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Video: The Best TV Thanksgiving Episode Ever
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Nearly every show that's ever been on the air has cranked out a Christmas episode or two. Frankly, most of them are pretty lame, but I'll leave that topic for next month.
Only a few brave shows have tackled a Thanksgiving episode, and there have been some standouts. "Friends" had several great episodes, as did "Newhart" and "Cheers." And the only time "The Simpsons" ever tackled Thanksgiving brought fans the second season episode "Bart vs. Thanksgiving." In that episode, Bart accidentally destroys Lisa's centerpiece and runs away from home.
But one Thanksgiving-themed episode stands far above the rest. The absolutely perfect "WKRP In Cincinnati" episode "Turkeys Away."
The episode originally aired in season one of the show, and the basic plot was pretty simple. Station manager Arthur Carlson was tired of feeling as if he were out of the loop, and decided to take charge and launch a Thanksgiving promotion no one would ever forget.
The idea sent station newsman Les Nessman to a local strip mall, where he did a live report of the event. An event which involved dropping live turkeys out of a helicopter to the shocked crowd below. Nessman's commentary is perfectly paced, as he describes the events to a live radio audience:
"It's a helicopter, and it's coming this way. It's flying something behind it, I can't quite make it out, it's a large banner and it says, uh - Happy... Thaaaaanksss... giving! ... From ... W ... K ... R... P!! No parachutes yet. Can't be skydivers... I can't tell just yet what they are, but - Oh my God, Johnny, they're turkeys!! Johnny, can you get this? Oh, they're plunging to the earth right in front of our eyes! One just went through the windshield of a parked car! Oh, the humanity! The turkeys are hitting the ground like sacks of wet cement! Not since the Hindenburg tragedy has there been anything like this!"
I've included a clip of the last few minutes of the episode, which includes the turkey drop and the iconic final line of the episode, courtesy of Arthur Carlson "As God as my witness, I thought Turkeys could fly."
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