Why, Charlie Brown, Why?

TV Short
1990
Not Rated
22m

IMDb RATING

YOUR RATING

Psychological Drama Animation Comedy Drama Family Short

Linus falls for a new girl who soon must go to the hospital for cancer treatment.Linus falls for a new girl who soon must go to the hospital for cancer treatment.Linus falls for a new girl who soon must go to the hospital for cancer treatment.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

7.8/10

1.1K

YOUR RATING

19User reviews

See production info at IMDbPro

Nominated for 1 Primetime Emmy
- 2 nominations total

Photos13

+ 7

Top cast9

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Kaleb Henley

Charlie Brown
(voice)

Brandon Stewart

Linus Van Pelt
(voice)

Olivia Burnette

Janice Emmons
(voice)

Adrienne Stiefel

Sally Brown
(voice)

Jennifer Banko

Lucy Van Pelt
(voice)

Dion Zamora

The Bully
(voice)

Brittany Thornton

Little Sister
(voice)

Lindsay Sloane

Big Sister
(voice)

Bill Melendez

Snoopy
(voice)
…

Director
- Sam Jaimes
Writer
- Charles M. Schulz
All cast & crew
Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

User reviews19

7.81.1K

Featured reviews

10jeremycrimsonfox

Helps Younger Kids Learn About Cancer

A powerful special, Why, Charlie Brown, Why? was created by Charles M. Shultz as a primetime special with insight from the American Cancer Society, telling the tale of Linus' new friend, Janice Emmons, whom he finds out was sent to the hospital and has been diagnosed with leukemia, a type of cancer affecting her bone marrow. Linus goes through a lot in this special, as this affects him to the point where he even won't stand for his sister Lucy's usual antics of being a jerk to everyone.

Yeah, the special is a perfect way to teach kids about cancer, as it has a scene where Janice explains to Linus and Charlie Brown about how the doctors found out she has leukemia, as well as the scene where Linus not taking his sister's beef, which also involves telling her leukemia is not like the cold or flu. Also, good old Snoopy appears to help bring comic relief to balance out the depressing stuff.

10dsnow-1

Great Show

My youngest daughter loved this show and watched it over and over again because we bought it on video. I'm surprised it hasn't been put on DVD by now.

It is a show that deals with the sensitivity about a childhood illness and at the same time brings us some humorous moments with Snoopy. My daughtered loved the part where Snoopy unplugs Charlie Brown's light he's reading by to plug in his Christmas lights.

The most unrealistic part is when the girl has her full head of hair at the end. Nobody's hair grows back that fast after Chemo, but I think the message was is that her hair would grow back. Something the kids needed to know. Most kids like to have happy endings.

No, it wasn't perfect but in my opinion it was done well.

Rosabel

She's Got Cancer, Charlie Brown!

This one will probably continue to hold the award for Most Annoying Shouting By An Aggrieved Child until the 5th Harry Potter book is filmed. These Charlie Brown cartoons always had an unpolished speaking style for the kids' voices, which in the early days was cute and winning. The stilted shouting was funny when it was Linus ranting about the Great Pumpkin. But they use the exact same phony-sounding style when the issue being discussed is cancer, so the whole thing comes off as hokey. The worst part is when Linus lectures an insensitive kid on his cruel comments about the girl who's lost her hair through chemotherapy. It's loud, toneless, and self-righteous, and just made me want to belt him in the mouth, rather than making me feel sympathetic.

7j-yuill

A Great Episode!

I first watched this when I was a little girl and believe me, it stays with you forever! It really helps little kids understand about death. It's the best Charlie Brown episode I've ever seen. I recommend it to anyone who is interested in seeing a great Charlie Brown episode, or anyone who likes Charlie Brown for that fact. It is one you can't miss and can't watch without getting a little teary eyed.

10danieltigerthomasfan

Not Only Is This The Best Peanuts Special, This Is One Of The Best FILMS Ever Made

I Love this movie..... I mean I REALLY Love this movie! From the characters to the animation to the music and the emotional impact! I Lost my 3 grandfathers to cancer. One of them was a huge Peanuts fan. So this hit me right in the heart! Honestly this could be on the same level as a cinematic film like Inside Out or my Favorite Film of all time, The Polar Express! Yes that's how good this movie is! The only other peanuts project that could top this is The Peanuts Movie. Both are in my Top 10 Favorite Movies of all time! They are both perfect and this one in particular is a real emotional wreck! There were 2 moments that made me cry, 1 was when Janice talked about her leukemia and the 2nd was the ending, which was more of a "tears of joy" if you will. I also love the fact that she's got a positive mind set. I honestly have no flaws with this film, I didn't find Sally annoying at all, I thought Snoopy was funny as always and of course it has the amazing Peanuts heart!

Storyline

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Did you know

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Trivia
This is one of the Peanuts specials where Linus' security blanket is not seen or even mentioned.

Goofs
Linus moves from sitting in front of Janice and next to Charlie Brown, to sitting behind Charlie Brown, next to the window, and back.

Quotes
The Bully: [approaches Linus and Janice] Huh? Say, who's the kid with the pink hat? Pretty cute. Does it fly? It needs a propeller. Hey, maybe it'll fly without a propeller!
[he spins off Janice's hat to the snow and laughs to see Janice is bald due to chemotherapy]
The Bully: Hey, look at this! A baldy!
Linus van Pelt: [as Janice cries, furiously] You blockhead! What's the matter with you?
The Bully: What's the matter with me? What's the matter with her? She's bald! She's got no hair!
[laughs]
Linus van Pelt: [angrily takes him by the jacket] Janice has got leukemia, cementhead! That's cancer! Have you ever heard of cancer? She's been in the hospital and she's had chemotherapy to help her get better, and it makes her hair fall out! Does that make you happy? Would you like to go through what she's gone through? Think about it!
[releases him]
Linus van Pelt: Or don't you ever think about anything!
[Linus comforts Janice and picks up their books off the snow]
The Bully: [hands back Janice's cap] I'm sorry.
[Linus takes the cap, gives it to Janice, and both Linus and Janice leave]
The Bully: [smiles in sympathy] Hey, I like your cap!

Crazy credits
Instead of rolling over stills from the special as usual, the credits roll over a black screen. In the last few seconds, Janice is heard laughing happily and her pink cap falls into the frame.