While some of you may intend to spend a good part of Thanksgiving watching football, others might be in the market for something a bit less sporty for their turkey-day viewing pleasure. If that’s the case, we’ve come up with some TV alternatives to football.
Whether you’re planning to spend the whole day in front of the TV, or just have it on in the background, there are a lot of options to explore, including the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, the National Dog Show, a handful of primetime specials and more marathons than you can handle.
A.M.
9:00 a.m. - NBC and CBS - Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade
You have three ways to see Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade. The first is by going to NYC and lining up with the hoards of other people to watch the parade go by. The balloons are quite a sight in person! Or you can catch one (or both) of the live TV broadcasts. CBS has Kevin Frazier and Christina McLarty anchoring their telecast live from New York City. Meanwhile, NBC has Matt Lauer, Ann Curry and Al Roker covering the parade for their telecast.
12:00 p.m. - NBC - The National Dog Show
Watch the many breeds dogs show off their stuff at the annual Dog Show airing on NBC.
Primetime
8:00 p.m. - Fox - Ice Age: A Mammoth Christmas
Watch Manny, Sid, Crash, Eddie, Peaches and Scrat return for this brand-new Christmas special, which will have the arctic pals headed to the North Pole to speak to Santa.
8:00 p.m. - ABC - A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving
ABC will air the 1973 cartoon special, which features the Peanuts gang as they get together for Thanksgiving. Of course, things don’t go according to plan.
8:30 p.m. - Fox - Happiness is a Warm Blanket Charlie Brown
In this brand-new special, the Peanuts gang manages to get Linus to give up a prized possession. You’ll never guess what it is... Maybe you will.
9:30 p.m. - ABC - A Very Gaga Thanksgiving
Pop-star Lady Gaga performs some of her hits along with some classic songs, including “White Christmas” and a duet to “The Lady is a Tramp” with Tony Bennett.
Marathons
TLC Cake Boss marathon starts at 6:00 a.m.
Syfy has a Bond movie marathon set to start at 8:00 a.m., beginning with Thunderball and ending with The Spy Who Loved Me (scheduled to air at 3:00 a.m.)
Comedy Central has Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, American Pie, Clueless and Just Friends set to air in that order, starting at 9:35 a.m..
USA will air an NCIS marathon starting at 10:00 a.m. and ending at 7:00 p.m., after which Elf will air (8:00 p.m. and again at 10:00 p.m.)
TNT will air Bones episodes from 10:00 a.m. through 7:00 p.m., then switch to CSI: New York for six hours, beginning at 8:00 p.m.
TBS’ “Thanksgiving Movie Marathon” begins at 10:00 a.m. and includes Yours, Mine & Ours, 17 Again, Surviving Christmas, Guess Who and Hitch (in that order).
ABC Family will air Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Monsters, Inc and Wall-E set to air, starting at 2:00 p.m.
FX has a movie marathon that starts with Definitely, Maybe at 7:00 a.m. and includes The Proposal, Madagascar 2: Escape 2 Africa, Monsters vs. Aliens and Kung Fu Panda
Discovery will air an American Guns marathon all day, beginning at 9:00 a.m.
Travel Channel has Man v. Food and Man v. Food Nation set to air all day, beginning at 9:00 a.m.
The History Channel will air Ice Road Truckers Deadliest Roads all day, beginning at 8:00 a.m.
BBC America will air Star Trek: The Next Generation all day, beginning at 8:00 a.m.
Chiller TV has Buffy the Vampire Slayer set to air all morning (starting at 6:00 a.m.) and through the afternoon, after which the channel will celebrate a “Fangsgiving” Movie Marathon, starting at 4:00 p.m. with Blood Angels.
BET’s day is split between a marathon of My Wife and Kids, beginning at 8:00 a.m. and running all the way through 4:30 p.m., after which a Reed Between the Lines marathon will begin at 5:00 p.m.
Lifetime begins the day with The Preacher’s Wife and goes on to air a number of holiday-themed movies (most of which look made-for-TV).
