Two things about this old special. 

1) CBS execs. absolutely hated it when they first saw it and didn't even want to air it. They hated the pacing, the music and the animation and thought it was too slow and too religious. But because they had a sponsor (The Coca-Cola Company) it got on air anyway. The ratings for that first showing proved how wrong they'd been but if they had their way, it never would have seen the light of day. 

2) There were a lot of people very upset when it was announced a few years ago that AppleTV+ had acquired the rights to this Xmas classic, and that the only way to see it was subscribe to the streaming service. It created quite a backlash against Apple, but it remains in their possession for the foreseeable future. 

If you are a huge fan of this thing and feel it's just not Christmas without seeing it, you're not out of luck. I guess the wave of anger reached someone at Apple which has announced that it will be showing "Charlie Brown" free - without a subscription - on Dec. 16th and 17th (next Saturday and Sunday.) That 48 hour window is the only time it will be shown gratis. 

And for those upset about this classic being behind a paywall, perhaps perennially, I can only say get used to it. I suspect you're seeing  - or not seeing, if you're not a subscriber - the future of TV. And it will inevitably cost you. 

The soundtrack, by the Vince Guaraldi Trio, is a masterpiece and probably my favourite Christmas album.


 

In two year's time, celebrating 60 years? WOW! Where did the time go??
 

20 facts you might not know about 'A Charlie Brown Christmas'