THIS IS AMERICA, CHARLIE BROWN: THE BUILDING OF THE TRANSCONTINENTAL RAILROAD (TV)
Summary
One in this eight-part miniseries which stars the "Peanuts" characters as they are transported into the past and future to participate in various events in American history. In this episode, part five of eight, the greatest construction project in history, the transcontinental railroad, is explained by Charlie Brown in an oral report for school. Information and events covered in the report include the following: The government began funding the railroad project in 1863 with a goal of completing a thousand-mile-long railroad going west from Omaha, Nebraska, and east from Sacramento, California. The Union Pacific, which built westward, achieved tremendous progress because the stretches of land it went over were flat and manageable. On the other hand, the Central Pacific, which built eastward, was dubbed "the tortoise" because of its slow progress. People didn't realize that the Sierra Nevada Mountains were standing in the way. Also many workers were lured away from the railroad project by the prospect of finding gold. This prompted the government to employ thousands of Chinese workers, who were joined by youngsters (in this account) such as Charlie Brown, Snoopy, and Linus. The Chinese workers toiled around the clock and made progress quicker than ever imagined. The advancement of the Union Pacific prompted the growth of small towns which in turn offered lodging and entertainment, such as Schroeder playing the piano in a saloon and Snoopy's cousin, Spike, performing on the harmonica. As progress was being made by both sides, difficulties arose because of the severe winters the Central Pacific faced which trapped the workers seven thousand feet up in Sierra Nevadas. The Union Pacific had to deal with attacks from the Native Americans whose lifestyle was being threatened by the railroad. The two sides began to turn the construction into a race, but President Ulysses S. Grant proclaimed that the last spike would be driven at Promontory, Utah. In this account of the ceremony, both the governor of California and the president of the Union Pacific miss hitting the gold spike and Snoopy drives it in himself. Charlie Brown also points out that despite the success of the railroad, there were many negative aspects such as workers being underpaid for their efforts, the many men who lost their lives during the construction, and the fact that the Chinese workers were never publicly acknowledged for their gallant work. Commercials deleted.
Details
- NETWORK: CBS
- DATE: February 10, 1989 8:00 PM
- RUNNING TIME: 0:24:20
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: T:42660
- GENRE: Animation; Education/Information
- SUBJECT HEADING: Animation; Children's programs; History - United States; Railroad construction workers; Railroads - United States
- SERIES RUN: CBS - TV, 1989
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- Lee Mendelson … Executive Producer, Writer
- Bill Melendez … Producer, Writer
- Sam Nicholson … Director
- Al Wilzbach … Animation
- Ed Love … Animation
- Lars Colonius … Animation
- Brad Case … Animation
- Brenda Banks … Animation
- Terry Guy … Animation
- Edy Benjamin … Animation
- Valerie Gifford … Animation
- Leticia Lichtwardt … Animation
- Charles M. Schulz … Created by
- Ed Bogas … Music by
- Erin Chase … Voice
- Brandon Stewart … Voice
- Curtis Andersen … Voice
- Gregg Berger … Voice
- Bill Melendez … Voice