I put Throwback Thursday on hold this week for something more holiday-appropriate: Throwback Thanksgiving! I reached beyond the usual TV promos for this week’s Adweek #TBT column, because this 2001 ad with Robert De Niro dressed as a pilgrim and Billy Crystal as a turkey was too good to resist:

I unearthed plenty of other bizarre Thanksgiving promos from over the years, including ones featuring Jay Leno and “Weird Al” Yankovic. Happy Thanksgiving!

#TBT: A Look Back at TV’s Must-Watch Thanksgiving Promo Leftovers

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No matter what your Thanksgiving plans are tomorrow, chances are you’ll be spending at least part of the day in front of a TV. As I wrote at Adweek,

Macy’s iconic parade and three Turkey Day football games ranked among the 30 most-watched network programs last fall. The whole holiday has become a testament to the drawing power of live TV—and captive audiences—as friends and families gather for the meal and end up riveted to their TV sets all day long.

I also spoke with Brad Lachman, who is executive producing his 21st Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, about the program’s enduring appeal, and why it had its highest ratings ever last year.

Why Broadcast TV is So Thankful for Thanksgiving

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Sure, you’re spent an hour or two eating Thanksgiving dinner on Thursday, but you’ll spend a lot more time honoring another important Thanksgiving tradition: watching TV all day long. As I wrote at Quartz,

More than any other major American holiday, Thanksgiving has become a TV-centric day, where people seem to spend far more time in front of the television than they do at the dinner table. And the broadcast networks are taking advantage of that rapt audience through marquee programs that last year attracted more than 114 million viewers.

From Macy’s Thankgiving Day Parade to three football games, let’s face it: you’ll be spending most of Thanksgiving in front of the TV.

Americans’ new Thanksgiving tradition: watching TV all day long

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