Legal Matters
More than anything else, we get e-mail from folks wanting us to send them images of Charlie Brown, or Snoopy, or Lucy at her psychiatrist's booth, or Schroeder at his piano. Some people ask nicely. Others do not.
Our answer, regardless of the manner in which the question is phrased, is always the same:
We can't.
We're not allowed to. United Media, which owns the copyright to all Peanuts art, strictly forbids us -- or anybody else -- from sharing or sending licensed art of Charles Schulz's characters in any way, shape or form.
The sole exception is the graphic that United Media provides, at their website, for your use as an illustrated link to their pages. Under specific circumstances that you are obliged to follow, you may use that picture on your page(s). But that's the only one.
Please do not shoot us as the messenger here. We do not make the rules, but we are obliged to follow them...just as you are.
And it does you no good to whine or snarl about "that expletive-deleted United Media and its big-shot lawyers," or phrases even less pleasant than that. If you do, you're merely demonstrating your own ignorance. If you're one of many folks who had a homepage with illegal Peanuts art, and was ordered by United Media to remove the images or face legal reprisal, it is ridiculous to subsequently use your website as a forum for wailing about everything that is unfair in the universe.
(Rule #1 in life: We don't always get what we want. Sad, but true.)
Understand this, if you understand nothing else:
Copyright laws are in place to protect Charles Schulz and the work that is rightfully his.
Take his artwork, even for something as "harmless" as a homepage, and you are stealing from the man who created Charlie Brown, Snoopy and the rest of the Peanuts gang. It's that simple.
If you still do not understand this, or simply are curious about the intricacies of copyright law, please visit Brad Templeton's website at this address, where you'll find his words of wisdom on "Ten Big Myths About Copyright Explained":
http://www.clari.net/brad/copymyths.html
He goes through it all simply, with specific references to Internet use. When you've finished reading it, you'll understand why we posted a link to his site, rather than reprinting the article itself.
And please...be mature. We at the Peanuts Collector Club like to think we're nice, pleasant, sensitive folks...and part of that sensitivity concerns our understanding and appreciation of Charles Schulz's wishes, and the best way to protect his property.