The Brief

One man’s mission to restore a bridge adorned with original designs of Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Linus, and other popular Peanuts characters in the San Fernando Valley is finally coming to fruition.

Reseda resident Kirk Donovan started the campaign five-and-a-half months ago after realizing the so-called “Snoopy Bridge” on his regular neighborhood walks near Tarzana Elementary School was the real deal, with the affixed drawings of the iconic characters donated by Charles M. Schulz himself.

For years, the cartoonist’s signatures were hidden away underneath all the dirt, graffiti, and bullet holes on a dozen panels.

After spending countless hours pushing to protect the original artwork, Donovan will be on hand Monday to witness the unveiling of the first round of restored pieces.

“This is our public art, and it's not for you to destroy,” he said. “Somebody's heart and soul was put into this and for us to enjoy, not ruin … all those things really crashed on me and I was like, 'You know what, Charlie, I'm gonna help you.'"

About the artwork

Donovan learned that a member of the parent-teacher association at the elementary school knew Schulz personally and asked the artist to donate his drawings for the pedestrian overpass between Wilbur Ave and Collins Street in 1971.

The panels, which include iconic Peanuts references like Lucy reclining on Schroeder's piano and Charlie Brown in a baseball uniform, were blown up to 5 feet tall to decorate the steel and concrete bridge. A complete set of the original pen-and-ink drawings are currently up for auction for more than $13,300.

The bridge became increasingly defaced over the past several years, including a mask painted over Charlie Brown’s face.

Donovan said the vandalism bothered him, even if they weren’t original works by Schulz. He kept thinking how hurt and angry he would feel if someone destroyed something he put love and time into, which he said “tugged at my heartstrings.”

Charlie Brown, with a graffiti mask covering his face, feeding Snoopy in one of the Peanuts panels near Tarzana Elementary School.

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Courtesy of Kirk Donovan

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Good grief

The restoration saga started in January with countless texts, emails, and calls to figure out who’s actually responsible for the paintings.

He didn’t have much luck with the school, the Department of Transportation, or the city, so he turned to his neighbors for help.

“It was just like a four-sentence paragraph on the app Nextdoor, and I mean, right off the bat, it got a lot of attention of ‘how can we help,’ or ‘I know this person,’ and ‘let me see what we can do,'” Donovan said.

The mantra quickly became “we will get this done,” he said, and someone recommended he reach out to Hattas Studios, which specializes in painting and restoring murals.

Donovan earned the blessing of Paige Braddock, the chief creative officer of Charles M. Schulz’s Creative Associates, and after rounds of coordination with Councilmember Bob Blumenfield’s office with Braddock’s help, Hattas Studios agreed to start restoring the first five panels, which will be unveiled at 12 p.m. Monday.

When asked if he considers himself a Peanuts fan, Donovan said, “Aren’t we all?”

“I didn't really think about this, but this is generational,” he added. “Not just the cartoon is generational, but this bridge here in the Valley and that art is generational … this is bigger than me.”

Gina Huntsinger, the director of the Charles M. Schulz Museum and Research Center, told LAist they wish there were more Donovans in the world, and they wanted to thank him with a free membership to the Santa Rosa museum for spearheading the restoration.

“Just like Charlie Brown, Kirk never gave up,” Huntsinger said.