Cherishing Chris Jericho in Chicago: An Ode to Thanksgiving Wrestling

Pro wrestling and Thanksgiving is a tradition that pre-dates my time on Earth. For a quarter-century of my life, it didn’t even exist.

From 1994 to 2018, the only Thanksgiving wrestling shows were taped episodes of SmackDown or TNA Impact that happened to fall on that date. There was nothing “special” about these shows, except they included a food fight and someone in a turkey suit. It wasn’t always like that.

Through the early 1990s, pro wrestling promotions focused on Thanksgiving as a big date because families didn’t have much to do or watch that night — remember the NFL didn’t start playing on Thanksgiving night until 2006.

Jim Crockett Promotions hosted Starrcade on Thanksgiving night through 1987. The WWF held its Survivor Series show on Thanksgiving or Thanksgiving Eve through 1994. If you’re a 1980s kid, you’ll remember the annual Saturday Night’s Main Event episode that aired in place of Saturday Night Live on Thanksgiving weekend.

In 2019, everything changed again, thanks to avowed pro wrestling nerd and AEW’s leader Tony Khan. We are roughly the same age, so our childhoods included a whole bunch of pro wrestling shows promoting a big event around Thanksgiving.