The Charlie Brown and the Great Exhibit at MSI [w/ video]

As the temperature drops even lower from here on, families are sure to be on a hunt for some indoor outings. Luckily a new temporary exhibit at the Museum of Science of Industry just opened the  Charlie Brown and the Great Exhibit brought from Santa Rosa, California’s  Charles M. Schulz Museum . The exhibit gives you a deeper peek into Charles Schulz and his legendary work. Besides a lot of historical information on Schulz, families are sure to enjoy all the interactive and educational activities. Discover Snoopy’s doghouse, play Schroeder’s piano,  even learn to draw and color the Peanut gang, and more.

The Chicagonistas attended the opening day and so check out how much fun we had below!

Here are some fun facts on Charles Schulz: (provided by MSI)

• Charles Schulz revolutionized the comic strip and profoundly affected cartoon history with his single-handed dedication to the art, wit, and wisdom of Peanuts. For nearly 50 years he researched, wrote, designed, and drew each Peanuts strip that appeared in daily and Sunday newspapers. From the comic strip’s humble beginnings in 1950, appearing in only seven newspapers, Peanuts’ popularity and influence spread rapidly and widely. At the time of Schulz’s retirement, Peanuts was published in more than 2,600 newspapers in 75 countries and had more than 355 million readers.
• In 1934, the Schulz family was given a black and white dog named Spike. The terrier impressed the family with his wild ways and intelligence – he could understand about 50 words. Spike would later become the inspiration for Snoopy. (Spike also became the namesake for Snoopy’s brother!)
• Working for the Art Instruction Schools after his stint in the Army, Schulz found inspiration in coworkers Charlie Brown, Linus Mauer, and Frieda Rich, whose names would later fiure prominently in his comic strip. He also met and began dating Donna Johnson, who would immortalized in Peanuts as the “Little Red-haired Girl.”
• Schulz got the idea for Pigpen from a friend in Colorado who sometimes referred to hi children  by unusual names, one of them being Pigpen.