In this TV Time Machine interview, host Jim Benson welcomes a legend in the field of television animation, Lee Mendelson. Producer of A Charlie Brown Christmas and scores of Peanuts specials including It’s a Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown and A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, Mr. Mendelson and his late partner Bill Melendez helped craft many of the most beloved and culturally significant television productions of the past half-century. 
In the following audio segments, host Jim Benson and Lee Mendelson help us explore every aspect of A Charlie Brown Christmas and Mr. Mendelson’s classic animated specials, and examine how in the transient world of TV entertainment, the Peanuts gang featuring Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Linus and Lucy continue to be remembered-and loved-from generation to generation.
Listen to the Interview Below
A Charlie Brown Christmas interview part one
In this segment, A Charlie Brown Christmas producer Lee Mendelson talks with host Jim Benson about growing up in San Francisco, and producing a 1963 documentary about Willie Mays that ultimately led to meeting Charles Schultz and producing the classic Peanuts holiday special. Mr. Mendelson also discusses hiring noted jazz musician Vince Guaraldi to compose the music for the Christmas special, and how the now-classic score transformed the entire Peanuts TV special franchise.
