An unlucky little boy and his daydreaming beagle form the core of Peanuts, the beloved comic strip of Charles Schulz (1922–2000). The comic strip has entertained newspaper readers daily since 1950. Despite creator Schulz's death in 2000, Peanuts lives on in the form of its timeless humor and instantly recognizable characters.

Originally titled Li'l Folks, Peanuts debuted on October 2, 1950. Within a decade, the four-panel strip was appearing in over four hundred newspapers nationwide. Readers quickly took to Schulz's gentle humor and likable characters. Charlie Brown was the "hero" of the strip, a lovable loser who was repeatedly blocked in his attempts to kick a football by his overbearing neighbor, Lucy Van Pelt. Snoopy, Charlie Brown's pet beagle, became something of a national sensation. The adorable pooch loafed atop his doghouse and imagined himself as a flying ace during World War I (1914–18). Snoopy was joined later by a bird sidekick named Woodstock...