Celebrate Every Day

Celebrate Every Day


September 10, 2021 – Classical Music Month | National TV Dinner Day

September 09, 2021

This Meal Was First Sold For 98 Cents, But The Time It Saved Was Priceless!

Welcome to September 10th, 2021 on the National Day Calendar. Today we celebrate the joy of music and a dinner flashback.

While you may not be a fan of classical music, I bet you’ve heard of Beethoven’s 9th Symphony.  Ode to Joy is considered to be the composer’s greatest work.  What makes this symphony so special is that it was composed when Beethoven was deaf.  When the 9th Symphony debuted in 1824, he stood with the conductor in front of the orchestra with his back turned to the audience.  As the performance ended, the crowd erupted into thunderous applause, and because he couldn’t hear, Beethoven had no idea that the audience liked it.  Imagine his surprise as he turned around to see the standing ovation.  During Classical Music Month, celebrate the oldies but goodies and find your very own ode to joy.

While the first aluminum tv dinner tray was added to the Smithsonian Museum in 1986, the origins of this meal are hotly contested.  Maxon Food Systems manufactured the first frozen meal in 1945 for military and civilian air travel.  The concept was further developed by Jack Fisher, who sold FridgiDinners to restaurants and taverns in the late 1940s.  But the winner, winner chicken dinner goes to Swanson and Sons, whose Thanksgiving meal was first sold in 1953 for 98 cents.  This dinner could be baked in the oven in under 30 minutes, which is pretty good for a meal that normally takes all day to make.  And judging by the more than 10 million sold in the very first year, Americans were truly grateful.  On National TV Dinner Day, celebrate this modern convenience that still holds a place at the dinner table. 

I’m Anna Devere and I’m Marlo Anderson.  Thanks for joining us as we Celebrate Every Day.