City Councilman Roger Dickinson poses with Snoopy at the opening ceremony of “Snoopy and the Red Baron,” a traveling exhibit making a pit stop at the Aerospace Museum of California on Oct. 16.

NORTH HIGHLANDS, CA (MPG) - Snoopy Flying Ace traveled to the Aerospace Museum of California as the organization opened its “Snoopy and the Red Baron” exhibit to the public on Oct. 18 and announced the pending placement of a sign for Interstate 80 to promote the museum. 

The traveling exhibit is on display in the museum until Dec. 31, complimenting the array of artifacts from World War I and memorabilia on display in partnership with the Charles M. Schulz Museum and Research Center in Santa Rosa. Schulz was the creator of the character, Snoopy, in addition to the Peanuts characters and some of the comic strips or artifacts at the exhibit were signed by him.

Tom Jones, the president and CEO of the aerospace museum, said during the VIP opening ceremony on Oct. 17 that Snoopy and the Red Baron was one of Schulz’s most popular personas of snoopy and that Sacramento is quite fortunate to have this exhibit during Snoopy’s 75th anniversary. 

“Who doesn't love Snoopy? And then the kids see Snoopy and all of his different adventures that he goes on and his different personas that he assumes,” Jones said. “I just think it's a fabulous way for kids to connect not only to Snoopy, but with aviation and aerospace.” 

Awaiting the real sign, weather permitting, the Aerospace Museum of California celebrates the approval of a highway sign for the museum on Interstate 80.

Out of Schulz’s nearly 7,000 comic strips, Jones said that he grew up reading those comics and some of the funniest ones were enlarged to be viewed at a distance. He said that the collaboration between the two museums was meaningful and allowed the aerospace museum to tie in other artifacts from World War II, showing how far Snoopy’s influence had spread.

“We’ve got great photo stations and all kinds of fun ways to engage with this exhibit,” Jones said. “Bring your kids, bring your grandkids, you know, just come see the museum. It's a beautiful space and it's super engaging for kids from 2 to 102.”

Jones said that the museum was able to incorporate artifacts from famed aviator Clay Lacy, who is actively encouraging aviators and a donor to the aerospace museum. The museum’s collection also featured artifacts from other aviators, such as Bud Anderson, Vicky Benzin and others. 

Lacy flew his P-51 Mustang with a giant Snoopy in the cockpit, Jones said, winning the Reno Air Races in 1970, encouraging youth to become involved with aviation. He said Anderson, as a Boy Scout in 1934, became a World War II Triple Ace nine years later because of what he had learned. Artifacts depicting Snoopy’s tenure as a Beagle Scout pay tribute to Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts and military members.

A docent from the Aerospace Museum of California speaks to guests during opening day on Oct. 16 about artifacts and memorabilia in the museum’s latest exhibit, “Snoopy and the Red Baron.” The exhibit is a traveling exhibit for Snoopy’s 75th anniversary and is open through Dec. 31.

The Aerospace Museum of California also celebrated the approval of a new sign to be placed on Interstate 80 by way of legislation that Jones wrote to define how museums are categorized with Caltrans. Jones said that museums were previously categorized with locations such as the Golden One Center or Levi’s Stadium, making the museum slightly beyond the scope of allowing signage on the interstate. 

Jones said Assemblymember Josh Hoover asked him to write a piece of legislation, which became Assembly Bill 1320 and was unanimously approved by the state assembly. Jones said that not a word was changed from what he originally wrote.

“Governor Newsom signed it into law about two and a half years ago and then we thought, ‘OK, great. We're going to get signs now,’” Jones said. “But Caltrans had to change its manual.”

Before the aerospace museum’s inception, City Councilmember Roger Dickinson said that he has been involved with the organization, as he was the county supervisor for the area at the time. Dickinson helped get signs placed on Watt Avenue. 

A young guest at the “Snoopy and the Red Baron” exhibit poses for a photo with Snoopy at his doghouse during the exhibit’s opening day at the Aerospace Museum of California on Oct. 16.

“This has been an outstanding facility with tremendous offerings and great programs for kids, particularly in STEM subjects,” Dickinson said. “But as you can see by the location, it's a little hidden, so I think the significance of the freeway sign in particular is to let people know that it's here and what direction to go to get here.”

Dickinson said that the aerospace museum is a great opportunity to honor Sacramento’s aviation and military history, as well as everything that goes along with it. He said it is one of those wonderful assets that the city has to help inspire young people to think about science, technology, engineering, arts and math (STEAM), such as the California Railroad Museum or the Crocker Art Museum. 

Being exposed to the different facets of life through opportunities such as the aerospace museum, philharmonic or the symphony are experiences that help shape a person’s development, Dickinson said.

Sherrie Everhart, the owner of Hart 2 Hart wineries, made a sizable donation to the Aerospace Museum of California, providing funding for high quality display cases. Jones said that he was friends and members with Sherrie’s husband Jim Everhart, a member of the Sacramento County Sheriff's Air Squadron. Jones said that Jim Everhart unfortunately died suddenly a few years ago.

Vice President Karen Jones (left) and President Tom Jones of the Aerospace Museum pose for a photo dressed as Snoopy’s flight crew members for the opening ceremony of “Snoopy and the Red Baron,” open through Dec. 31.

El Dorado Hills resident Jerry Bernau said that he was friends with Jim Everhart and attended the VIP opening ceremony in honor of his friend. Bernau said he has a handicapped son who enjoyed visiting places such as the aerospace museum years ago because of its wheelchair accessibility. 

Bernau said he is glad to see how much it has grown, including partnerships with schools or other organizations to keep children motivated. He said that a museum as high quality as the Aerospace Museum of California deserves a sign on the freeway.

“There's so many things competing with people's time today,” Bernau said. “And so to have that sign for going up and down the freeway, and it's like, ‘Oh, what's that? 
I’ve never been there before. I didn't even know that existed.’ So that's a big deal to have that.” 

The Aerospace Museum of California is located at 3200 Freedom Park Drive in McClellan Park and was founded in 1986. The organization is a nonprofit organization and features a 40,000 square-foot exhibit hall with 40 aircraft and rockets, as well as a four-acre outdoor air park. The museum is also a Smithsonian Affiliate and a member of the North American Reciprocal Museum Association.

The “Snoopy and the Red Baron” exhibit at the museum will feature special weekly pop-up activities for visitors of all ages that bring Snoopy and the other Peanuts characters to life, according to the museum.

The museum is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays to Sundays and admission to the Snoopy exhibit is included in the museum’s general admission. General admission is $15 and to purchase tickets online, visit https://www.aerospaceca.org/purchase/p/adult-general-admission. 

To learn more about the museum, visit its website at https://www.aerospaceca.org or call 916- 643-3192 for more information. 

The Charles M. Schulz Museum and Research Center is at 2301 Hardies Lane in Santa Rosa. The museum’s website is https://schulzmuseum.org/ and its phone number is 707-579-4452. Follow the museum online at @schulzmuseum.

“I don’t think there has been an animal character in a long time that has done the different things that Snoopy has done,” Schulz once reflected. “He’s an attorney. He’s a surgeon. He’s the World War I Flying Ace.”