Charles M. "Sparky" Schulz, creator of the Peanuts comic strip, received his nickname "Sparky" from the horse in the Barney Google comic strip, which debuted in 1919 and, miraculously, is still being produced and syndicate in hundreds of papers 92 years later. The horse was named "Spark Plug" and, during the 1910s/1920s, it was a popular nickname to give to young boys. To this day, Sparky is a popular nickname to bestow upon people. Though it's mainly given due to its association with electricity; its popularity was because of Spark Plug the horse.
It should be noted that Barney Google is no longer as much of a major player in his comic strip. The markets that do run the strip run it under the name Snuffy Smith.
