As Americans deal with Thankgiving stress, it helps to remember that the life of a turkey — the holiday's dietary staple — is not exactly smooth sailing either, as these 10 clips demonstrate:
1. Turkeys attack a nosy videographer
In this suspenseful, Hitchcockian clip, a group of turkeys gradually turn on a bystander who's just called them "huge" (Watch turkeys attack a judgmental interloper)
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2. Turkey explodes while being deep-fried
A local-TV demonstration of a popular Thanksgiving cooking process goes awry. (Watch a turkey becoming a "burning, raging inferno")
3. Turkey mascot experiences mood-swings
In this clip, HokieBird the Virginia Tech mascot begins to abuse his mascot peer, the Syracuse Orange, for mysterious reasons. (Watch the Virginia Tech Hokiebird go wild on another mascot)
4. Sarah Palin gives an interview at a turkey slaughter house
The beleagured politician expresses relief at being able to "promote a local business and participate in something that isn't so heavyhanded..." (Watch a turkey get slaughtered behind Sarah Palin)
5. Darth Vader hurls a bird
The Dark Lord attempts to teach a young protege the art of turkey-bowling. (Watch Darth Vader be his characteristically dark self)
6. Turkey forced to bathe with a yuppie
Some people find this clip — in which a turkey shares an intimate moment with an Architectural Digest subscriber — harrowing. (Watch a TV commercial for "oven-ready" turkeys)
7. Children sing about turkey, disastrously
In this scene from "Addams Family Values," parents watch with dismay as their children perform a musical number about the deeper meaning of Thanksgiving. (Watch the 'turkey scene' from 'Addams Family Values')
8. Thanksgiving day preparations go very wrong
A chef and her assistants attempt to deal with a rebellious bird. (Watch a turkey demonstrate the law of gravity)
9. Turkey grasps that he is dead
In this animated clip, a horrifying realization dawns on a plucked bird. (Watch an animated clip of a turkey and cranberry sauce)
10. Turkeys assaulted by new-age muzak
Here, living turkeys look directly into a camera, as if seeking empathy, to the strains of an abusive soundtrack. (Watch turkeys who may or may not know what's happening to them)
