#FunFactFriday – Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is right around the corner and for many of us this is a day full of food, football and family. As for PR, it plays a big role on Thanksgiving at all levels, whether it is a campaign for a business introducing a new fall-themed product, a big company rolling out social media content for a Thanksgiving campaign or a family deploying crisis communications strategies to prevent a possible dinner table dispute.

With the special day almost here, below are some fun facts for Thanksgiving:

• The first TV dinners were born from holiday leftovers after the food company Swanson overordered for the 1954 Thanksgiving season and were left with more than 500,000 pounds of turkey. Their leftovers became Thanksgiving-inspired meals and flew off the shelf as the company sold over 10 million units in the first year alone.
• Originally known as the “Macy’s Christmas Parade,” the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade was first held in 1924 and included animals from the Central Park Zoo like elephants, bears and monkeys rather than the balloons we see now. It wasn’t until three years later in 1927 when Felix the Cat became the first balloon to fly in the parade.
• Turkey company Butterball opens their Turkey Talk Line every November and December to take all turkey-related questions. The 50+ trained-turkey experts answer more than 100,000 questions each holiday season.
• According to a study from Allianz Travel Insurance, New York City is the top turkey-day destination this year. The second spot went to Seattle while Phoenix came in at seven.

Have a Happy Thanksgiving!