This half-hour Christmas show is one of the truly lovable animated specials in TV history; a status proved by its annual network telecast since 1965. A Charlie Brown Christmas was the first; and best; of a series of programs based on the Charles M. Schulz cartoon strip "Peanuts." Hapless hero Charlie Brown finds himself depressed at Christmastime; searching for the true meaning of the holiday amidst the glitz and commercialism of the modern age. Appointed director of the school holiday pageant; Charlie Brown ventures out with Linus to buy "a great; big; shiny aluminum Christmas tree." Instead they bring back a miserable tree--a real one. A Charlie Brown Christmas shows off the "Peanuts" gang doing what they do best: Lucy is bossy; Snoopy is crazy; Linus is sweet; and Pig Pen is; well; filthy. Instead of using adult actors trying to sound like kids; the production features real children providing the voices; an endearing effect. The jazz music score; composed by Vince Guaraldi; has become a classic in its own right; like so much about this program; it's an unexpected but perfectly right choice. --Robert Horton