a sheet over his head. He had forgotten to cut the eye holes out of the sheet so he did not know where he was or where he was going. Rerun spent the night roaming through the yard, and was still wearing the sheet in the next day's strip.
- October 31, 1999: In the final original Halloween strips before Schulz' death in early 2000, Linus once again convinced Sally to join him in the pumpkin patch. Although they did see something creep up on them in the pumpkin patch, Sally was again outraged when it turned out to be Snoopy driving a ZamboniIce resurfacerAn ice resurfacer is a truck-like vehicle or smaller device used to clean and smooth the surface of an ice rink. The first ice resurfacer was developed by Frank J. Zamboni in 1949 in the city of Paramount, California...
.
Informing the public
Linus takes his mission to inform the public of the Great Pumpkin's existence very seriously, and once effectively ended his race for student body president (and Charlie Brown's bid for vice president) by mentioning the Great Pumpkin in a campaign speech (a storyline adapted as the animated special You're Not Elected, Charlie BrownYou're Not Elected, Charlie Brown
You're Not Elected, Charlie Brown is the ninth prime-time animated TV special based upon the popular comic strip Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz and the eighth one to air. It originally aired on CBS on October 29, 1972, right before the 1972 election....
). He regularly goes from door-to-door to evangelize the word of the Great Pumpkin. On occasion he has been helped by Marcie, Snoopy, Sally, Rerun, and even once by a very embarrassed Charlie Brown.
Religious metaphors
Linus's seemingly unshakable belief in the Great Pumpkin, and his desire to foster the same belief in others, has been interpreted as a parody of ChristianChristianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
evangelism
Evangelism
Evangelism refers to the practice of relaying information about a particular set of beliefs to others who do not hold those beliefs. The term is often used in reference to Christianity....
by some observers. Others have seen Linus's belief in the Great Pumpkin as symbolic of the struggles faced by anyone with beliefs or practices that are not shared by the majority. Still others view Linus's lonely vigils, in the service of a being that may or may not exist and which never makes its presence known in any case, as a metaphor for mankind's basic existential
Existentialism
Existentialism is a term applied to a school of 19th- and 20th-century philosophers who, despite profound doctrinal differences, shared the belief that philosophical thinking begins with the human subject—not merely the thinking subject, but the acting, feeling, living human individual...
dilemmas. Charles Schulz himself, however, claimed no motivation beyond the humor of having one of his young characters confuse Halloween with Christmas
Christmas
Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
. (In the 1959 sequence of strips in which the Great Pumpkin is first mentioned, Schulz also has Linus suggest that he and the other kids "go out and sing pumpkin carol
Christmas carol
A Christmas carol is a carol whose lyrics are on the theme of Christmas or the winter season in general and which are traditionally sung in the period before Christmas.-History:...
s", something he asks the trick-or-treating kids in the special itself.)
In the special, when Charlie Brown asks Linus when he's going to "stop believing in something that isn't true", Linus retorts that he will stop when Charlie Brown stops believing in Santa Claus
Santa Claus
Santa Claus is a folklore figure in various cultures who distributes gifts to children, normally on Christmas Eve. Each name is a variation of Saint Nicholas, but refers to Santa Claus...
. Charlie Brown ultimately resolves that they "are obviously separated by denominational differences".
Braniff Airways
In the late 1970s, Braniff Airways painted their fleet in bright primary colours, in order to give their fleet visual appeal and marketability. The airline's first 747-200 airliners were delivered painted in a striking shade of orange, causing several ATC's across the USA to welcome the new Braniff acquisitions with the phrase "Welcome, Great Pumpkin".The 1973 Petersen Publications annual, Air Progress : World's Greatest Aircraft, had its chapter devoted to the 747 headed "The Great Pumpkin Lives!".
BNSF Railway
In 1996, Burlington NorthernBurlington Northern Railroad
The Burlington Northern Railroad was a United States-based railroad company formed from a merger of four major U.S. railroads. Burlington Northern operated between 1970 and 1996....
SD60M
EMD SD60
The EMD SD60 is a 3,800 horsepower 6-axle diesel-electric locomotive built by General Motors Electro-Motive Division. Intended for heavy-duty drag freight or medium-speed freight service, it was introduced in 1984, and production of SD60 variants ran until 1995.- History and development...
#9297 (renumbered 8197 in 2008) was jokingly dubbed the "Great Pumpkin" by employees because of its bold orange paint scheme, one of many prototype paint designs created by the then newly-formed Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway
BNSF Railway
The BNSF Railway is a wholly owned subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway Inc., and is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas. It is one of seven North American Class I railroads and the second largest freight railroad network in North America, second only to the Union Pacific Railroad, its primary...
(BNSF), a merger of Burlington Northern and the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railway (Santa Fe). This scheme eventually became the basis for BNSF's "Heritage I" paint design, while the "Great Pumpkin" nickname has stuck among railfans for this particular locomotive.
The Simpsons
The final segment of "Treehouse of Horror XIXTreehouse of Horror XIX
"Treehouse of Horror XIX" is the fourth episode of the twentieth season of The Simpsons. It first aired on the Fox network in the United States on November 2, 2008...
" (the fourth episode of the twentieth season of The Simpsons
The Simpsons
The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...
) is called "It's the Grand Pumpkin, Milhouse". It is a parody of It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown
It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown
It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown is a 1966 American prime time animated television special based on the comic strip Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz....
(and was supposed to be named "It's The Great Pumpkin, Milhouse," but due to legal reasons, was rejected) and contains several references to the Peanuts
Peanuts
Peanuts is a syndicated daily and Sunday American comic strip written and illustrated by Charles M. Schulz, which ran from October 2, 1950, to February 13, 2000, continuing in reruns afterward...
series. In the segment, Milhouse wears the same clothes and plays the same role as Linus van Pelt
Linus van Pelt
Linus van Pelt is a character in Charles M. Schulz's comic strip Peanuts. The best friend of Charlie Brown, Linus is also the younger brother of Lucy van Pelt and older brother of Rerun van Pelt. He first appeared on September 19, 1952; however, he was not mentioned by name until three days later....
. Lisa is modelled after Sally Brown
Sally Brown
Sally Brown is the younger sister of Charlie Brown in the comic strip Peanuts by Charles Schulz. She was first mentioned in early 1959 and throughout a long series of strips before her first appearance in August 1959.-Appearance:...
and Bart looks like Charlie Brown
Charlie Brown
Charles "Charlie" Brown is the protagonist in the comic strip Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz.Charlie Brown and his creator have a common connection in that they are both the sons of barbers, but whereas Schulz's work is described as the "most shining example of the American success story", Charlie...
, he even says "good grief", echoing Charlie Brown's catchphrase. A redesigned version of Santa's Little Helper
Santa's Little Helper
Santa's Little Helper is a recurring character in the American animated television series The Simpsons. He is the pet greyhound of the Simpson family. The dog was introduced in the first episode of the show, the 1989 Christmas special "Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire", in which his owner abandons...
can be seen sleeping on top of his dog house and Homer is seen sleeping on top of his house in a manner similar to Snoopy
Snoopy
Snoopy is an fictional character in the long-running comic strip Peanuts, by Charles M. Schulz. He is Charlie Brown's pet beagle. Snoopy began his life in the strip as a fairly conventional dog, but eventually evolved into perhaps the strip's most dynamic character—and among the most recognizable...
. When Marge first speaks, she uses a muted trombone. This is a parody of the "wah wah wah" voice that is used for adults in the various Peanuts specials. The dance scene during the Halloween party is a parody of the dance scene in A Charlie Brown Christmas
A Charlie Brown Christmas
A Charlie Brown Christmas is the first prime-time animated TV special based upon the comic strip Peanuts, by Charles M. Schulz. It was produced and directed by former Warner Bros. and UPA animator Bill Melendez, who also supplied the voice for the character of Snoopy...
right down to Kang and Kodos in a nonspeaking cameo
Cameo appearance
A cameo role or cameo appearance is a brief appearance of a known person in a work of the performing arts, such as plays, films, video games and television...
as the twins 3 and 4." Parts of the segment had music by Vince Guaraldi
Vince Guaraldi
Vincent Anthony "Vince" Guaraldi was an Italian American jazz musician and pianist noted for his innovative compositions and arrangements and for composing music for animated adaptations of the Peanuts comic strip...
(best known for composing music for animated adaptations of the Peanuts comic strip), which they had obtained the rights to use.
Robot Chicken
A sketch in the stop-motion parodyParody
A parody , in current usage, is an imitative work created to mock, comment on, or trivialise an original work, its subject, author, style, or some other target, by means of humorous, satiric or ironic imitation...
show Robot Chicken
Robot Chicken
Robot Chicken is an American stop motion animated television series created and executive produced by Seth Green and Matthew Senreich along with co-head writers Douglas Goldstein and Tom Root. Green provides many voices for the show...
featured a Peanuts
Peanuts
Peanuts is a syndicated daily and Sunday American comic strip written and illustrated by Charles M. Schulz, which ran from October 2, 1950, to February 13, 2000, continuing in reruns afterward...
parody involving Linus Van Pelt
Linus van Pelt
Linus van Pelt is a character in Charles M. Schulz's comic strip Peanuts. The best friend of Charlie Brown, Linus is also the younger brother of Lucy van Pelt and older brother of Rerun van Pelt. He first appeared on September 19, 1952; however, he was not mentioned by name until three days later....
getting tired of never actually seeing the great pumpkin and so he raises a version in a satanic
Satanism
Satanism is a group of religions that is composed of a diverse number of ideological and philosophical beliefs and social phenomena. Their shared feature include symbolic association with, admiration for the character of, and even veneration of Satan or similar rebellious, promethean, and...
-esque ritual involving a pentagram
Pentagram
A pentagram is the shape of a five-pointed star drawn with five straight strokes...
. True to the source of the being, the creature is evil and murders him. This leads to a succession of further characters to be murdered. Charlie Brown
Charlie Brown
Charles "Charlie" Brown is the protagonist in the comic strip Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz.Charlie Brown and his creator have a common connection in that they are both the sons of barbers, but whereas Schulz's work is described as the "most shining example of the American success story", Charlie...
is only saved by the kite
Kite
A kite is a tethered aircraft. The necessary lift that makes the kite wing fly is generated when air flows over and under the kite's wing, producing low pressure above the wing and high pressure below it. This deflection also generates horizontal drag along the direction of the wind...
eating tree consuming the demonic pumpkin, with him commenting that his friends can now rest. The scene then shows the murdered characters dancing and playing piano ala the Peanuts specials in Hell
Hell
In many religious traditions, a hell is a place of suffering and punishment in the afterlife. Religions with a linear divine history often depict hells as endless. Religions with a cyclic history often depict a hell as an intermediary period between incarnations...
with a demon.
The Great Pumpkin's voice was supplied by character actor
Character actor
A character actor is one who predominantly plays unusual or eccentric characters. The Oxford English Dictionary defines a character actor as "an actor who specializes in character parts", defining character part in turn as "an acting role displaying pronounced or unusual characteristics or...
Abraham Benrubi
Abraham Benrubi
Abraham Rubin Hercules Benrubi is an American character actor known for his appearances as Jerry Markovic on the long-running U.S...
.
Italy and the Great Watermelon
When Peanuts' strip was first introduced in Italy, Halloween was almost unknown there as a festivity. The earlier translations turned the pumpkin in a watermelon ("Il Grande Cocomero") because it was felt as a more Mediterranean and understandable fruit-figure, and the mistranslation did somehow stick in the Italian pop culture.Dan Johnson
The Major League Baseball player Dan JohnsonDan Johnson
Daniel Ryan Johnson is a first baseman and designated hitter with the Tampa Bay Rays. He has played in all or part of seven seasons in Major League Baseball and Nippon Professional Baseball, but has never held a Major League starting job for an entire season...
is nicknamed The Great Pumpkin due to his orange-red beard and his notable late-season/autumn performance. As a marginal big-league player in the Tampa Bay Rays
Tampa Bay Rays
The Tampa Bay Rays are a Major League Baseball team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The Rays are a member of the Eastern Division of MLB's American League. Since their inception in , the club has played at Tropicana Field...
organization, he was called to the majors late in three separate seasons (2008, 2010, 2011), and subsequently hit clutch home runs that propelled the team into the playoffs.
Licensed use on Poptropica
In October, 2010, forty-five years after the 1966 Bill Melendez TV special, the Great Pumpkin is the topic of a licensed use by the children's internet site PoptropicaPoptropica
Poptropica is an online game, role-playing game made by Jeff Kinney targeted at children ages 6 to 15, where players can travel, play games, compete in head-to-head competition, and communicate safely with each other...
. The site's 15th quest (island) is "Great Pumpkin Island", and features several of the Peanuts characters interacting with the avatars of Poptropica players. True to previous Peanuts versions, the Great Pumpkin never actually appears.