Peanuts Holiday Specials to Air on PBS in Deal With Apple
The long run of A Charlie Brown Christmas on over-the-air TV will continue, at least for this year.
Apple — which earlier this year snapped up the rights to the classic holiday special, along with other parts of the Peanuts catalog — has cut a deal with PBS under which A Charlie Brown Christmas and A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving will air on the public broadcaster. The deal ensures that viewers without access to Apple's TV+ streaming platform can still see the two specials.
The Thanksgiving special will air Nov. 22 on PBS stations, while A Charlie Brown Christmas is set for Dec. 13. Apple will also stream the two shows free for non-subscribers for a short time — Nov. 27 for Thanksgiving and Dec. 11-13 for Christmas.
A Charlie Brown Christmas premiered on CBS in 1965 and has aired on a broadcast network every year since (CBS through 2000 and ABC since 2001). Apple's agreement with PBS will extend that for one more year. A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving debuted in 1973 and has aired on CBS, Disney Channel, Nickelodeon and ABC, the latter for the past 19 years.
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/peanuts-holiday-specials-to-air-on-pbs-in-deal-with-apple