HIll’s Thanksgiving Ad – 1971

I had thought that it was only during the last few years or so that stores started opening on Thanksgiving Day as a way of getting a leg (or drumstick, as the case may be) up on the competition for shoppers on Black Friday.

Well, as Li’l Abner once said: “It hain’t necessarily Moe.”

The above ad for Hills – which ran in the Journal on Thanksgiving Day, November 25, 1971 – proves that the custom of store hours intruding on the holiday itself started long ago. As you can see, Hills was going to be open that day from 2:00 pm to 10:00 pm.

As the ad innocently notes, “So before or after your turkey dinner, come see all the new gift ideas for 1971 at Hills LOW CASH PRICES!” 

I wonder if the snack counter was open that day, to ruin people’s appetite with frozen Cokes (Yum!!) and popcorn.

Note that Santa Claus was arriving that day as well, in a ‘big, shiny fire engine with the siren blaring.” The jolly old elf was going to be handing out coloring books for the kiddies “with details inside on Hills annual Coloring Contest.”

I guess things don’t really change that much over the years after all.