Exhibition Rentals

Leveling the Playing Field

Celebrating Title IX and the History of Women in Sports

|| TOUR SPECIFICS || TOUR ITINERARY ||

I have a vision, Chuck … I can see the day coming when women will have
the same opportunities in sports as men! —Peppermint Patty, 1979

Peanuts — September 27, 1979

Charles Schulz brought his life-long passion for sports to Peanuts, and from the very beginning his girl characters participated in sports of all kinds. Schulz often used the theme of fairness in his comic strip and believed in giving everyone equal opportunity. Consequently, in Peanuts he created standout girl athletes, demonstrated that a girl could excel in one sport and not in another, and encouraged girls’ participation in sports as diverse as football and figure skating. Schulz became even more aware of the issue of equal opportunity for women in sports after meeting legendary sports icon Billie Jean King in the early 1970s and throwing his support behind the Women’s Sports Foundation (WSF). One of the WSF’s major goals was to ensure the implementation of Title IX. Signed into law in 1972, Title IX guaranteed equal access to both men and women in federally–funded educational programs and activities, including sports.

In 1979, at a particularly crucial time in the history of implementing Title IX, Schulz brought public attention to the issue by creating a multi-day storyline in Peanuts about the legislation and the status of girls and women in sports. But his efforts to promote women and sports did not end there; he continued to highlight the contribution of women athletes by featuring contemporary female sports stars in his comic strip and by hosting a senior women’s tennis tournament and a “mixed” golf tournament.

Leveling the Playing Field, a traveling exhibition from the Charles M. Schulz Museum & Research Center, commemorates the 40th anniversary of Title IX and celebrates girls in sports as only Peanuts can. The exhibition features 86 Peanuts comic strips, an overview of women’s sports history, sports memorabilia from Charles M. Schulz’s personal archives, an audio/visual program, and two interactive displays. Hosting venues are encouraged to add artifacts and memorabilia from their own collections to enhance the exhibition.

Peanuts — September 29, 1979

This Peanuts strip is part of the series on Title IX that Schulz drew highlighting the issue of females in sports.

For detailed project descriptions, images, checklists, and current information, contact Dinah Houghtaling, Traveling Exhibitions Manager, at dinah@schulzmuseum.org or (707) 579-4452, ext. 287.

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Leveling the Playing Field Tour Specifics

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Non-Profit Rental Fee $10,000 + inbound shipping (call for commercial rates)
Booking Period 12 weeks
Contents 25 framed high-res digital reproductions of original Peanuts strips (8 are colorized), 30 three-dimensional objects (display cases are not included), 5 time-line panels, 15 didactic panels including 60 Peanuts strips, audio/visual program, two interactive displays, media CD, graphic CD, and Educational Programming Guide
Size 1,500–1,750 square feet / _____ linear feet
Shipping Crates TBD
Insurance Value TBD
Availability through 2017

Leveling the Playing Field Tour Itinerary

The dates below reflect a minimum 12-week booking. All tour dates are subject to change. Please contact us for current availability.

Dates Host Institution Status
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1/26/2013 4/21/2013 CALL FOR AVAILABILITY
5/18/2013 8/11/2013 CALL FOR AVAILABILITY
9/14/2013 12/8/2013 CALL FOR AVAILABILITY
1/11/2014 4/6/2014 CALL FOR AVAILABILITY
5/17/2014 8/10/2014 CALL FOR AVAILABILITY
9/20/2014 12/14/2014 CALL FOR AVAILABILITY
1/24/2015 4/19/2015 CALL FOR AVAILABILITY
5/30/2015 8/23/2015 CALL FOR AVAILABILITY
9/26/2015 12/27/2015 CALL FOR AVAILABILITY
1/23/2016 4/17/2016 CALL FOR AVAILABILITY
5/28/2016 8/21/2016 CALL FOR AVAILABILITY
9/24/2016 12/18/2016 CALL FOR AVAILABILITY
1/14/2017 4/9/2017 CALL FOR AVAILABILITY
5/20/2017 8/13/2017 CALL FOR AVAILABILITY
9/16/2017 12/10/2017 CALL FOR AVAILABILITY