Film

The Thanksgiving That Almost Wasn't

Name: The Thanksgiving That Almost Wasn't
Genre: Animation, Family, TV Movie, Music
Released: 1972
Cast: Kevin Cooper, June Foray, Marilyn Mayne, Don Messick, Vic Perrin

Fairy tale
Light-hearted

A charming 1972 animated short where a squirrel searches the woods to find a lost Pilgrim boy and his Native American companion before Thanksgiving dinner. It's gentle, earnest storytelling with a moral heart, featuring talking animals and simple animation that feels warmly handmade. Perfect for families seeking something genuinely kind without modern cynicism.

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you love gentle, old-fashioned holiday specials where a simple errand carries a quiet lesson, and you don't mind stiff, storybook animation in exchange for warmth.

Skip it if you want sharp jokes or brisk plotting, since this is a slow, earnest half hour that spells its message out plainly.

What it asks of you: A half hour of unhurried, mild-mannered storytelling, roughly twenty-five minutes, with the search itself stretched out and a light touch throughout.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

Frosty the Snowman1969

A beloved stop-motion classic about friendship and sacrifice with the same gentle magic and earnest emotional core. It values kindness and togetherness without being sentimental, and the animation has real charm.

But Stop-motion can feel dated to modern eyes, and the pacing is deliberate rather than snappy. Some may find it slow.

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer1964

Stop-motion holiday special with talking animals, moral lessons about acceptance, and that same hand-crafted warmth. It's unpretentious and moves at the speed of a fairy tale, which works beautifully for younger viewers.

But The animation style won't appeal to everyone, and it occasionally treads into heavy-handed messaging about fitting in. Some characters feel dated.

Charlotte's Web1973

Gorgeous animated adaptation of the classic novel about friendship and acceptance. Features animals solving problems through intelligence and kindness, with genuine emotional stakes and beautiful art direction throughout.

But It's melancholy in places and deals with mortality. The animation style may feel slow-paced to kids raised on faster editing.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from The Thanksgiving That Almost Wasn't

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

The Year Without a Santa Claus1974

Both are animated holiday specials from the early '70s that trust their audience to care about messages of community and kindness without flash or cynicism. Both feature animals as characters solving emotional problems.

Stop-motion special where talking animals and characters discover that holidays mean nothing without community and kindness. Has the same earnest sweetness and believes sincerely in the power of togetherness without irony.

But The stop-motion animation is crude by modern standards and the story is essentially a moral lesson. It takes itself entirely seriously in a way that can feel quaint or preachy.

The Tale of Despereaux2008

Storybook animation about a small hero helping friends find each other, with themes of forgiveness and courage. Gorgeously rendered and emotionally honest without being manipulative.

But CGI animation hasn't aged as gracefully as hand-drawn; the design can feel overly polished. Some plot threads get convoluted.

The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh1977

Tender adaptation that captures A.A. Milne's gentle humor and the cozy world of the Hundred Acre Wood. Animals with distinct personalities solving small problems together with kindness and loyalty at the center.

But The pacing is genuinely slow and contemplative. Modern children accustomed to faster entertainment may lose patience.

The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh poster

Tawny Scrawny Lion's Jungle Tales1985

Animated anthology of folktales and fables featuring animals learning lessons about kindness and community. Each story is quick but meaningful, making it perfect for younger attention spans.

But Anthology format means no recurring characters, so there's less investment in any one storyline. Animation quality varies between segments.

Tawny Scrawny Lion's Jungle Tales poster

The Busy World of Richard Scarry1994

Colorful animated series about anthropomorphic animals solving everyday problems through cooperation and ingenuity. It celebrates community and has the same unselfconscious warmth about animal characters helping each other.

But Deliberately simple in plot and humor, which works for preschoolers but may bore older kids. The aesthetic is relentlessly cheerful.

Willo the Wisp1981

Stop-motion animation with animal characters in a magical forest, emphasizing kindness and gentle problem-solving. Has genuine charm and a handmade quality that rewards patient viewing despite its low budget.

But The animation is deliberately minimal and slow, which reads more like experimental art than traditional children's entertainment. Very British and very odd in places.

Iktsuarpok

Like *The Thanksgiving That Almost Wasn't*, it centers a lost or separated Indigenous character as essential to the Thanksgiving narrative, but inverts the perspective entirely—telling the story from the Indigenous viewpoint rather than through a white-animal intermediary. It's what happens when Indigenous creators get to tell their own stories.

A gorgeously animated Inuit folktale about a boy waiting for his family during harsh winter, made entirely from paper cutout animation. Celebrates Indigenous storytelling with technical beauty and emotional honesty about survival and togetherness.

But It's a short film (under 10 minutes) in a highly specialized animation style—paper cutouts rather than traditional animation. No dialogue and entirely reliant on visual storytelling, which some may find challenging.