This Thanksgiving Sitcom Episode Is Great and You’ve Probably Never Seen It

Name any popular sitcom, and there’s a high probability that that series features at least one episode dedicated to Turkey Day. In 2014, ABC’s Modern Family had an episode during its sixth season titled “Three Turkeys.” A year previous, FX’s It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia honored the TV tradition with an entry during its ninth season titled “The Gang Squashes Their Beef” (having Thanksgiving dinner with your foes never played out so funny). If we really wanted to, we could go all the way back to 1967. There lies a special episode of Bewitched titled “Samantha’s Thanksgiving To Remember,” in which Samantha and her relatives are whisked away to 1620, where they spend the holiday with actual pilgrims from that time. These shows (and their small Thanksgiving counterparts) will be in some sort of syndication for years, so don’t worry about missing out.

On the other hand, one sitcom from the 1970s sorely needs to be revisited this holiday season — not only for its unique premise but also for its absurd and wild Thanksgiving episode, which involved sending wild turkeys to their death from a helicopter high up in the sky. You’ll be surprised to hear that this was all based on a real life event as well! Coincidentally airing on CBS the night before Halloween in 1978, a new episode of a situational comedy called WKRP in Cincinnati premiered, titled “Turkeys Away.” Featuring names like Gary Sandy, Gordon Jump, Tim Reid, and Loni Anderson, the series would revolve around a group of unique personalities trying to do whatever they can to keep an aging radio station afloat in changing times.

‘WKRP’s Great Thanksgiving Episode

Even with its off-beat premise and eclectic group of characters (a wise but weak general manager, a very politically-inclined news reporter, a receptionist who uses her sex appeal for good, and an evening DJ who is a Vietnam War deserter for starters), WKRP managed to last for four seasons and also garnered 10 Emmy Award nominations in its lifetime. The most interesting part is that this under-the-radar CBS program adapted some of the early 1970s marketing stunts from an actual radio station (WQXI in Atlanta, Georgia). “Turkeys Away” does a great job of slowly unveiling the hilarious demise of the 2000-foot turkey drop, as well as using a six-word sentence that the real general manager of WQXI (Jerry Blum) would use years later: “I didn’t know turkeys couldn’t fly!”

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When it comes to the seventh episode of WKRP in Cincinnati’s first season, much of the enjoyment comes from the build-up. For about 20 minutes into the 24-minute episode, neither the staff nor the viewer knows Mr. Carlson’s plan (the station manager). As with every episode, there are some funny one-liners or anecdotes from the usual suspects, like Dr. Johnny Fever (veteran disc jockey) and Venus Flytrap (soul and funky night DJ), but the best moments of this episode come from the on-the-scene news reporter, Nessman, when he realizes what is going on.

At first, he thinks the big ordeal revolves around a helicopter with a “Happy Thanksgiving from WKRP” banner hanging from it. Richard Sanders, the actor, maneuvers his emotions perfectly when it’s time for his character to see the haunting image. “They’re definitely not skydivers,” “Oh, the humanity,” “They’re hitting the ground like bags of wet cement!” These are just some of the quotes from the reporter before the connection goes dead. We will soon know what happened to him, and it isn’t pretty.

The Thanksgiving Marketing Stunt for the Ages

The Mayor, The Humane Society, and The National Guard all call the station because of the travesty. This makes the staff rethink their marketing schemes. Gary Sandy (playing the program director) delivers an inspirational monologue that puts the team on a new track for the future. Before everything can settle down, though, Mr. Carlson and Herb Tarlek walk in from the outside with their hair all ruffled and suits ripped apart.

But once again, Nessman steals the scene when he walks in after them. Compared to his boss and the boss’s assistant, Nessman is outright traumatized but plays it off hilariously. He declares that a man and his two children, as well as the surviving turkeys (who were on the same scene), all tried to kill him! Just before the credits roll, he also says that the poultry tried to arrange a counter-attack on the people still around. Can you imagine such a scene? Oh, wait, you don’t have to. There are some accounts from when it happened in real life.

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Thankfully, the turkeys weren’t launched out of any sort of flying contraption but instead from a pickup truck in a parking lot located in Dallas, Texas. The turkeys didn’t inflict damage either, but the people who were there for the publicity event “went nuts,” according to Blum. They fought each other all for the chance of capturing a live bird. In other states (though not as detailed, unfortunately), like Yellville, Arkansas, the Chamber of Commerce did, at one point, do the same exact thing. Problems arose in that case, too.

But alas, even with all the mired past surrounding “Turkeys Away,” it’s arguably the series’ most popular entry and is regarded as one of the 100 greatest TV episodes of all time by TV Guide. So, with that in mind, if you’re looking for something Thanksgiving-related this year that you haven’t seen before, WKRP in Cincinnati might just have it. The episode is available on Apple TV (as well as the rest of the series).