Forget Turkey! How About Some Thanksgiving Eel?

By Seattle Mag November 21, 2012

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Maybe it’s time we flipped the bird off the Thanksgiving menu and replaced it with the original other white meat, eel. You know, the fish those first settlers probably ate instead of turkey.

That’s the premise of a clever animated short created by local artistand 2010 Seattle Magazine Spotlight Award winnerDrew Christie that was featured on The New York Times Op-Docs Web page this week, the third time his work has appeared on the high-profile forum.

Christie said the piece took him a few weeks to complete, a little longer than usual because he spent time collecting field recordings, including a bunch of fun sound bites from his family.

“We were all just having dinner one night and I nonchalantly whipped out a small voice recorder and started asking them questions. There was a lot of laughing that was cut out,” Christie said in an email.

The Space Needle gets a cameo in this 3-minute film, as does local ad agency Frank Unlimited. Without giving too much away, there’s a wink-wink suggestion that eels might stand a chance of finding a place on the Thanksgiving table if foodies get on board.

Since first posted, the comments have ranged from “ewww” to “Bring it on!” and everything in between. Even if you don’t think Christie has a drumstick to stand on, watching this tasty eel reel is as much fun as a slice of pumpkin pie. Or, if Christie had his way, eel pie.

 

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