The art for a 1966 Christmas themed Sunday Peanuts comic strip and signed by Charles Schulz as “Sparky” set a record for an original Peanuts when it went for $360,000.00 at a Heritage Auctions sale.
A Charlie Brown Christmas was released on television for the first time on 12-9-65. Just a year later, this Sunday came out. It is a call-back to a beloved scene in the animated special where in Linus reads from Luke and reminds everyone of the true meaning of Christmas. And if that isn’t enough of a Christmas present for you, it is also personalized and signed as “Sparky” in Panel #1. Schulz only signed his nickname on items for personal friends.
From Antiques and The Arts Weekly:
The sale, which took place during the auction house’s September 8-12 Comics & Comic Art Signature Auction, shatters two previous Schulz records held by Heritage.
In December, drawings Schultz made for the 1953 promotional The Peanuts Album sold for $288,000 during the auction house’s December 11-13 Animation Art event. That toppled a previous high-water mark set in November 2020, when a November 17, 1950, Peanuts daily strip realized $192,000.
It may come as no surprise that this December 18, 1966, comic is now the world’s most valuable Schulz strip.
