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November 24, 2022 8:38 am  #1


Does Anyone Remember This American Thanksgiving TV Event?

When I was a kid, there was something special about U.S. Thanksgiving – and it wasn’t the endless football or the big parade. I remember getting ready to go to school and being upset in those pre-VCR days that at least two of the major American networks would put on a special edition of their Saturday morning cartoons for much of the day – and I couldn’t stay home to watch any of it, because we didn’t celebrate the holiday in November on this side of the border
 
I believe it was ABC that did this most often (they didn't have a lot else to run back then), essentially recreating their Saturday line-up on a Thursday, knowing the kids down there would be home for the day. The shows would air not only during the morning, but also in the afternoon.
 
I’m not entirely sure when this practice ended, but they did it every Turkey Day for years in the 60s. Those days are long gone, now that there are kids’ specialty channels on cable, not to mention the endless amount of stuff on the Internet. But I still remember it as being a special programming day that only happened once a year. And because of school, most of us here never got to see it!

 

November 24, 2022 9:44 am  #2


Re: Does Anyone Remember This American Thanksgiving TV Event?

I don't remember Saturday morning cartoons on U.S. Thanksgiving at all. RA: Do you have some old TV Guide listings showing this? It might jog my memory.

 

November 24, 2022 10:24 am  #3


Re: Does Anyone Remember This American Thanksgiving TV Event?

I've been looking for just that in my collection, but I haven't been able to locate one for that specific timeframe. But I know they did it - I just don't recall how many years it went on. 

     Thread Starter
 

November 24, 2022 11:19 am  #4


Re: Does Anyone Remember This American Thanksgiving TV Event?

Speaking of U.S. Thanksgiving...

"As God is my witness, I thought turkeys could fly..."

Full Video: WKRP's Classic "Turkey Drop" Episode 

     Thread Starter
 

November 24, 2022 1:50 pm  #5


Re: Does Anyone Remember This American Thanksgiving TV Event?

I don't remember this "tradition" at all but went looking it up. Found a few interesting old newspaper references to it.

From Lincoln, Nebraska in November 1966 (bottom of first column below) - "To treat the children on the day after Thanksgiving, ABC offers 'Holiday Cartoon Festival,' a day of cartoon featuring such favorites as Bugs Bunny and Bullwinkle, starting at 10 a.m. Friday".

So that was "Day after Thanksgiving" in this case, and that newspaper only listed weekday evenings, but the weekend lineup on the following Saturday is of interest for that vintage. 



And this ad from November 1968 out of Pasadena, California on a Friday ("Day after Thanksgiving") with the same idea:


 

 

November 24, 2022 1:56 pm  #6


Re: Does Anyone Remember This American Thanksgiving TV Event?

I recall it as being on Thanksgiving, but it's possible it was the day after, bypassing all the football, the parades, the family visits, etc. Thanks for confirming some of what I remember. I was pretty sure it happened, and that ABC was one of the networks that did it for a period of years. Your articles seem to confirm that.

I think it stood out to me even all these years later because it was so unusual to have a Saturday morning-like cartoon line-up on during a weekday. But I never got to see it, except when I came home for lunch - and by then, it was almost over!

     Thread Starter