Library exhibit features Franklin from Peanuts

Comic strip backstory explained

Liz Kneer, the Waupaca Area Public Library’s exhibit room coordinator, rounded up an exhibit from the Charles M. Schulz Museum and Research Center in Santa Rosa, California.

Titled “Franklin,” the exhibit explains the origin of the Peanut Gang’s Black character.

After the assassination of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., a Los Angeles school teacher contacted Charles Schulz about how his comic strip could influence race relations in a positive way.

Schulz wanted to add a Black character and he brought Franklin to life in the summer of 1968. The reaction was positive and he received stacks of grateful fan mail.

Throughout the exhibit room are panels explaining Franklin’s origin and notes about his character, correspondence with Schulz and biographical information about the artist. There are also papers and markers for children to sketch their own Peanuts comic strip.

The exhibit is on loan from the research center and will be on display until Feb. 10, 2024. All exhibits are free and open to the public during regular library hours.