Spring is almost here, flowers are blooming, birds are singing and Snoopy is ready to take on the role of the Easter Beagle!
Here are some fun facts about the history of the Easter Beagle*:
A Hopping Debut
Snoopy first appeared as “, but Charles Schulz did not give the character the name “the Easter Beagle” until three years later.
In that first 1968 strip, Linus was the only one to witness “the Easter Bunny” dancing around the front yard and hiding eggs in the bushes—Lucy was too busy watching television to notice.
On Sunday, April 11, 1971, the Easter Beagle made his official comic-strip debut. Again, Linus was the first one to interact with him (although it’s Lucy who gets the Beagle kiss!).
As with the Great Pumpkin, Linus is often the Easter Beagle’s messenger in the comic strips, alerting the other characters to the upcoming appearance of the Easter Beagle.
During his April 2, 1972 appearance, the Easter Beagle delivers eggs to the members of the Peanuts gang…but discovers his basket is empty when he gets to Charlie Brown. This idea was adapted into the animated television special.
- Fortunately, the following year, on April 22, 1973, Charlie Brown does receive an Easter egg—this time from the Easter Beagle’s assistant: Woodstock!
- After two more Easter Beagle strips in 1975 and 1976, the character made his last appearance on April 7, 1985—when Sally got the Charlie Brown treatment.
Charles Schulz once said in an interview that the Easter Beagle was his favorite of all of Snoopy’s alter egos.
A TV Star Is Born
- The Easter Beagle made his television debut on April 9, 1974, when CBS first aired It’s the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown.
- This was the 12th animated special to be based on the Peanuts comic strip, and the fourth to be associated with a holiday (the others are A Charlie Brown Christmas, It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, and A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving).
- Much of the special concerns Peppermint Patty’s disastrous (and hilarious) attempts to make Easter eggs—she tries roasting them, toasting them, and putting them in a waffle maker before trying to boil them (and making egg soup!).
- Linus sounds the alert, letting everyone know that the Easter Beagle is coming. Sally, however, is a little suspicious, since the last time she believed Linus’s reports on a famous holiday character, she missed all the trick or treating while waiting with Linus in a pumpkin patch for the non-arrival of the Great Pumpkin.
*Courtesy the Peanuts Wiki: peanuts.wikia.com
This year, It’s the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown will air on ABC. (Date and time to be announced.)
Win an Easter Beagle Prize Pack
The Gift Pack will include the following:
An irresistible Easter Beagle porch greeter, delivering happiness to every household
A DVD of It’s the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown, offering holiday joy all year round
Candy! (What Easter basket would be complete without it?) You’ll enjoy chocolate Easter eggs and delicious fruit sugar candies.
Dianna Ranere
My favorite Easter memory was the first year my oldest was able to do the Easter Egg hunt, toddling around!
My favorite Easter memory is when my cousin showed up at our house the day before Easter. I remember my mom splitting all of our baskets to make him one. It was the best Easter we had. Being able to share with him and have him stay with us for awhile. It was like gaining a brother.
My favorite Easter memory was when I was four years old and my older sisters hid Easter Eggs around the house and yard and my little sister and I had an Easter Egg hunt. It was so sweet that they would do things like that for us. I also remember owning It’s The Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown on VHS and watching it Easter Sunday with my little sister. It was a simpler time back then 🙂
My favorite is a picture I have of my siblings and myself at the beach with our grandparents on Easter in 1969. I love the beach and hunting for Easter eggs!
One of my favorite memories is going to my grandmother’s house for Easter. We always wore dresses and Easter bonnets, went to church, then went to my grandmother’s house for dinner. She’d have chocolate bunnies for all the grandchildren.
My favorite Easter memory, is taking the kids to visit my parents on their farm and hunting for Easter eggs. Watching them get all excited when they find one. So cute all dressed up. Awww the memories. They are older now and we have moved to another state, best memories I have!
I do remember being very young and waking up to a wonderful Easter Basket with an adorable toy puppy in it. I was so happy.
My Mom and I always watch the Peanuts specials each holiday and It’s the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown was my favorite!
I remember the year we had homemade Easter baskets made of milk cartons – they were cute
My favorite Easter memory is finding my Easter basket in the morning and hunting for eggs
My favorite Easter memory is of my younger sisters & I going to the City Halls Easter egg hunt together and having a great time. The hunt was held at a small city park and you could run around looking for hidden eggs with prizes inside, go jump on the bouncy castle, have your face painted and more. We use to have such fun…careless free moments. ♡♡♡
We starting planting trees every Easter when the kids got older. Sort of a celebration of life. My fav memory is the first year the youngest picked a flowering cherry tree. She wanted to know if it was going grow eggs 🙂
I enjoyed going on an Easter Egg Hunt with my family!
My favorite Easter memory is the year my youngest son’s birthday fell on Easter Sunday. We had a huge egg hunt as part of his party. All the kids had a blast.
My favorite Easter memory is going to sunrise service with my family and then going to my Grannies house for a Easter egg hunt and dinner!
My favorite Easter memory is watching my son find his Easter basket and hunt for eggs.
I can remember an Easter years ago when my youngest brother took his Easter basket to bed with him and woke up covered in chocolate. My parents took pictures of him that morning.
My favorite Easter memory was when I was ten I went Easter egg hunt
My favorite is the time my aunts and uncles kept stealing and re-hiding my basket because they felt that the Easter Bunny hadn’t hid it well enough.
My favorite Easter memory is finding the baskets and eggs with my sister
My favorite of Easter memory was last year when we made fake bunny footprints on the floor and watched the kids freak out.
My favorite Easter memory was my grandson’s first Easter. It was a great feeling to watch his excitement and live it all over again since my daughters are grown.
My favorite memory is believing in the Easter Bunny, but one year I thought I heard the Easter Bunny, but I looked out and saw my Mom tip toeing around and putting the Easter candy and gifts in my basket and my sister’s basket. I kept it a secret for years that I knew my Mom was the Easter bunny!
My favorite memory is when my son with autism starting to get into looking for Easter eggs. He just started to enjoy Easter and that makes Easter so much fun.
My favorite Easter memory is of my first egg hunt, I had no idea what I was doing and my cousin and brother had to share their eggs with me.
My daughter’s 2nd Easter last year was my favorite! It was her first egg hunt and she had such a blast! It was so much fun!
My favorite was the year I got a HUGE stuffed rabbit and I remember taking it to church with us and everybody wanted to pet it because it’s fur was so soft.
My favorite Easter memory is celebrating with an Easter cake shaped as a bunny. My Mom would always buy us kids one for Easter and we were so excited when she brought it home 🙂
My favorite Easter memory is when my mom would dress all 7 of us kids in beautiful dresses and suits and going to church.
My favorite Easter memory is seeing all the candy goodies in my Easter baskets! 🙂
My favorite easter memory was when my daughter was born on easter of 2009. 🙂
My favorite Easter memory is coloring eggs with my grandma.
Easter a few years ago when our son was 3. It was the 1st year he really understood what was going on and our egg hunt was epic!! 🙂
I still remember an Easter scavenger hunt that my mom did for my sister and me.
Having an Easter egg hunt in my parent’s backyard with my brothers and sister was my favorite memory
My favorite Easter memories were watching my kids find their Easter baskets.
My favorite is when my nieces and i dye the eggs,and have an Easter egg hunt.
My favorite Easter memory is going to see the Easter Bunny at the mall as a child. Thanks for the giveaway. I hope that I win.
My favorite Easter memories are making bunny footprints all over the carpet with baby powder and my daughter waking up Easter morning and being so excited that the Easter bunny had been there.
I loved dying eggs and doing easter egg hunts as a kid.
My favorite easter memory is all the easter egg hunts we used to do around the house.
My favorite Easter memory was when my whole family was in town together and we had a big dinner. My uncle ate three plates of food and passed out on the couch. My grandma drank a little too much wine and kept joking about getting high at bridge. It was just a fun time with my family.
My favorite Easter memory is Easter egg hunts.
My favorite Easter memory is going to the nursing home my grandma was in when I was a kid and doing their easter egg hunt.
My daughter’s first Easter Egg Hunt is my favorite.
My favorite Easter memory would be last year when our oldest was able to play with his Easter basket.
I remember my son’s first Easter Egg hunt. So special!
I loved finding the eggs and basket
My favorite memory is dressing up and going to church for Easter and then having an egg hunt! It was always so much fun. Now with 3 kids of my own we carry on the traditions.
Having an Easter egg hunt when i was little with my twin sister and older siblings.
My favorite memory would be our daughter’s first easter meeting the Easter bunny and doing our easter egg hunt.
She was all dressed up in her little dress her voice was like a little baby lamb.
Oh one of my favorites was last year…we did the eggs with glow lights for a small nighttime hunt. Oh we had so much fun finding them all! We decided we have to do this every year!
It’s hard to say if my favorite memory is with my own kids or as a kid with my parents. My parents always made Easter so much fun – my dad always got a kick out of hiding candy way too high for me to reach and I, course, love doing the same to my kids.
My favorite memory is one easter when we were looking for our easter candy my brother, whon would trample my sister and I to try and get the candy, was in such a rush that he stepped on some tacks that had fallen behind a bookcase that we had. That slowed him down a bit.