There is a scene toward the end of Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown, where a group of friends approaches the title character on the day after Valentine’s Day.
One of them, Violet, speaks for the group and says they all feel bad about not giving Charlie Brown any Valentines the day before. She gives him one from which she has erased her name.
Schroeder steps in and says, “Hold on there! What do you think you’re doing? Who do you think you are? Where were you yesterday when everyone else was giving out valentines? Is kindness and thoughtfulness something you can make retroactive? Don’t you think he has any feelings? You and your friends are the most thoughtless bunch I’ve ever known. You don’t care anything about Charlie Brown! You just hate to feel guilty! And now you have the nerve to come around one day later and offer him a used Valentine just to ease your conscience! Well, let me tell you something: Charlie Brown doesn’t need your – “
Charlie Brown eagerly interrupts and says, “Don’t listen to him! I’ll take it!”
And, once again, Charles Schulz gets it right. As with the other classic Peanuts holiday specials, this one gets straight to the heart of human emotion – we all want and need love, even if it comes in the form of a day-old Valentine.
This year marks the 50th anniversary of Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown, which initially aired on CBS on January 28, 1975.
The special opens with a pre-title sequence where Charlie Brown is lying in front of his mailbox waiting for Valentine’s. “Good luck,” snarks Lucy. “You’re going to need it.” After not finding anything in the mailbox, Charlie Brown walks away, head down, only to be followed by Snoopy, disguised as Cupid. Snoopy attempts to shoot plunger arrows at Charlie Brown. After each misses, the beagle runs up to Charlie and places one on the side of his head.
One of the special’s other stories centers on Linus, who has a crush on his teacher, Mrs. Othmar, and looks to buy her the biggest Valentine available. He buys an oversized, heart-shaped box of chocolates at the store, but Sally, who has a crush on Linus, sees him leaving the store and thinks the Valentine gift is for her.
Linus, however, will suffer a puppy-love broken heart when he learns that Miss Othmar has a boyfriend, and, at the end of the special, he tosses the chocolates from the heart off a bridge, calling out as he throws each one: “This one is for love! And this one is for Valentine’s! This one is for romance!” Below the bridge, Snoopy and Woodstock gladly catch each chocolate in their mouth.
Linus isn’t the only one having bad luck in Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown; Lucy can’t convince the stoic and musically-focused Schroder to show any interest in romance; Snoopy puts on a romantic yet tragic “pawpet” show that doesn’t garner much of an audience, and Charlie Brown sadly brings an empty suitcase to school to bring home all his Valentines, but winds up leaving with an empty suitcase.
Schulz’s writing is brought to the screen thanks to his partners on these classic specials – director Phil Roman and producers Lee Mendelson (along with animation from such legends as Don Lusk and Bill Littlejohn).
The results are entertaining moments, such as Snoopy creating an elaborate Valentine, complete with moving parts and music, from paper and scissors, and Sally reading the entire text “How Do I Love Thee” by Elizabeth Barret Browning from a small candy heart.
Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown also bears some personal stamps from Schulz and the creative team involved. For example, Charles Schulz’s friend Othmar “Jerry” Jarish inspired Miss Othmar’s name.
There are some other familiar names and faces, as well. When Schroeder calls out the names of kids in the classroom, as he hands out Valentines, they are the names of Schulz’s children. One full name that’s announced, Joanne Lansing, was the painting supervisor on this and a number of other specials.
Additionally, during the ending credits, as names appear on the screen, Snoopy holds up his “pawpet” puppets, which are caricatures of the artists and crew members.
Like the other Peanuts TV specials, Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown had quite an impact on kids when it first aired fifty years ago. So many felt bad that Charlie Brown received nothing on Valentine’s Day that children created their own Valentine’s and mailed them to him.
So, in this case, art didn’t imitate life. Even though it didn’t happen in the special, in reality, good ol’ Charlie Brown had a Happy Valentine’s Day.
• Here below, is a clip. To watch the whole special (on a slant) CLICK HERE.
Michael Lyons is a freelance writer, specializing in film, television, and pop culture. He is the author of the book, Drawn to Greatness: Disney’s Animation Renaissance, which chronicles the amazing growth at the Disney animation studio in the 1990s. In addition to Animation Scoop and Cartoon Research, he has contributed to Remind Magazine, Cinefantastique, Animation World Network and Disney Magazine. He also writes a blog, Screen Saver: A Retro Review of TV Shows and Movies of Yesteryear and his interviews with a number of animation legends have been featured in several volumes of the books, Walt’s People. You can visit Michael’s web site Words From Lyons at: 
For most of the Peanuts TV specials, there was a marked difference between the characters as drawn by Schulz in the comic strip and their animated counterparts. Even as a kid, I noticed that the Charlie Brown who appears in “A Charlie Brown Christmas” is slightly off model from his comic strip appearance. I came to recognize the difference between the “animated Peanuts” and the “Schulz-drawn Peanuts.” It’s subtle, but it’s there. However, in “Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown,” the animated characters remarkably match the comic strip characters. It’s as though Schulz himself drew every frame. Re-watching the special last night, I did not detect one off-model pose. There is one bit, I believe one of the mailbox sequences, where Charlie turns his head and each turn of the head corresponds to Schulz’ drawing of the character at each angle. I don’t know how the animators achieved it, but in this one they perfectly synched the characters to the comic strip versions. Schulz’ drawing style comes to life quite literally in this special.
There also seems to be a subtle message in this storyline. As the specials progressed, it became evident that Charlie Brown’s failures were often the result of his own character flaws. In this instance, not once is Charlie Brown shown getting or making a Valentine for somebody else. The closest he comes is when he demonstrates to Sally how to cut out a paper heart. (His skill with scissors seems to have improved since the “Great Pumpkin” days.) But he does not give out any Valentines in the school party scene. He expects to get, but he does not give. And how realistic is it to bring a suitcase to carry Valentines in, when he knows he is unpopular? His continual optimism can be viewed as a positive example for children–but what about putting giving ahead of getting? I can imagine this special gave many parents an opportunity to discuss the importance of showing generosity. After all it was certainly generous of the many fans to send Valentines to Charlie Brown when he had no one but himself to blame for not receiving any.
That said, Happy St. Valentine’s Day!
At the beginning of the clip, Charlie Brown is shown walking down the hallway with an armful of Valentines, which he then deposits into the box on the table.
Where did you watch it? I’ve been searching all over the net for it but the only website I found that had it for free was taking forever to load. Would love to watch it!
I watched the clip at the end of the post. I haven’t seen the whole special in years.
I’m old-fashioned. I have the DVD.
Ironic, isn’t it? There was a time when having a DVD player put one ahead of the curve. Now all physical media is going the way of the dinosaur.
There is a link to the full special at the end of the post.
The original soundtrack CD to this special was recently released by the Mendelson family.
https://www.amazon.com/Be-My-Valentine-Charlie-Brown/dp/B0DM2LLWNZ/ref=sr_1_1?crid=15SX8JB9WG4GN&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.onM0XBy4lXcyEah-Bx7NR5Oc7eP4LnB8QgUSVoy4uBcN-2fBsMxZWGf8Ie9Pq-AEQx7knDHi-p6U03XHeqYRZ8fBb_bE0rX92rPV_Nc5QK4.6Bw5QRjHyk1s-E8Rt3VSKw5heiHuKuV38BrRg9Ulwbw&dib_tag=se&keywords=be+my+valentine+charlie+brown+cd&qid=1739582917&sprefix=be+my+valentine+ch%2Caps%2C60&sr=8-1
People can watch the special on Apple TV as well as on disc. It’s usually on sale at Walmart at this time every year, and I’m sure there are dozens of used copies available at record and thrift shops.
On one hand, it’s a shame they never air the Peanuts specials on television like they used to. But at least on the upside, Apple TV has kept the tradition going in a sort of new way. Even better to purchase a physical copy if you can 😉.