Black Friday is almost upon us, when retailers kick off the holiday season with offers meant to get customers in the shopping mood.
The term “Black Friday” in relation to shopping the day after Thanksgiving is most often traced to Philadelphia where police had to deal with large crowds who thronged the streets of the city before the annual Army-Navy game and to take advantage of sales. According to the Dec. 18, 1961, issue of Public Relations News, a newsletter, it became customary for police to refer to post-Thanksgiving shopping as Black Friday and Black Saturday because of the headaches they created.
Retailers began taking ownership of the term in the late 1980s as the opening bell for the holidays. Of course, Black Friday has morphed more accurately into a month of offers that begin in October, when Halloween jack-o'-lanterns are still flickering.
A number of stores that were closed on Thanksgiving, including Walmart and Target, reopen early Friday as the holiday shopping season begins in earnest.
