My Life with Charlie Brown

Pleasures of the Chalk-Talk

141 Pleasures of the Chalk-Talk a s a general rule, I must admit that I am not overly fond of giving chalk-talks. I always enjoy myself while I am actually performing, but after it is all over, and I have loaded my equipment back into my car, I suddenly find myself with that long lonesome drive home, and I wonder to myself, “Why in the world did I do this?” Well, let’s talk about the “why” for a moment. One reason, and the most important, is a feeling of gratitude for being able to make a living doing something you enjoy so much. Somehow, this seems like a way to repay for this great gift that has been given to you. It is also a good way to take some program chairman off the hook, especially if he is a friend of yours. But it is no easy task. In practically every appearance I have made there has been someone in the audience who has sat silent throughout the entire show, and while you are standing there drawing those silly pictures and doing your best to make everyone laugh, this one person just sits there like he or she couldn’t care less. This usually makes you wonder “why” you agreed to come. I prefer to work with a huge easel, a black crayon, and a microphone that can be placed to one side of the board so that I can stand away from the drawing after it has been made and talk about it. I hate after-dinner speeches in halls that extend so far back you cannot reach your audience. I much prefer a close-in group that has come especially for this event. I refuse to try to follow a Barber Shop Quartet or a magician or a ventriloquist, for they have whipped the mind 142 My profeSSIoN of the audience to a level where my talking quietly of the problems of Charlie Brown is a sure let-down. As an opener, I have found that a drawing of Charlie Brown in his big baseball hat wearing his over-sized glove is still the best one I have ever come up with. It is an adaptation of a gag cartoon I sold to the Saturday Evening Post back in 1949, and after talking about all of Charlie Brown’s problems I wind up the bit by saying, “Even though he takes quite a beating he still feels that he has the most important position on the team because he stands here to see that the ball doesn’t roll down the sewer!” The secret to this whole situation, of course, is that no one has really recognized what it is that I have drawn behind him until I finally mention the word “sewer.” I can usually judge pretty well what sort of evening or day it is going to be, too, as I start to draw Charlie Brown’s head. If giggles begin to run through the audience as soon as I draw that round head and innocent face, then I know that I am in, and we will have a good time. My procedure is to go on from there drawing each character in the Peanuts strip, and talking a little about his or her personality. I enjoy a group where we can have questions and answers afterward because this is both fun and a good way to pace your talk. The sample drawings shown here are drawn exactly as I would make them with a black crayon before a live audience. No preliminary pencil work is ever done. Charles M. Schulz, untitled and unpublished typescript. This page intentionally left blank ...