Top 5 Thanksgiving TV Comedy Episodes
It’s that time of year again. Thanksgiving TV episodes!
This was a tough pull. There have been a lot of Thanksgiving episodes including on the highly rated and controversial Cosby Show and Glee. Even one recent award-winning Black-ish episode ranks high.
As most of us at Newhouse will eventually work in television, I decided it would be fun on this holiday post a countdown to some of the funniest Thanksgiving TV comedy episodes. You may or may not agree, but this is for fun, so relax and enjoy watching while eating your turkey and leftovers before classes start again.
# 5 – Family Ties – “No Nukes is Good Nukes”
This classic 1980’s sit-com pits hippie baby boomers against their Gen X kids and their parents. An anti-nuke protest lands Meredith Baxter’s and Michael Gross’ Elyse and Steven Keaton behind bars for the holiday. Not the way one wants to spend a Thanksgiving.
Though dated, there seems to be something relatable about standing up for what you believe in, especially now and also certain passions skipping generations. While Elyse’s more conservative father along with Alex P. are in dismay on the other side of the bars, the parents stand their ground. If this episode were to air today there’s a chance Elyse and Steven’s grandkids would be sitting in the cell with them.
# 4 – Gilmore Girls “A Deep Fried Korean Thanksgiving”
The Gilmore girls hit every Thanksgiving from Stars Hollow to Hartford in the early 2000’s, but the standout of this episode is professional chef Melissa McCarthy’s Sookie St. James getting drunk after her husband Jackson decides to deep fry a turkey and well, everything edible… and not. There’s a reason she later won a comedic Emmy for Mike and Molly, she deserved one here too.
# 3 – Friends – “The One With All The Thanksgivings”
You cannot have a Thanksgiving list without an episode from the 1990’s classic Friends. There were many in their 10-year run. However, a pivotal one is where Matthew Perry’s Chandler tells Courtney Cox’s Monica he loves her while she has nothing other than a turkey on her head. That’s the way you pictured your significant other telling you he loves you, right? Yeah, me too.
# 2 – Charlie Brown Thanksgiving
Though developed in 1973, it still ranked as number 1 in the 18-49 demographic on ABC this week – almost 40 years later! There’s just something about Charlie Brown, plus who cannot relate to someone like Peppermint Patty inviting herself over for food or being Peppermint Patty themselves.
# 1 –WKRP in Cincinnati – “Turkeys Away”
“As God is my witness, I thought turkeys could fly.”
It’s a line that though heard over and over still gets a chuckle and has become part of the cultural vernacular, especially around the holiday.
In the late 1970’s and early 1980’s this was my dad’s favorite show and since I don’t get to watch it with him this year, it gets top billing, but Paley Center for Media likes it too – so there!
He likes smart humor, something that was MTM’s main focus in their sit-coms. This line uttered by Gordon Jump’s character, Mr. Arthur Carlson is still hilarious and without the commentary by Richard Sander’s, Les Nessman it would not have become the classic that it is. Pure joy inspired by actual promotional events that have happened in radio. Things we have to look forward to in the future and examples of what not to do.
