RiffTrax

A Day of Thanksgiving (3x259)

Air date: Nov 25, 2015

(1951) When an Hour of Thanksgiving is not enough, but a Week of Thanksgiving is simply too much, may we suggest A Day of Thanksgiving? Gather ‘round the Thanksgiving table for a 1950s feast from Young America Films. Fans of Young America Films know that, despite being heavily anti-Commie, they somehow feel like the grayest, bleakest Soviet shorts ever made. So, perfect for the holidays! Wash down that weird cranberry salad nobody actually likes with a tall glass of fear, shame, and forced conformity! The short focuses on a family that, despite living in a large, well-furnished house, cannot afford a turkey for Thanksgiving. Did turkeys cost more than houses in the 50s? The only reasonable conclusion is: yes. The family patriarch makes everyone list all the things they’re thankful for, to take their minds off his failure as a provider. And it’s a sweet list: family, shelter, security… and freedom from shadowy “political gangsters dragging people off to jail.” That’s right, political gangsters. Man, if I had a dime for every Thanksgiving that got ruined by some of those political gangsters showing up and making a muck of things. They don’t even bring wine!