With Thanksgiving Day looming, and many people preparing to stuff themselves with turkey, we thought it would be fun to revisit a feature we ran in 1987 that detailed the happy fate of one Lansdale bird.

Lansdale’s Corner Market, which used to be at the corner of Main Street and Susquehanna Avenue, was running a contest that year in which Tommy the turkey was going to be the prize.


Tommy was featured at the store for a week so that people could see the actual bird they would be winning.

More than 1,000 tickets were submitted in the free raffle, but a growing number of people started to lobby through the “Let Tommy Live” drive.

Store owner Paul Caltabiano decided to let the winner decide if Tommy should be spared or slaughtered, but offered to substitute an already butchered bird of Tommy’s size.

The winner, Dennis Marsaglia, who had entered more than 100 times, said, “When he made that offer, there was no decision left to make.

“I’ve grown to like the little guy, walking in and out of the store every day,” he said. “Besides, I didn’t want the town of Lansdale coming after me in a lynch mob.”

In the photos featured today, you see Tommy with Marsaglia, after his ticket was pulled as the winner. In the other photo, Tommy took matters into his own beak by snatching the ticket.

Even when the winning ticket had been pulled by Caltabiano’s 7-year-old niece Jennifer, Tommy the turkey himself seemed to be trying to influence the results, as he repeatedly pulled on a lock of her hair with his beak.

Caltabiano said he had a list of farm families who were willing to give Tommy a home as an honored guest.

Think about Tommy as you sit down to dinner on Thursday.