With the release of The Essential Peanuts from Abrams ComicArts, we are delighted to be joined by author, writer and editor Mark Evanier.
Hi Mark, it’s so nice to have you here with us.
Could you please introduce yourself to our readers?
Well, I’ve been a professional writer since I was 17 and now I’m 73 so you can do the math on that. I’ve written comic books, comic strips, animated TV shows, live-action TV shows, jokes for comedians, books about comic books…a little of everything.
Can you tell us about the origins of The Essential Peanuts?
You know, I don’t know much about that. I’ve done a number of books for Abrams ComicArts books and one of the guys in charge there, Charlie Kochman. Charlie and some folks from the Peanuts operation approached me during the 2024 Comic-Con International in San Diego and said, “We’re doing this book and we think you’re the guy to write it” and I said, “Yeah, I think I’m the guy to write it.” And that’s how it happened. I think the felt they couldn’t let the 75th anniversary of Peanuts pass without a big, spectacular book.
When did you discover Peanuts?
As I write in the book, I’m not sure. It’s like asking me, “When did you discover chocolate?” It was just something that was always there as of the moment when I was old enough to read and understand a comic strip. My father loved newspapers so we always had them around the house and I’d seek out all the comic strips but especially Peanuts.
Do you have a favourite Peanuts comic strip?
How can you pick one? But I did make sure that the book included one of my favorite sequences, which is the one where Charlie Brown’s team actually wins a baseball game and then the commissioner of whatever league they were in rules that they lost their “win” because a member of the team bet on the game. I won’t tip which one it was in case anybody reading this doesn’t know.
How would you describe the legacy of Charles M. Schulz?
Well, that’s kind of what I wrote this book about. His legacy is vast not only in terms of how the strips will always be reprinted and enjoyed by later generations and how they’ll watch the TV shows too. But the strip also became part of so many lives and it meant so much to so many.
What can you tell us about The Essential Peanuts?
It’s $75. Amazon has it for a few bucks less. And it’s highly essential.
A big thank you to Mark for chatting with us, and we wish him the best of luck for the release of The Essential Peanuts.
