Good grief! Americans are angry ‘A Charlie Brown Christmas’ is not on television

The animated television special “A Charlie Brown Christmas” has been part of the holiday season since 1965, but a new national survey found a majority of Americans are unhappy that it is not being on television this year.

According to a national survey of 1,000 American consumers fielded by QuestionPro, more than 75% of respondents were either “really sad” or “mad as hell” that “A Charlie Brown Christmas” could only be seen on Apple TV+. Nearly 90% of respondents said they enjoy watching the Charlie Brown holiday shows, which were originally seen on CBS and later on PBS. Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) bought the exclusive rights to the Charlie Brown holiday franchise in 2020. The only way to watch the show this year will be as an on-demand program through the Apple TV+ streaming service.

“The great irony is the show, which rails against the rampant commercialization of Christmas, now appears to have fallen victim to it,” said Dan Fleetwood, president of research and surveys at QuestionPro. “In the show, Lucy notes that Christmas is run by a big Eastern Syndicate. In real life, consumers are pointing the finger at the big ”˜Western Syndicate”™ ”“ Apple.”

And if Apple TV+ believed having the exclusive rights to “A Charlie Brown Christmas” would help boost its subscription base, more than 75% of respondents said they would not subscribe in order to watch the show. And 88.4% of respondents called on Apple to return the Charlie Brown holiday shows to public television.

The streaming service costs $6.99 per month, and there is a seven-day free trial.

Photo courtesy of Apple TV+