Fascinating Thanksgiving Facts

An estimated 50 million pumpkin pies are eaten on Thanksgiving.

But according to The American Pie Council, more Americans prefer apple pie overall — pumpkin comes in second place. FYI, about 46 million turkeys are cooked for Thanksgiving each year.

A Thanksgiving mix-up inspired the first TV dinners.

In 1953, a Swanson employee accidentally ordered a colossal shipment of Thanksgiving turkeys (260 tons, to be exact). To get rid of them all, salesman Gerry Thomas came up with the idea of filling 5,000 aluminum trays with the turkey – along with cornbread dressing, gravy, peas and sweet potatoes. They were sold for 98 cents, and were a hit. Within one year, over 10 million were sold.