"It seems beyond the comprehension of people that someone can be born to draw comic strips, but I think I was," says Charles M. Schulz, creator of Peanuts. "My ambition from earliest memory was to produce a daily comic strip." And that is exactly what Schulz has done every day since Peanuts debuted in seven newspapers on October 2, 1950.

Born in St. Paul, Minnesota, on Nov. 26, 1922, Schulz was nicknamed "Sparky" after Barney Google's horse "Sparkplug". His fascination with comic strips began early, reading the Sunday comics from four different newspapers with his father each week. With encouragement from his father, a barber, and his mother, Schulz enrolled in a correspondence course in cartooning at what is now the Art Instruction Schools.

His career in cartooning was interrupted in 1943 when he was drafted into the Army and he soon embarked for Europe in the fight against Germany. Upon his return, Schulz landed his first job in cartooning at Timeless Topix, a Catholic comics magazine. Soon after, he took on a second job as a teacher at Art Instruction, where he worked with Charlie Brown, Linus and Frieda, who later lent their names to the Peanuts comic strip.

Schulz's first break came in 1947 when he sold a cartoon feature called "Li'l Folks" to the St. Paul Pioneer Press. "Li'l Folks" ran as a weekly feature for two years. In 1948 he sold a cartoon panel to the Saturday Evening Post and would go on to sell 15 more panels between 1948 and 1950. In 1950, after many mailbox rejections, Schulz boarded a train from St. Paul to New York with a handful of drawings for a meeting with United Feature Syndicate. On Oct. 2 of that year, Peanuts, named by the syndicate, debuted in seven newspapers. When asked if he thought the strip would be a success, Schulz replied, "Sure, I thought it would last. In fact, when I started out I thought, I'll be drawing this for the rest of my life."

More than 40 years later, Peanuts appears in 2,600 newspapers worldwide and Charles M. Schulz has become a household name. The strip has maintained its universal appeal throughout nearly half a century. "As a youngster, I didn't realize how many Charlie Browns there were in the world," said Schulz. "I thought I was the only one. Now I realize that Charlie Brown's goofs are familiar to everybody, adults and children alike."

Unlike many top-rank cartoonists, Schulz draws every comic strip without the assistance of an art staff. More than 16,000 comic strips since the launch, Schulz remains dedicated to Peanuts. "Why do musicians compose symphonies and poets write poems?" asks Schulz. "They do it because life wouldn't have any meaning for them if they didn't. That's why I draw cartoons. It's my life." Among numerous honors, Schulz has been inducted into the Cartoonists Hall of Fame, and has received two Reuben Awards from the National Cartoonists Society (Outstanding Cartoonist and Best Humor Strip), The Commandeur des Artes et Lettres from the French Ministry of Culture, and The Award of Merit from the Italian Ministry of Culture.

Working six weeks ahead of publication deadlines on daily and Sunday strips, Schulz also writes the scripts and storyboards for the Peanuts television specials, earning five Emmy and two Peabody Awards, and is involved in all aspects of the Peanuts publishing and licensing programs through United Media in New York. His company, Creative Associates, was formed in 1970 to handle his business affairs and assist in maintaining the high quality standards associated with Peanuts.

Although the strip remains his first love, Schulz is also an avid ice skater and hockey player and is the only non-hockey professional to be presented the coveted Patrick Award for his contributions to the game. To share skating with his community, he built the Redwood Empire Ice Arena near his home in Santa Rosa, Calif. In addition, he has a long-time passion for golf, and regularly participates in the Pro Am at Pebble Beach, Calif., and enjoys tennis.

Charles M. Schulz passed away on Saturday, February 12, 2000 due to complications from colon cancer, a day before his final "Peanuts" cartoon ran in the Sunday editions of newspapers across the country. He was 77 years old. He was inducted into the NATAS Silver Circle in 1997.