History
Thanksgiving, or Thanksgiving Day, is a traditional North American
holiday, which is a form of harvest festival. The date and whereabouts of the first
Thanksgiving celebration is a topic of modest contention, though the earliest attested
Thanksgiving celebration was on 8 September, 1565 in what is now Saint Augustine,
Florida. Despite any scholarly research to the contrary, however, the traditional
"first Thanksgiving" is venerated as having occurred at the site of Plimoth Plantation,
in 1621.
Today, Thanksgiving is celebrated on the second Monday of October
in Canada and on the fourth Thursday of November in the United States.
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UNITED STATES
Spaniards
The first recorded Thanksgiving ceremony was on September 8, 1565 in what is now Saint
Augustine, Florida. Six hundred Spaniard settlers under the leadership of Don Pedro
Menendez de Aviles landed at what would become the city and immediately held a Mass
of Thanksgiving for their safe delivery to the New World, followed by a feast and
celebration. As the La Florida colony did become part of the United States, this can
be classified as the First Thanksgiving.
In 2000, the historian Bill O'Neal of Carthage, Texas, published
The First Thanksgiving: It Happened in Texas.
The city of El Paso, Texas once claimed that it was the site
of the first Thanksgiving to be held in what is now known as the United States, though
theirs was not a harvest festival. Spaniard Don Juan de Oñate ordered his expedition
party to rest and conducted a mass in celebration of thanksgiving on April 30, 1598.
However, even if this event did occur as represented, it was predated by the St. Augustine
celebration by decades.
1619 Thanksgiving, The Virginia Colony
On December 4, 1619, a group of 38 English settlers arrived at Berkeley Hundred which
comprised about eight thousand acres (32 km) on the north bank of the James River
near Herring Creek in an area then known as Charles Cittie (sic) about 20 miles (32
km) upstream from Jamestown, where the first permanent settlement of the Colony of
Virginia had been established on May 14, 1607.
The group's charter required that the day of arrival be observed
yearly as a "day of thanksgiving" to God. On that first day, Captain John Woodleaf
held the service of thanksgiving. As quoted from the section of the Charter of Berkeley
Hundred specifying the thanksgiving service: "We ordaine that the day of our ships
arrival at the place assigned for plantacon in the land of Virginia shall be yearly
and perpetually keept holy as a day of thanksgiving to Almighty God."
During the Indian Massacre of 1622, caused by an unprovoked
assassination of an important Indian leader, nine of the settlers at Berkeley Hundred
were killed, as well as about a third of the entire population of the Virginia Colony.
The Berkeley Hundred site and other outlying locations were abandoned as the colonists
withdrew to Jamestown and other more secure points.
After several years, the site became Berkeley Plantation, and
was long the traditional home of the Harrison family, one of the First Families of
Virginia. In 1634, it became part of the first eight shires of Virginia, as Charles
City County, one of the oldest in the United States, and is located along Virginia
State Route 5, which runs parallel to the river's northern borders past sites of many
of the James River Plantations between the colonial capital city of Williamsburg (now
the site of Colonial Williamsburg) and the capital of the Commonwealth of Virginia
at Richmond.
Berkeley Plantation continues to be the site of an annual Thanksgiving
event to this day. President George W. Bush gave his official Thanksgiving address
in 2007 at Berkeley saying:
“In the four centuries since the founders of Berkeley first knelt on these grounds,
our nation has changed in many ways. Our people have prospered, our nation has grown,
our Thanksgiving traditions have evolved -- after all, they didn't have football back
then. Yet the source of all our blessings remains the same: We give thanks to the
Author of Life who granted our forefathers safe passage to this land, who gives every
man, woman, and child on the face of the Earth the gift of freedom, and who watches
over our nation every day.”
1621 Thanksgiving, The Pilgrims at Plymouth Plantation
Squanto, a Native American, taught the Pilgrims how to catch eel and grow corn and
served as an interpreter for them (Squanto had learned English as a slave in Europe
and travels in England). Without Squanto's help the Pilgrims might not have survived
in the New World. The settlers who later came to be called the "Pilgrims" set apart
a day to celebrate at Plymouth immediately after their first harvest, in 1621. At
the time, this was not regarded as a Thanksgiving observance; harvest festivals were
existing parts of English and Wampanoag tradition alike. Several American colonists
have personal accounts of the 1621 feast in Plymouth, Massachusetts:
William Bradford, in Of Plymouth Plantation:
“They began now to gather in the small harvest they had, and to fit up their
house and dwelling against winter, being all well recovered in health and strength
and had all things in good plenty. For as some were thus employed in affairs abroad,
others were exercised in fishing, about cod and bass and other fish, of which they
took good store, of which every family had their portion. All the summer there was
no want; and now began to come in store of fowl, as winter approached, of which this
place did abound when they came first (but afterward decreased by degrees). And besides
waterfowl there was great store of wild turkeys, of which they took many, besides
venison, etc. Besides, they had about a peck of meal a week to a person, or now since
harvest, Indian corn to that proportion. Which made many afterwards write so largely
of their plenty here to their friends in England, which were not feigned by true reports.”
Edward Winslow, in Mourt's Relation:
“Our harvest being gotten in, our governor sent four men on fowling, that so
we might after a special manner rejoice together after we had gathered the fruits
of our labor. They four in one day killed as much fowl as, with a little help beside,
served the company almost a week. At which time, amongst other recreations, we exercised
our arms, many of the Indians coming amongst us, and among the rest their greatest
king Massasoit, with some ninety men, whom for three days we entertained and feasted,
and they went out and killed five deer, which we brought to the plantation and bestowed
on our governor, and upon the captain and others. And although it be not always so
plentiful as it was at this time with us, yet by the goodness of God, we are so far
from want that we often wish you partakers of our plenty.”
The mention of Massasoit's ninety men in the Winslow account
is of interest, as the Indians present, not mentioned in most accounts, would have
greatly outnumbered the fifty surviving Englishmen. The two preceding passages are
the only records of the event, but historians presume that both groups were exposed
to unfamiliar forms of celebration. What is clear is that Massasoit's people had no
interest in aggression, but rather sought to prosper the newcomers. The Pilgrims did
not hold a true Thanksgiving until 1623, when it followed a drought, prayers for rain,
and a subsequent rain shower. Irregular Thanksgivings continued after favorable events
and days of fasting after unfavorable ones. In the Plymouth tradition, a thanksgiving
day was a church observance, rather than a feast day.
Gradually, an annual Thanksgiving after the harvest developed
in the mid-17th century. This did not occur on any set day or necessarily on the same
day in different colonies in America.
The Massachusetts Bay Colony (consisting mainly of Puritan Christians)
celebrated Thanksgiving for the first time in 1630, and frequently thereafter until
about 1680, when it became an annual festival in that colony; and Connecticut as early
as 1639 and annually after 1647, except in 1675. The Dutch in New Netherland appointed
a day for giving thanks in 1644 and occasionally thereafter.
Charlestown, Massachusetts held the first recorded Thanksgiving
observance June 29, 1671 by proclamation of the town's governing council.
During the 18th century individual colonies commonly observed
days of thanksgiving throughout each year. We might not recognize a traditional Thanksgiving
Day from that period, as it was not a day marked by plentiful food and drink as is
today's custom, but rather a day set aside for prayer and fasting. Later in the 1700s
individual colonies would periodically designate a day of thanksgiving in honor of
a military victory, an adoption of a state constitution or an exceptionally bountiful
crop. Such a Thanksgiving Day celebration was held in December 1777 by the colonies
nationwide, commemorating the surrender of British General Burgoyne at Saratoga.
The Revolutionary War to nationhood
During the American Revolutionary War the Continental Congress appointed one or more
thanksgiving days each year, each time recommending to the executives of the various
states the observance of these days in their states. The First National Proclamation
of Thanksgiving was given by the Continental Congress in 1777:
“FOR AS MUCH as it is the indispensable Duty of all Men to adore the superintending
Providence of Almighty God; to acknowledge with Gratitude their Obligation to him
for Benefits received, and to implore such farther Blessings as they stand in Need
of: And it having pleased him in his abundant Mercy, not only to continue to us the
innumerable Bounties of his common Providence; but also to smile upon us in the Prosecution
of a just and necessary War, for the Defense and Establishment of our unalienable
Rights and Liberties; particularly in that he hath been pleased, in so great a Measure,
to prosper the Means used for the Support of our Troops, and to crown our Arms with
most signal success:
It is therefore recommended to the legislative or executive
Powers of these UNITED STATES to set apart THURSDAY, the eighteenth Day of December
next, for SOLEMN THANKSGIVING and PRAISE: That at one Time and with one Voice, the
good People may express the grateful Feelings of their Hearts, and consecrate themselves
to the Service of their Divine Benefactor; and that, together with their sincere Acknowledgments
and Offerings, they may join the penitent Confession of their manifold Sins, whereby
they had forfeited every Favor; and their humble and earnest Supplication that it
may please GOD through the Merits of JESUS CHRIST, mercifully to forgive and blot
them out of Remembrance; That it may please him graciously to afford his Blessing
on the Governments of these States respectively, and prosper the public Council of
the whole: To inspire our Commanders, both by Land and Sea, and all under them, with
that Wisdom and Fortitude which may render them fit Instruments, under the Providence
of Almighty GOD, to secure for these United States, the greatest of all human Blessings,
INDEPENDENCE and PEACE: That it may please him, to prosper the Trade and Manufactures
of the People, and the Labor of the Husbandman, that our Land may yield its Increase:
To take Schools and Seminaries of Education, so necessary for cultivating the Principles
of true Liberty, Virtue and Piety, under his nurturing Hand; and to prosper the Means
of Religion, for the promotion and enlargement of that Kingdom, which consisteth "in
Righteousness, Peace and Joy in the Holy Ghost.
And it is further recommended, That servile Labor, and such
Recreation, as, though at other Times innocent, may be unbecoming the Purpose of this
Appointment, be omitted on so solemn an Occasion.”
George Washington, leader of the revolutionary forces in the
American Revolutionary War, proclaimed a Thanksgiving in December 1777 as a victory
celebration honoring the defeat of the British at Saratoga.
Thanksgiving Proclamations in the First Thirty Years
of Nationhood
As President, on October 3, 1789, George Washington made the following proclamation
and created the first Thanksgiving Day designated by the national government of the
United States of America:
“ Whereas it is the duty of all Nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty
God, to obey his will, to be grateful for his benefits, and humbly to implore his
protection and favor, and whereas both Houses of Congress have by their joint Committee
requested me "to recommend to the People of the United States a day of public thanksgiving
and prayer to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many signal favors
of Almighty God especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish
a form of government for their safety and happiness.
Now therefore I do recommend and assign Thursday the 26th day
of November next to be devoted by the People of these States to the service of that
great and glorious Being, who is the beneficent Author of all the good that was, that
is, or that will be. That we may then all unite in rendering unto him our sincere
and humble thanks, for his kind care and protection of the People of this Country
previous to their becoming a Nation, for the signal and manifold mercies, and the
favorable interpositions of his providence, which we experienced in the course and
conclusion of the late war, for the great degree of tranquility, union, and plenty,
which we have since enjoyed, for the peaceable and rational manner, in which we have
been enabled to establish constitutions of government for our safety and happiness,
and particularly the national One now lately instituted, for the civil and religious
liberty with which we are blessed; and the means we have of acquiring and diffusing
useful knowledge; and in general for all the great and various favors which he hath
been pleased to confer upon us.
And also that we may then unite in most humbly offering our
prayers and supplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations and beseech him to
pardon our national and other transgressions, to enable us all, whether in public
or private stations, to perform our several and relative duties properly and punctually,
to render our national government a blessing to all the people, by constantly being
a Government of wise, just, and constitutional laws, discreetly and faithfully executed
and obeyed, to protect and guide all Sovereigns and Nations (especially such as have
shown kindness unto us) and to bless them with good government, peace, and concord.
To promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the encrease
of science among them and Us, and generally to grant unto all Mankind such a degree
of temporal prosperity as he alone knows to be best.
Given under my hand at the City of New York the third day of
October in the year of our Lord 1789.”
George Washington again proclaimed a Thanksgiving in
1795.
President John Adams declared Thanksgivings in 1798 and 1799.
No Thanksgiving proclamations were issued by Thomas Jefferson but James Madison renewed
the tradition in 1814, in response to resolutions of Congress, at the close of the
War of 1812. Madison also declared the holiday twice in 1815; however, none of these
were celebrated in autumn. In 1816, Governor Plamer of New Hampshire appointed Thursday,
November 14 to be observed as a day of Public Thanksgiving and Governor Brooks of
Massachusetts appointed Thursday, November 28 to be "observed throughout that State
as a day of Thanksgiving."
A thanksgiving day was annually appointed by the governor of
New York from 1817. In some of the Southern states there was opposition to the observance
of such a day on the ground that it was a relic of Puritanic bigotry, but by 1858
proclamations appointing a day of thanksgiving were issued by the governors of 25
states and two territories.
Lincoln and the Civil War
In the middle of the American Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln, prompted by a
series of editorials written by Sarah Josepha Hale, proclaimed a national Thanksgiving
Day, to be celebrated on the final Thursday in November 1863:
“The year that is drawing towards its close, has been filled with the blessings
of fruitful fields and healthful skies. To these bounties, which are so constantly
enjoyed that we are prone to forget the source from which they come, others have been
added, which are of so extraordinary a nature, that they cannot fail to penetrate
and soften even the heart which is habitually insensible to the ever watchful providence
of Almighty God. In the midst of a civil war of unequalled magnitude and severity,
which has sometimes seemed to foreign States to invite and to provoke their aggression,
peace has been preserved with all nations, order has been maintained, the laws have
been respected and obeyed, and harmony has prevailed everywhere except in the theatre
of military conflict; while that theatre has been greatly contracted by the advancing
armies and navies of the Union. Needful diversions of wealth and of strength from
the fields of peaceful industry to the national defence, have not arrested the plough,
the shuttle, or the ship; the axe had enlarged the borders of our settlements, and
the mines, as well of iron and coal as of the precious metals, have yielded even more
abundantly than heretofore. Population has steadily increased, notwithstanding the
waste that has been made in the camp, the siege and the battle-field; and the country,
rejoicing in the consciousness of augmented strength and vigor, is permitted to expect
continuance of years, with large increase of freedom.
No human counsel hath devised nor hath any mortal hand worked
out these great things. They are the gracious gifts of the Most High God, who, while
dealing with us in anger for our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercy.
It has seemed to me fit and proper that they should be solemnly,
reverently and gratefully acknowledged as with one heart and voice by the whole American
people. I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States,
and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set
apart and observe the last Thursday of November next, as a day of Thanksgiving and
Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens. And I recommend to them
that while offering up the ascriptions justly due to Him for such singular deliverances
and blessings, they do also, with humble penitence for our national perverseness and
disobedience, commend to his tender care all those who have become widows, orphans,
mourners or sufferers in the lamentable civil strife in which we are unavoidably engaged,
and fervently implore the interposition of the Almighty Hand to heal the wounds of
the nation and to restore it as soon as may be consistent with the Divine purposes
to the full enjoyment of peace, harmony, tranquility and Union.
In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand, and caused
the seal of the United States to be affixed.
Done at the city of Washington, this third day of October, in
the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, and of the independence
of the United States the eighty-eighth."
Since 1863, Thanksgiving has been observed annually in the United
States.
1939 to present
Abraham Lincoln's successors as president followed his example of annually declaring
the final Thursday in November to be Thanksgiving. But in 1939, President Franklin
D. Roosevelt declared that Thanksgiving would be the second-to-last Thursday of November
rather than the last. With the country still in the midst of The Great Depression,
Roosevelt thought this would give merchants a longer period to sell goods before Christmas.
Increasing profits and spending during this period, Roosevelt hoped, would aid bringing
the country out of the Depression. At the time, it was considered inappropriate to
advertise goods for Christmas until after Thanksgiving. However, since a presidential
declaration of Thanksgiving Day was not legally binding, 23 states went along with
Roosevelt's recommendation, and 22 did not. Other states, like Texas, could not decide
and took both weeks as government holidays. Roosevelt persisted in 1940 to celebrate
his "Franksgiving," as it was termed. The U.S. Congress in 1941 split the difference
and passed a bill requiring that Thanksgiving be observed annually on the fourth Thursday
of November, which was sometimes the last Thursday and sometimes (less frequently)
the next to last. On December 26 of that year President Roosevelt signed this bill,
for the first time making the date of Thanksgiving a matter of federal law.
Since 1947, or possibly earlier, the National Turkey Federation
has presented the President of the United States with one live turkey and two dressed
turkeys, in a ceremony known as the National Thanksgiving Turkey Presentation. The
live turkey is pardoned and lives out the rest of its days on a peaceful farm. While
it is commonly held that this pardoning tradition began with Harry Truman in 1947,
the Truman Library has been unable to find any evidence for this. The earliest on
record is with George H. W. Bush in 1989. Still others claim that the tradition dates
back to Abraham Lincoln pardoning his son's pet turkey.Both stories have been quoted
in more recent presidential speeches.
In more recent years, two turkeys have been pardoned, in case
the original turkey becomes unavailable for presidential pardoning. Since 2003 the
public has been invited to vote for the two turkeys' names. They were named Stars
and Stripes in 2003 and 2004's turkeys were called Biscuit and Gravy. In 2005 the
public decided on Marshmallow and Yam, in 2006 on Flyer and Fryer, and in 2007 on
May and Flower. Since 2005, the two turkeys have been flown first class on United
Airlines from Washington, D.C. to the Los Angeles area where they become the Grand
Marshals of Disneyland's annual Thanksgiving Day parade down Main Street. The two
turkeys then live out the rest of their relatively short lives in Disneyland's Frontierland
ranch.
Since 1970, a group of Native Americans and other assorted protesters
(mostly of progressive political persuasion) have held a National Day of Mourning
protest on Thanksgiving at Plymouth Rock in Plymouth, Massachusetts in the name of
social equality and in honor of political prisoners.
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Traditional celebrations
Foods of the season
U.S. tradition compares the holiday with a meal held in 1621 by the Wampanoag and
the Pilgrims who settled in Plymouth, Massachusetts. This element continues in modern
times with the Thanksgiving dinner, often featuring turkey, playing a large role in
the celebration of Thanksgiving. Some of the details of the American Thanksgiving
story are myths that developed in the 1890s and early 1900s as part of the effort
to forge a common national identity in the aftermath of the Civil War and in the melting
pot of new immigrants.
In the United States, certain kinds of food are traditionally
served at Thanksgiving meals. First and foremost, turkey is usually the featured item
on any Thanksgiving feast table (so much so that Thanksgiving is sometimes referred
to as "Turkey Day"). Stuffing, mashed potatoes with gravy, sweet potatoes, cranberry
sauce, corn (maize), other fall vegetables, and pumpkin pie are commonly associated
with Thanksgiving dinner. All of these primary dishes are actually native to the Americas
or were introduced as a new food source to the Europeans when they arrived.
To feed the needy at Thanksgiving time, most communities have
annual food drives that collect non-perishable packaged and canned foods, and corporations
sponsor charitable distributions of staple foods and Thanksgiving dinners.
Giving thanks
Thanksgiving was originally a religious observance for all the members of the community
to give thanks to God for a common purpose. Historic reasons for community thanksgivings
include the 1541 thanksgiving mass after the expedition of Coronado safely crossing
part of Texas and finding game, and the 1777 thanksgiving after the victory in the
revolutionary battle of Saratoga. In his 1789 Proclamation, President Washington gave
many noble reasons for a national Thanksgiving, including “for the civil and religious
liberty,” for “useful knowledge,” and for God’s “kind care” and "his providence."
The only presidents to inject a specifically Christian focus to their proclamation
have been Grover Cleveland in 1896, and William McKinley in 1900. Several other presidents
have cited the Judeo-Christian tradition. Gerald Ford's 1975 declaration made no clear
reference to any divinity.
The tradition of giving thanks to God is continued today in
various forms. Religious and spiritual organizations offer services and events on
Thanksgiving themes the week-end before, the day of, or the week-end after Thanksgiving.
Bishop Ryan observed about Thanksgiving Day, "It is the only day we have that consistently
finds Catholics at Mass in extraordinary numbers...even though it is not a holy day
of obligation.."
In celebrations at home, it is a holiday tradition in many families
to begin the Thanksgiving dinner by saying grace. Found in diverse religious traditions,
grace is a prayer before or after a meal to express appreciation to God, to ask for
God’s blessing, or in some philosophies, to express an altruistic wish or dedication.
The custom is portrayed in the photograph “Family Holding Hands and Praying Before
a Thanksgiving Meal.” The grace may be led by the hostess or host, as has been traditional,
or, in contemporary fashion, each person may contribute words of blessing or thanks.
According to a 1998 Gallup poll, an estimated 64 percent of Americans say grace.
Vacation and travel
On Thanksgiving Day, families and friends usually gather for a large meal or dinner,
the result being that the Thanksgiving holiday weekend is one of the busiest travel
periods of the year. In the United States, Thanksgiving is a four-day or five-day
weekend vacation in school and college calendars. Most business and government workers
(78% in 2007) are also given both Thanksgiving and the day after as paid holidays.
Thanksgiving Eve, on the Wednesday night before, has been one of the busiest nights
of the year for bars and clubs, both in terms of sales and volume of patrons, as many
students have returned to their hometowns from college.
Parades
In New York City, the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade (often erroneously referred to
as the "Macy's Day Parade") is held annually every Thanksgiving Day from the Upper
West Side of Manhattan to Macy's flagship store in Herald Square. The parade features
parade floats with specific themes, scenes from Broadway plays, large balloons of
cartoon characters and TV personalities, and high school marching bands. The float
that traditionally ends the Macy's Parade is the Santa Claus float. This float is
a sign that the Christmas season has begun. Thanksgiving parades also occur in many
cities such as the 6abc Boscov's Thanksgiving Day Parade in Philadelphia (which claims
the oldest parade), the McDonald's Thanksgiving Parade in Chicago (carried by WGN-TV
and WGN America), the America's Hometown Thanksgiving Parade in Plymouth (covered
by WHDH-TV), the H-E-B Holiday Parade in Houston (televised by KHOU-TV), the America's
Thanksgiving Parade in Detroit (where it is the only major parade of the year, televised
on WDIV-TV), the Ameren St. Louis Thanksgiving Parade (aired on KMOV) and the Fountain
Hills Thanksgiving Parade, among various other cities. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania holds
the Macy's-sponsored Celebrate the Season Parade on the Saturday after Thanksgiving,
co-sponsored and televised by WPXI. Within the New York metropolitan area, the city
of Stamford, Connecticut holds an alternative parade called the UBS Parade Spectacular
(with different character balloons from the Macy's parade) the Sunday before Thanksgiving
that has attracted over 250,000 people in recent years.
Several other parades have a loose association with Thanksgiving,
thanks to CBS's now-discontinued All-American Thanksgiving Day Parade coverage. Parades
that were covered during this era were the Aloha Floral Parade held in Honolulu, Hawaii
every September, the Toronto Santa Claus Parade in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, and the
Opryland Aqua Parade (held from 1996 to 2001 by the Gaylord Opryland Resort &
Convention Center in Nashville); the Opryland parade was discontinued replaced by
a taped parade in Miami Beach, Florida in 2002. A Disneyland parade was also featured
on CBS until Disney purchased rival ABC.
Shopping
The American winter holiday season (generally the Christmas shopping season in the
U.S.) traditionally begins the day after Thanksgiving, known as "Black Friday", although
most stores actually start to stock for and promote the December holidays immediately
after Halloween, and sometimes even before. Opponents of consumerism in some places
protest this behavior by declaring the day after Thanksgiving Buy Nothing Day.
Football
American football is often a major part of Thanksgiving celebrations in the United
States. Professional games are traditionally played on Thanksgiving Day; until recently,
these were the only games played during the week apart from Sunday or Monday night.
The National Football League has played games on Thanksgiving every year since its
creation; the tradition is referred to as the Thanksgiving Classic. The Detroit Lions
have hosted a game every Thanksgiving Day since 1934, with the exception of 1939–1944
(due to World War II). The Dallas Cowboys have hosted every Thanksgiving Day since
1966, with the exception of 1975 and 1977 when the then-St. Louis Cardinals hosted
(the Cowboys and Cardinals faced each other, in Dallas, in 1976). The American Football
League also had a Thanksgiving Classic since its founding in 1960, with its 8 founding
teams rotating one game each year (two games after the AFL-NFL merger).
For many college football teams, the regular season ends on
Thanksgiving weekend, and a team's final game is often against a regional or historic
rival. Most of these college games are played either on Friday or Saturday immediately
after Thanksgiving, but usually a single college game is played on Thanksgiving itself.
The most well known Thanksgiving holiday weekend games include:
Ole Miss Rebels vs. Mississippi State Bulldogs (the Egg Bowl)
LSU Tigers vs. Arkansas Razorbacks (the Battle for the Golden Boot)
Georgia Bulldogs vs. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate)
Colorado Buffaloes vs. Nebraska Cornhuskers
Texas Longhorns vs. Texas A&M Aggies (the Lone Star Showdown)
Florida Gators vs. Florida State Seminoles (the Sunshine Showdown)
Pittsburgh Panthers vs. West Virginia Mountaineers (the Backyard Brawl)
Grambling State University Tigers vs. Southern University Jaguars (the Bayou
Classic)
Television and radio
While not as prolific as Christmas specials, which usually begin right after Thanksgiving,
there are many special programs that air on or around Thanksgiving.
Most special programming airs during daytime on Thanksgiving.
NBC currently carries the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade nationwide by official license
from Macy's. NBC also carries the National Dog Show immediately after the Macy's Parade,
followed by Miracle on 34th Street. CBS carries unofficial coverage of the Macy's
parade and an NFL game; in order to compensate for time zone differences, CBS will
not carry new episodes of their daytime programs and will instead air reruns of The
Price Is Right or soap operas under the name "Soap Classics" when not carrying an
NFL game. ABC has no daytime Thanksgiving specials; neither does FOX, although Fox
also carries an NFL game. In syndication, The Oprah Winfrey Show carries its annual
Oprah's Favorite Things some time around Thanksgiving, while syndicators will air
Thanksgiving-themed episodes of sitcom reruns. WGN America carries the McDonald's
Thanksgiving Parade and a special entitled Bozo, Gar and Ray: WGN TV Classics. Local
television stations will occasionally preempt these programs in favor of local parades
and events.
In prime time, ABC currently airs A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving
a few days before Thanksgiving. On Thanksgiving night, NBC has in recent years aired
a special two-hour episode of Deal or No Deal, while Fox usually carries a feature
film and ABC and CBS currently carry regularly scheduled programming.
Cable stations usually carry marathons of their popular shows
on Thanksgiving day.
College football airs on Friday and Saturday on the major networks.
The Battle for the Golden Boot airs on CBS on Friday, while ABC carries the Lone Star
Showdown and the Colorado/Nebraska game (in 2008, the Backyard Brawl will replace
the Lone Star Showdown, due to that game moving to Thanksgiving night for the year,
where it will air on ESPN). The Bayou Classic airs Saturday on NBC, and various other
rivalries air on ABC and CBS on that day as well.
On the radio, the Friday before Thanksgiving has, in recent
years, been the benchmark and standard date for adult contemporary music stations
to switch over to full-time Christmas music. There are a few Thanksgiving themed specials
for various formats. In talk radio; The Rush Limbaugh Show has a tradition known as
"The Real Story of Thanksgiving," in which he argues (based upon texts such as Of
Plymouth Plantation) that the early Pilgrims were proto-Communists who, upon near
starvation in the winter of 1621, switched to a free enterprise system and prospered.
Westwood One carries all of the NFL Thanksgiving games, while the Sports USA Radio
Network carries several of the Friday rivalry games. There is, somewhat surprisingly,
no radio coverage of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.
