Ranking the best turkey moments in film and TV

The unabashed goofiness was a beloved underlying theme to the brilliance of Brooklyn Nine-Nine. The holiday episodes were some of the show's best, like those times when Det. Charles Boyle (Joe Lo Truglio) showed up dressed as Tommy Gobbler. While the effort is usually welcomed, Charles' timing tended to be off. Like the particular appearance when Tommy's feather got caught in the elevator doors. All in all, the laughs kept coming.

Peter and Brian have done some crazy things over the years. During Season 13 of the long-running animated Fox hit, they carelessly ate the turkey Lois was to serve for Thanksgiving dinner. So, as their punishment, she sent them out to find another turkey. That's the beginning of the adventure, which ends at a zoo, where Peter is determined to capture a live turkey. The pursuit began, the laughs continued, and Family Guy delivered another memorable holiday moment.

This list is not limited to television shows or movies. What about commercials? Of course, countless memorable Thanksgiving commercials involve turkeys. One that stood out to us was from Jennie-O, where a woman has difficulty picking up her raw, slimy, uncooked, massive turkey. When she accidentally throws the turkey out of the kitchen window, it promptly hits presumably her husband in the head and knocks him down.

Also known as Jim Henson's Turkey Hollow. This 2015 television movie was produced for the Lifetime network but is nothing like the schlocky fare we usually see on the channel. A brother and sister find themselves amid an adventure while at the farm of an eccentric great-aunt for Thanksgiving, looking for the "Howling Hoodoo." There are plenty of Muppet-inspired, Henson-vibed creatures — similar in form to turkeys, but a little more out there — and characters to complement the human stars.

Ok, maybe the fish is the highlight of arguably the best Thanksgiving-related episode from this long-running CBS hit. From the show's first season, Debra (Patrica Heaton) has the family over for Thanksgiving dinner but wants to start a new tradition of serving fish. That does not sit well with her hilariously overbearing mother-in-law Marie (Doris Roberts), who brings her turkey to complete with the fish. Hilarity and drama ensue, but the turkey does look pretty enticing.

Cheers' fifth season presented arguably the best Thanksgiving episode during the show's legendary run. Now, the turkey is large and completely raw when Norm (George Wendt) brings it to Carla's house for a Turkey Day dinner. However, the turkey is also the problem since it takes forever to cook, leaving the gang — mostly there to avoid family or because they have nowhere else to be — hungry and livid, leading to one of TV's great food fights to break out.

While Kramer was busy turning his apartment into a talk show set (after finding remnants from the set of the old Merv Griffin Show), Jerry was busy scheming to play with his new girlfriend's classic toy collection that she wouldn't let him touch. Resorting to anything possible, Jerry brought over wine and an 18-pound turkey, courtesy of George. He thought indulging in alcohol and tryptophan would be enough to put her to sleep so he could have the toys. He was right.

Sticking with the theme of dogs eating the Thanksgiving Day turkey. Well, amid the craziness and hectic nature of preparing a large Thanksgiving dinner for family and friends, nobody thought to think that Murray, the dog of Paul and Jamie Buchman (Paul Reiser and Helen Hunt), would be a little hungry in this season-three episode. So, it wasn't too much of a surprise when Murray decided to snack on the turkey sitting alone in the kitchen. Did we also mention the stolen turkey or the one Jamie threw out the window? Certainly a must-see.

Robert De Niro, dressed as a pilgrim. Billy Crystal is sporting a turkey outfit and is sitting on a park bench.  Talk about Thanksgiving commercial gold. These two Hollywood big-wigs got together for a "Happy Thanksgiving" spot promoting New York City tourism. Crystal wasn't happy about drawing the turkey card, while De Niro pretty much believed he would be too good for the role. The ad ended with the duo riding on a turkey float at the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade.

There are countless memorable moments in this beloved 1983 Christmas classic. Perhaps one particular scene that tends to get lost in the mix of greatness is when the Bumpus hounds from next door find their way into the Parker family's kitchen and devour the succulent Christmas Day turkey. All that was left were bones and slobber. Much to the dismay of "The Old Man" (Darren McGavin), the family spends Christmas in a local Chinese restaurant. 

Yes, there are such things as Thanksgiving horror movies. More specifically, a killer turkey with crude lines that are so bad but so entertaining that we can't turn away. Perhaps the most notable of this genre is ThanksKilling (2007). For those who like a side of senseless killing by the urban legend "Turkie," with plenty of swearing and token gratuitous nudity with your main course, you've found the right picture. Considered a black comedy-horror film, ThanksKilling is campy and wacky enough to entertain.

Friends ' Thanksgiving episodes have remained the lasting highlights of the legendary sitcom. One in particular that stands out was from Season Eight when Brad Pitt guest starred as a former high school classmate of Ross (David Schwimmer), Monica (Courteney Cox), and Rachel (Jennifer Aniston). However, an underrated aspect of the episode is Joey (Matt LeBlanc) trying to eat an entire turkey in one Thanksgiving sitting. When the going gets tough, Joey resorts to wearing Phoebe's maternity pants for a little extra breathing and eating room.

A classic episode from Season Six of Modern Family. Phil (Ty Burrell) decides to cook the turkey for the extended family's Thanksgiving. However, Claire (Julie Bowen) doesn't think Phil will come through and cooks her own with plans of saving the day. Meanwhile, when the power goes out at the Dunphys, the family heads to Jay and Gloria's house, assuming the couple is on vacation as expected, to finish cooking and hold the celebration. Unbeknownst to the rest of the family, Jay (Ed O'Neill) and Gloria (Sofía Vergara) are home. They lied about traveling to be alone for the holiday. The couple is cooking its bird, which adds to the confusion, leads to mayhem, and plenty more laughs, with a side of endearment.

When the great John Madden called Thanksgiving Day football games with longtime partner Pat Summerall, usually in Detroit or Dallas on CBS and Fox, he would pass out a leg from his cooked turkey (likely prepared in the "Madden Cruiser") to the game's MVP. Sometimes, he'd give more than one if multiple players were worthy of the honor. Then, there was the turkey with more than two legs, which became a frequent presence. Madden would also serve up a Turducken on occasion. That is another reason why Madden was one of a kind.

Simply put, Free Birds (2013) is a fun movie with plenty of humor and heart. If actual turkeys had their say and could rewrite history, pizza would be the preferred culinary choice for Thanksgiving Day. That's the point of this animated picture with Owen Wilson  voicing the main character, Reggie. He's a turkey that earns a presidential pardon. It's a holiday movie that's good for the kids to watch while the adults have time to digest their dinner and regain their sanity.

Another memorable Thanksgiving moment from the Friends universe came during Season Five. The gang tells stories of their worst Thanksgiving experiences, including the time in 1992 when Joey (Matt LeBlanc) put his head in an uncooked turkey to scare Chandler (Matthew Perry) and got stuck. Later in the episode, Monica tries to cheer up Chandler after revealing she cut his toe off on Thanksgiving Day back during their college years by plopping a turkey on her head, complete with oversized sunglasses and even a little dance.

There's nothing worse than getting ready for a special Thanksgiving dinner, only to find the raw, uncooked bird stuck in your bathroom toilet. More than once! Come on. We've all been there, right? That all happened to Bob, and it drove him crazy. His plans to cook a three-day brine recipe for Thanksgiving were falling apart. For longtime fans of this popular animated comedy, this might be the best episode in the sitcom's history.

Just seven episodes into this beloved sitcom from the late 1970s and '80s, TV fans experienced one of the great moments in comedic broadcast history. Who knew it would be bad to drop live turkeys from a helicopter? Apparently, not WKRP exec Arthur Carlson (Gordon Jump). After the giveaway promotion went horribly wrong and likely scarred man-on-the-scene reporter Les Nessman (Richard Sanders) for life, he uttered these memorable words: "As God is my witness, I thought turkeys could fly."