The Complete Peanuts Family Album. Andrew Farago

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      27CHARLIE BROWN

      CHARLIE BROWN

      g

      ood ol’ Charlie Brown, unlucky at love, unlucky at

      school, unlucky at sports. You name it—he finds

      some new and unusual ways to fail at it. But no matter

      what life throws at the wishy-washy, round-headed kid, he

      always tries his best and never gives up.

      Charlie Brown eats, sleeps, and breathes baseball, but

      his love for the game never leads to success on the field.

      Each spring, he manages the world’s worst team through

      yet another losing season. His performance as the team’s

      pitcher results in some of the most spectacular highlights

      ever witnessed on the baseball diamond—for the other

      team. His cap, shirt, shoes, and socks are knocked off by

      line drives, and he even spends an inning upside down

      after a really solid hit. And with the exception of two home

      runs in his entire Little League career, he never comes

      through with a clutch performance when a close game is

      on the line.

      His athletic difficulties aren’t confined to a single

      season, as he’s equally hapless at all sports. Every year,

      Lucy convinces him to attempt a placekick while she

      holds a football for him, and every year, she pulls it away

      and he lands flat on his back. Even the gentle pastime of

      kite flying has proven dangerous for him: He either ends

      up hopelessly tangled up in miles of string or stands by

      helplessly as the Kite-Eating Tree devours his latest flyer.

      Charlie Brown is a thoroughly average student,

      although he could probably be an “A” student if not for his

      insecurities and performance anxiety. Fear of failure, fear of

      success, and, as Lucy once successfully points out, “fear of

      everything” always seems to hold him back. His unrequited

      crush on his classmate known only as the Little Red-Haired

      Girl goes unfulfilled in part because he can never bring

      himself to approach her. As he once observes, “They say

      opposites attract. . . . She’s really something and I’m really

      nothing. . . . How opposite can you get?”

      Despite his anxieties, or possibly because of them, his

      friends appreciate his company and know that they can

      always count on good ol’ Charlie Brown, whether he wins

      or not. As Linus says, “Of all the Charlie Browns in the

      world, you’re the Charlie Browniest!”

      Charles Schulz and his lead character shared many

      similarities, and Schulz projected many of his own

      insecurities onto Charlie Brown. These universal feelings

      of anxiety and melancholy have been embraced by

      generations of readers worldwide. “Charlie Brown is the

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