TV DINNERS TO CELEBRATE 45TH BIRTHDAY (APRIL 6)

TV DINNERS TO CELEBRATE 45TH BIRTHDAY (APRIL 6)

CHICAGO (Wireless Flash) -- April 6th, 1954, is a date forever frozen in history -- literally. That's when Swanson Foods created the very first frozen TV Dinner, which sold for 98 cents and contained turkey, corn bread dressing, gravy, peas and a sweet potato dessert. The guy who turned the turkeys into TV Dinners was Swanson executive Gerald Thomas, who claims he was inspired by the metal trays used by airlines to serve hot meals. The company initially created the frozen dinners just to get rid of 52,000 pounds of unsold turkeys that were in frozen storage. Although only 20 percent of U.S. homes had TV sets in 1954, Swanson named the frozen meals "TV Dinners" because research showed consumers thought the word "TV" sounded modern. These days, the 77-year-old Thompson is retired and lives in Paradise Valley, Arizona -- but Swanson isn't giving him the cold shoulder. On March 30 he'll be placing his handprints and a metal TV Dinner tray in cement at Mann's Chinese Theater in Hollywood.

CONTACT: Gerald Thomas (not available until 3/30); Arrange through Sally Garon; Chicago, IL; (312) 729-4182