Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz first published... 1950

November 26, 1922 — Charles Monroe Schulz was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, as the only child of Dena and Carl Schulz, a hard-working St. Paul barber. An uncle nicknamed him "Sparky" after Sparkplug, a horse in the Barney Google comic strip.

1920s — His kindergarten teacher at Mattocks School in St. Paul told him, "Some day, Charles, you are going to be an artist."

1930s — As a boy, Schulz was interested in comics, especially Popeye and the characters created by Walt Disney.

1934 — The Schulz family was given a black and white dog that was the inspiration for Snoopy; his name was Spike.

1937 — Schulz’s first published drawing, a sketch of Spike, was included in the newspaper comics feature Believe it or Not by Robert Ripley.

1939/40 — Schulz enrolled in a correspondence cartoon course with Federal Schools (later known as Art Instruction Schools) during his senior year in high school.

1940 — Schulz graduated from Central High School in St. Paul. The drawings he contributed to the school yearbook were not included in the publication.

1943 — At age 20, Schulz was drafted into the Army. While in basic training, his mother died of cancer. Schulz served as a machine-gun squad leader in Germany, France, and Austria. He later wrote, "The army taught me all I needed to know about loneliness."

1945 — Schulz returned to St. Paul after being discharged from the army.

1946 — Schulz was hired as an instructor at his alma mater, Art Instruction Schools.

February 1947 — Schulz's first published panel comic, Just Keep Laughing, appeared in the Catholic comic book, Topix; the second and last panel was published that April.

June 8 & 15, 1947 — The Minneapolis Tribune published two comics by Schulz, titledSparky's Li'l Folks.

June 22, 1947 — Schulz’s career as a cartoonist reached a milestone with the publication of his panel comic, Li'l Folks, in the local St. Paul Pioneer Pressnewspaper. The panel ran through January 1950.

1948–1950 — Schulz sold 17 panel comics to The Saturday Evening Post.

1950 — After several rejections, Schulz sold his Li'l Folks strip to United Feature Syndicate. They renamed his strip Peanuts, a title he never liked. October 2, 1950 — Peanuts debuted in seven newspapers. The syndicate paid him $90 for his first month of strips. First Peanuts strip ~ October 2, 1950 1951 — Schulz married Joyce Halverson. After a brief move to Colorado Springs, Colorado, the young family returned to Minneapolis. 1952 — The first Sunday Peanuts page was published; the strip was then featured in over 40 U.S. newspapers. The first book collection, Peanuts, was also published. 1955 — Kodak became the first product sponsor for Peanuts, using the characters in a camera handbook. Schulz won his first Reuben Award from the National Cartoonists Society. 1956 — Schulz began creating a single-panel gag comic called Young Pillars for theYouth magazine, published by the Church of God; these comics were published until 1965. 1958 — Schulz left Minnesota and moved with his wife and five children to Sebastopol, California. At that time,Peanuts appeared in 355 U.S. and 40 foreign newspapers. Hungerford Plastics created the first plastic Peanutsfigures, including Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Linus, and Lucy. Yale University named Schulz "Cartoonist of the Year."

1960 — Hallmark created the first Peanuts greeting cards, and Peanuts art and animation was first used by the Ford Motor Company for their popular Ford Falcon advertising campaign. 1962 — Determined Productions published Happiness is a Warm Puppy, which spent 45 weeks on the New York Times best-seller list, reaching No. 2. Peanuts was named "Best Humor Strip of the Year" by the National Cartoonists Society. 1964 — Schulz became the first cartoonist to be awarded two Reubens by the National Cartoonists Society. April 9, 1965 — Peanuts was featured on cover of Time magazine. December 9, 1965 — The first animated special, A Charlie Brown Christmas, debuted on television and later won a Peabody Award and an Emmy for Outstanding Children's Programming. 1966 — Schulz's father, Carl, died while visiting in California. A fire later destroyed Schulz’s Sebastopol studio. March 7, 1967 — The stage musical, You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown, with music and lyrics by Clark Gesner, opened off Broadway at Theatre 80 in the East Village, later running both in London's East End (1968) and on Broadway (1971), with a Broadway revival in 1999 that won two Tony awards. May 24, 1967 — California Governor Ronald Reagan greeted the cartoonist at the State Capitol in observance of the legislature-proclaimed "Charles Schulz Day." April 28, 1969 — Grand Opening of the Redwood Empire Ice Arena (currently known as Snoopy's Home Ice) in Santa Rosa, California, starring 1968 Olympic Gold Medallist Peggy Fleming and the Vince Guaraldi trio. May 1969 — Charlie Brown and Snoopy accompanied astronauts on Apollo X. December 4, 1969 — The first full-length, animated Peanuts movie debuted at Radio City Music Hall in New York City. The film was later nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Score.

1972 — Charles and Joyce Schulz divorced. 1973 — Schulz and Jean Forsyth Clyde married. Schulz received an Emmy Award for writing his 10th television special, A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving. January 1, 1974 — Schulz presided as the Grand Marshal of the Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena, California. 1975 — Peanuts celebrated its 25th anniversary. It was carried in approximately 1,480 U.S. and 175 foreign newspapers with 90,000,000 readers. The 14th television special,You’re a Good Sport, Charlie Brown, aired in October and later won an Emmy for Outstanding Children's Special. December 5, 1975 — The second major theatrical performance based onPeanuts characters, Snoopy!!! The Musical, premiered at the Little Fox Theatre in San Francisco. Within the next ten years it would also appear off Broadway at Lamb's Theatre and in London's West End at the Duchess Theatre. It had revivals in London and New York in the 2000s. 1978 — The International Pavilion of Humor in Montreal named Schulz "Cartoonist of the Year." 1979 — Happy Birthday, Charlie Brown was published by Schulz and Peanutsproducer Lee Mendelson to celebrate three anniversaries for Peanuts: the 30th year in comics, the 15th year on television, and the 10th year in the movies.

October 24, 1980 — The 20th animated special, Life Is a Circus, Charlie Brown, debuted on television. It later received an Emmy for Outstanding Animated Program. January 1983 — Snoopy's Gallery & Gift Shop opened in Santa Rosa, California, next to the Redwood Empire Ice Arena. May 30, 1983 — The 26th animated television special, What Have We Learned, Charlie Brown?, debuted on television. It later received a Peabody Award for excellence in television programming. 1983 — Camp Snoopy opened at Knott's Berry Farm in Buena Park, California. 1984 — Peanuts qualified for a place in the Guinness Book of World Records after being sold to the 2,000th newspaper. 1985 — For Peanuts 35th anniversary, the book You Don't Look 35, Charlie Brownwas published, and the Oakland Museum of California mounted a separate exhibition, The Graphic Art of Charles Schulz. 1986 — Schulz was inducted into the Cartoonist Hall of Fame by the Museum of Cartoon Art. 1989 — Rheta Grimsley Johnson published Schulz's first authorized biography,Good Grief: The Story of Charles M. Schulz.

January 1990 — The French Ministry of Culture named Schulz "Commander of Arts and Letters." The Snoopy in Fashion exhibition opened at the Louvre in Paris, featuring 300 plush Snoopy dolls dressed by the world's top designers, including Giorgio Armani, Oleg Cassini, Karl Lagerfeld, Christian Lacroix, and Bob Mackie. November 1990 — This Is Your Childhood, Charlie Brown: Children and American Culture, 1945-1968 exhibition opened at the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History in Washington, D.C. 1992 — Snoopy, The Masterpiece exhibit opened at the Montreal Museum of Fine Art. Schulz was also awarded the “Order of Merit” from the Italian Minister of Culture. 1995 — The 45th anniversary of Peanuts was marked by the exhibition Around the Moon and Home Again: A Tribute to the Art of Charles M. Schulz at the Space Center in Houston. June 28, 1996 — Schulz got his own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. March 22, 1997 — World premiere of Peanuts Gallery by composer Ellen Taaffe Zwilich held at Carnegie Hall. The six movements are intended to be musical portraits of different Peanuts characters. March 16, 1997 October 16, 1997 — Schulz and wife Jeannie announced they would give $1 million toward the construction of a D-Day memorial to be placed in Bedford, Virginia. 1999 — Peanuts appeared in more than 2,600 newspapers worldwide, and over 20,000 products had been developed to date. Schulz published Peanuts: A Golden Celebration in anticipation of the 50th anniversary in 2000. December 14, 1999 — Schulz announced his retirement due to health problems.

January 3, 2000 — Charles Schulz bade a fond farewell to all his readers in the final daily Peanuts newspaper strip. January 3, 2000 February 7, 2000 — California lawmakers declared Sunday, February 13th, as "Charles M. Schulz Day" to coincide with the final Peanuts Sunday strip. February 12, 2000 — Charles Schulz died Saturday evening in his home in Santa Rosa of complications from colon cancer; he was 77 years old. February 13, 2000 — The final Sunday Peanuts strip appeared in newspapers around the world. May 2000 — The National Cartoonists Society posthumously awarded the Milton Caniff Lifetime Achievement Award to Schulz. AP photo/ Santa Rosa Press Democrat June 2000 — Ground breaking of Charles M. Schulz Museum and Research Center in Santa Rosa, across from Redwood Empire Ice Arena (Snoopy's Home Ice). May 17, 2001 — First Day of Issue of the U.S. Postal Service Peanutsstamp at Charles Schulz’s Redwood Empire Ice Arena in Santa Rosa, California. June 7, 2001 — Posthumous awarding of the Congressional Gold Medal by the United States Congress to Schulz's family. August 17, 2002 — Grand Opening of the Schulz Museum!  http://www.schulzmuseum.org/timeline.html