William Shatner and State Farm make weird Thanksgiving safety video

One week from today I'm gonna be up to my elbows in marinade, Cajun seasoning and all kinds of other good stuff as I prepare three... count 'em, three... turkeys for a hot fryin' bath in cottonseed oil. Yes it's that time of the year again, when Yours Truly goes bonkers for the deep-fried turkey! As has been done in years before, expect photos chronicling the art, and perhaps even a video or two.

However I cannot emphasize it nearly enough: deep-frying turkey is potentially a very dangerous activity. I haven't been burned (yet) but there have been a few close calls, despite taking every precaution that I know of. To me it's worth the risk because deep-frying honestly does produce the most tender and succulent meat that you'll ever get from any method of cooking a turkey, and I suppose that there's always going to be a possibility of injury with any activity involving a heat source. Unfortunately the vast majority of turkey frying disasters happen because those doing the cooking overlook some ridiculously simple and even common sense issues pertaining to the peculiarities of deep-frying.

And speaking of things "peculiar", State Farm Insurance has produced this wacky and fun public service announcement starring the one and only William Shatner! So without further ado, here is The Shatner in "Eat, Fry, Love"...