1605942166
Unpacking Peanuts

Advertise on podcast: Unpacking Peanuts

Rating
★★★★★
4.7
from
73 reviews
This podcast has
199 episodes
Language
English
Date created
2022/01/19
Latest episode
2026/10/06
Average duration
68 min.
Release period
13 days

Description

The show where three cartoonists take an in-depth look at the greatest comic strip of all time-- Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz. Undeniably one of the most influential cartoonists in history, Unpacking Peanuts examines Schulz’s contributions to art, storytelling, and pop culture. Hosts Jimmy Gownley, Harold Buchholz, and Michael Cohen bring their lifelong love and admiration of Peanuts to the conversation. The interaction between the hosts is genuinely funny and insightful as they discuss the strip’s impact on the medium and the world.

Unlock Unpacking Peanuts podcast Email contact info,
Listeners & Audience details

Email contact information

Direct podcast contact details

Listeners

Audience numbers & engagement insights

Audience details

Podcast Insights

Podcast episodes

Check latest episodes from Unpacking Peanuts podcast


Acting! With Patrick McDonnell
2026/10/06
World-renowned creator of Mutts, Patrick McDonnell, returns to the show to discuss the subtleties and eccentricities of Schulz’s use of body language, gesture and acting. All of Patrick's books are available at Mutts.com. Transcript available at UnpackingPeanuts.com Jimmy’s, Michael’s, and Harold’s books are available at UnpackingPeanuts.com/store. Unpacking Peanuts is copyright Jimmy Gownley, Michael Cohen, Harold Buchholz, and Liz Sumner. Produced and edited by Liz Sumner. Music by Michael Cohen. Additional voiceover by Aziza Shukralla Clark.  For more from the show follow @unpackpeanuts on Instagram and Threads, and @unpackingpeanuts on Facebook, Blue Sky, and YouTube. For more about Jimmy, Michael, and Harold, visit unpackingpeanuts.com.   Thanks for listening.
Mean Girls 3 - Now 33% Meaner
2026/09/22
The gang expands their scope, and looks at mean girls throughout the Peanuts run, including Lucy, Frieda, and Good ol’ Molly Volley. Aaron Forringer's story: https://shorturl.at/sbsOh Transcript available at UnpackingPeanuts.com Jimmy’s, Michael’s, and Harold’s books are available at UnpackingPeanuts.com/store. Unpacking Peanuts is copyright Jimmy Gownley, Michael Cohen, Harold Buchholz, and Liz Sumner. Produced and edited by Liz Sumner. Music by Michael Cohen. Additional voiceover by Aziza Shukralla Clark.  For more from the show follow @unpackpeanuts on Instagram and Threads, and @unpackingpeanuts on Facebook, Blue Sky, and YouTube. For more about Jimmy, Michael, and Harold, visit unpackingpeanuts.com.   Thanks for listening.
Mean Girls 2 - How Much is Mean and How Much is Just Life?
2026/09/08
Our exploration into the sassiest, snarkiest, twosome in all of Peanuts: Patty (original recipe) and Violet continues. These two may be mean, but they are also hilarious. But are they worse on their own, or together?  Transcript available at UnpackingPeanuts.com Jimmy’s, Michael’s, and Harold’s books are available at UnpackingPeanuts.com/store. Unpacking Peanuts is copyright Jimmy Gownley, Michael Cohen, Harold Buchholz, and Liz Sumner. Produced and edited by Liz Sumner. Music by Michael Cohen. Additional voiceover by Aziza Shukralla Clark.  For more from the show follow @unpackpeanuts on Instagram and Threads, and @unpackingpeanuts on Facebook, Blue Sky, and YouTube. For more about Jimmy, Michael, and Harold, visit unpackingpeanuts.com.   Thanks for listening.
Mean Girls 1 - Patty and Violet: Conformity Police
2026/08/25
Michael curates a delightfully mean collection of some early Peanuts strips featuring two of Peanuts strongest (and meanest) personalities: the original Patty, and good ol’ Violet Grey. Transcript available at UnpackingPeanuts.com Jimmy’s, Michael’s, and Harold’s books are available at UnpackingPeanuts.com/store. Paul Hebert's article: A World Where Rage Was Funny and Insecurity Was Loveable: Peanuts, Doonesbury and the Long 1960s. https://shorturl.at/I6Qvk Unpacking Peanuts is copyright Jimmy Gownley, Michael Cohen, Harold Buchholz, and Liz Sumner. Produced and edited by Liz Sumner. Music by Michael Cohen. Additional voiceover by Aziza Shukralla Clark.  For more from the show follow @unpackpeanuts on Instagram and Threads, and @unpackingpeanuts on Facebook, Blue Sky, and YouTube. For more about Jimmy, Michael, and Harold, visit unpackingpeanuts.com.   Thanks for listening.
Cartoonists’ Salute to Schulz!
2026/08/11
Just five short months after Charles Schulz’s passing, the top cartoonists in the field dedicated a day of their own strips to remembering Sparky. The gang looks at Peanuts tribute strips by Jim Davis (Garfield) Aaron McGruder (Boondocks) Cathy Guisewite (Cathy) and more. See the Go Comics article: https://www.gocomics.com/profile/OfficialGoComics/collections/44986 Transcript available at UnpackingPeanuts.com Jimmy’s, Michael’s, and Harold’s books are available at UnpackingPeanuts.com/store. Unpacking Peanuts is copyright Jimmy Gownley, Michael Cohen, Harold Buchholz, and Liz Sumner. Produced and edited by Liz Sumner. Music by Michael Cohen. Additional voiceover by Aziza Shukralla Clark.  For more from the show follow @unpackpeanuts on Instagram and Threads, and @unpackingpeanuts on Facebook, Blue Sky, and YouTube. For more about Jimmy, Michael, and Harold, visit unpackingpeanuts.com.   Thanks for listening.
With Neil Cohn - Author of Speaking In Pictures
2026/07/28
We talk with Neil Cohn, an Eisner-nominated cognitive scientist who looks at how our brains perceive comics. His latest book, Speaking in Pictures, challenges the conventional understandings of how pictures communicate, how people learn to draw, and the nature of language itself. And Peanuts was fundamental to his ground-breaking research.  https://www.visuallanguagelab.com/ @neilcohn.bsky.social @thevisuallinguist on Instagram Transcript available at UnpackingPeanuts.com Jimmy’s, Michael’s, and Harold’s books are available at UnpackingPeanuts.com/store. Unpacking Peanuts is copyright Jimmy Gownley, Michael Cohen, Harold Buchholz, and Liz Sumner. Produced and edited by Liz Sumner. Music by Michael Cohen. Additional voiceover by Aziza Shukralla Clark.  For more from the show follow @unpackpeanuts on Instagram and Threads, and @unpackingpeanuts on Facebook, Blue Sky, and YouTube. For more about Jimmy, Michael, and Harold, visit unpackingpeanuts.com.   Thanks for listening.
Charles M. Schulz and the Seven Deadly Sins of Cartooning
2026/07/14
In 1980 Legendary Captain Marvel artist C.C. Beck created his personal list of “The Seven Deadly Sins of Comics Creators.” In this episode the gang discuss Beck’s manifesto and see if and how it applies to Schulz's work. Shout out to TwoMorrows.com and AlterEgo for this article: https://www.twomorrows.com/alterego/articles/06sins.html Transcript available at UnpackingPeanuts.com Jimmy’s, Michael’s, and Harold’s books are available at UnpackingPeanuts.com/store. Unpacking Peanuts is copyright Jimmy Gownley, Michael Cohen, Harold Buchholz, and Liz Sumner. Produced and edited by Liz Sumner. Music by Michael Cohen. Additional voiceover by Aziza Shukralla Clark.  For more from the show follow @unpackpeanuts on Instagram and Threads, and @unpackingpeanuts on Facebook, Blue Sky, and YouTube. For more about Jimmy, Michael, and Harold, visit unpackingpeanuts.com.   Thanks for listening.
You Don’t Look 250, Snoopy
2026/07/04
The gang celebrates the USA’s birthday by looking at one of the latest iterations of Snoopy’s alter egos…The Revolutionary War patriot. UP Recommends: The American Revolution by Ken Burns Super Context Podcast: An autopsy of media Gunsmoke on the radio Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert M. Pirsig Transcript available at UnpackingPeanuts.com Jimmy’s, Michael’s, and Harold’s books are available at UnpackingPeanuts.com/store. Unpacking Peanuts is copyright Jimmy Gownley, Michael Cohen, Harold Buchholz, and Liz Sumner. Produced and edited by Liz Sumner. Music by Michael Cohen. Additional voiceover by Aziza Shukralla Clark.  For more from the show follow @unpackpeanuts on Instagram and Threads, and @unpackingpeanuts on Facebook, Blue Sky, and YouTube. For more about Jimmy, Michael, and Harold, visit unpackingpeanuts.com.   Thanks for listening.
Sidekicks and Second Bananas Episode 4 - Shermy: Just A Guy Standing There
2026/06/23
The straight man of all straight men gets an episode all to himself. Will the gang finally crack the code on this beloved figure of Peanuts past? Transcript available at UnpackingPeanuts.com Jimmy’s, Michael’s, and Harold’s books are available at UnpackingPeanuts.com/store. Unpacking Peanuts is copyright Jimmy Gownley, Michael Cohen, Harold Buchholz, and Liz Sumner. Produced and edited by Liz Sumner. Music by Michael Cohen. Additional voiceover by Aziza Shukralla Clark.  For more from the show follow @unpackpeanuts on Instagram and Threads, and @unpackingpeanuts on Facebook, Blue Sky, and YouTube. For more about Jimmy, Michael, and Harold, visit unpackingpeanuts.com.   Thanks for listening.
Sidekicks and Second Bananas Episode 3 - Roy: A Good Temporary Friend
2026/06/09
Finally, it’s come to this: The Roy episode. Roy befriends both Charlie Brown and Linus at camp. And if that’s not exciting enough, old people talk about how neat telephones were. But maybe his main raison d'être is to introduce the world to the swinging-est character ever - Peppermint Patty. Transcript available at UnpackingPeanuts.com Jimmy’s, Michael’s, and Harold’s books are available at UnpackingPeanuts.com/store. Unpacking Peanuts is copyright Jimmy Gownley, Michael Cohen, Harold Buchholz, and Liz Sumner. Produced and edited by Liz Sumner. Music by Michael Cohen. Additional voiceover by Aziza Shukralla Clark.  For more from the show follow @unpackpeanuts on Instagram and Threads, and @unpackingpeanuts on Facebook, Blue Sky, and YouTube. For more about Jimmy, Michael, and Harold, visit unpackingpeanuts.com.   Thanks for listening.
Sidekicks and Second Bananas Episode 2: She's Eudorable!
2026/05/26
Sally’s pal Eudora finally gets a turn in the spotlight, as the gang revisits her debut sequence from 1978 and finds a fun and unique character who still feels modern.   Transcript available at UnpackingPeanuts.com Jimmy’s, Michael’s, and Harold’s books are available at UnpackingPeanuts.com/store. Unpacking Peanuts is copyright Jimmy Gownley, Michael Cohen, Harold Buchholz, and Liz Sumner. Produced and edited by Liz Sumner. Music by Michael Cohen. Additional voiceover by Aziza Shukralla Clark.  For more from the show follow @unpackpeanuts on Instagram and Threads, and @unpackingpeanuts on Facebook, Blue Sky, and YouTube. For more about Jimmy, Michael, and Harold, visit unpackingpeanuts.com.   Thanks for listening.
Feel a Little Freedom: Snoopy and the Beagle Scouts
2026/05/12
We start our look at the bit players in Peanuts in this new season of “Sidekicks and Second Bananas.” In this episode Bill, Olivier, Harriet, Conrad, and Woodstock get to shake their tail feathers in the spotlight. Mentioned in the Mailbox: Health Capsules by Dr. Michael A. Petti and cartoonist Jud Hurd https://www.dailycartoonist.com/index.php/2022/06/02/health-capsules-1961-2022/ Transcript available at UnpackingPeanuts.com Jimmy’s, Michael’s, and Harold’s books are available at UnpackingPeanuts.com/store. Unpacking Peanuts is copyright Jimmy Gownley, Michael Cohen, Harold Buchholz, and Liz Sumner. Produced and edited by Liz Sumner. Music by Michael Cohen. Additional voiceover by Aziza Shukralla Clark.  For more from the show follow @unpackpeanuts on Instagram and Threads, and @unpackingpeanuts on Facebook, Blue Sky, and YouTube. For more about Jimmy, Michael, and Harold, visit unpackingpeanuts.com.   Thanks for listening.
I’m Just Pretending It Never Happened! The Weirdest Peanuts Strips Ever
2026/04/28
The gang takes a cockeyed look at the Peanuts strips that make you go “hmmm.” From Charlie Brown sharpening himself to the beauty of a girl named Truffles, it doesn’t get weirder than this. Strips we discuss and the original episode names: Truffles - March 31 & April 1, 1975 - 1975 Part 1 Spike and Woodstock on the Moon - October 6, 1995 - 1995 Part 1 Pencil Sharpener - January 25, 1990 - 1990 Part 1 Tapioca Pudding - September 4, 1986 - 1986 Part 1 School Building - January 8-9, 1976 - 1976 Part 1 Finale of Mr. Sack - July 5, 1973 - 1973 Part 1 Sentient Blanket - March 17, 1965 - 1965 Part 1 The Whirly Dog - March 14, 1960 - 1960 Part 1 Schroeder Meta Strip - October 1, 1952 - 1952 Part 2 Charlotte Braun — November 30, 1954 — 1954 Part 2 Transcript available at UnpackingPeanuts.com Jimmy’s, Michael’s, and Harold’s books are available at UnpackingPeanuts.com/store. Unpacking Peanuts is copyright Jimmy Gownley, Michael Cohen, Harold Buchholz, and Liz Sumner. Produced and edited by Liz Sumner. Music by Michael Cohen. Additional voiceover by Aziza Shukralla Clark.  For more from the show follow @unpackpeanuts on Instagram and Threads, and @unpackingpeanuts on Facebook, Blue Sky, and YouTube. For more about Jimmy, Michael, and Harold, visit unpackingpeanuts.com.   Thanks for listening.
The Family Van Pelt Episode 6 - All in the Valley of Death Rode Rerun Van Pelt
2026/04/14
Re-Run arrives and struggles to assimilate into the family for the next twenty years. Lucy is still a grouch. Sally still loves Linus. And speaking of consistency, which Peanuts characters changed the least? The gang investigates.  Transcript available at UnpackingPeanuts.com Jimmy’s, Michael’s, and Harold’s books are available at UnpackingPeanuts.com/store. Unpacking Peanuts is copyright Jimmy Gownley, Michael Cohen, Harold Buchholz, and Liz Sumner. Produced and edited by Liz Sumner. Music by Michael Cohen. Additional voiceover by Aziza Shukralla Clark.  For more from the show follow @unpackpeanuts on Instagram and Threads, and @unpackingpeanuts on Facebook, Blue Sky, and YouTube. For more about Jimmy, Michael, and Harold, visit unpackingpeanuts.com.   Thanks for listening.
Sittin' In the Mailbox #2
2026/04/07
It’s a fun-sized mailbag bonus episode! Listeners ask us probing questions like whose is the adorable voice behind our introduction, and tell us stuff we never knew like there is a plush version of Snoopy as Mister T. Plus more great business suggestions for Sony. Transcript available at UnpackingPeanuts.com Jimmy’s, Michael’s, and Harold’s books are available at UnpackingPeanuts.com/store. Unpacking Peanuts is copyright Jimmy Gownley, Michael Cohen, Harold Buchholz, and Liz Sumner. Produced and edited by Liz Sumner. Music by Michael Cohen. Additional voiceover by Aziza Shukralla Clark.  For more from the show follow @unpackpeanuts on Instagram and Threads, and @unpackingpeanuts on Facebook, Blue Sky, and YouTube. For more about Jimmy, Michael, and Harold, visit unpackingpeanuts.com.   Thanks for listening.

Podcast reviews

Read Unpacking Peanuts podcast reviews


4.7 out of 5
73 reviews
★★★★★
Goobus loobus 2026/01/11
No walnuts
No walnuts or pistachio
★★★★★
konghusker 2025/10/23
Great Show!!
Just discovered this podcast. The guys do a tremendous job at breaking the strips down, and having a peaceful, relaxing atmosphere during the convers...
★★★★★
Wendigos are my friend 2025/02/23
Yay I just found you guys and I love it
I love PEANUTS not the food good grief 🙄🦮 best thing I could fiend for SNOOPY
★★★★★
Coopertown Kid 2025/01/22
The BEST comics podcast…
…Bar none!
★★★★★
Scooby Doo nut 2025/01/16
Amazing
This is awesome I found it less than a week ago and I’m already in the 60’s hopefully I can catch up quick
★★★★★
Andydrewlouie1 2024/08/31
The best
Best podcast out there! I love listening to an episode while drawing my own comic strip. Love it and I don’t want it to end! Keep up the good work!!! ...
★★★★★
Beagle Scout wannabe 2024/03/24
What a fantastic podcast
It was a very good day when I happened upon this podcast! It’s an absolute gem. I was a total Peanuts nerd growing up, and am now really enjoying reli...
★★★★★
Gus the Donut Man 2024/02/28
Be of good cheer..
This podcast is nearly as delightful and engaging as the incredible comic strip they unpack!
★★★★★
Rockhopper Lad 2024/01/28
Peanuts Nerd-vana
I am a huge Peanuts fan. Going to the Schulz Museum last year was almost a pilgrimage. It is amazing to hear people talking about Charlie Brown and hi...
★★★★★
Weohweohweohomlette 2024/01/24
Yes
Love ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️👂love it
check all reviews on apple podcasts

Podcast sponsorship advertising

Start advertising on Unpacking Peanuts relevant audience podcasts


What do you want to promote?