For 40 years, Pittsburghers have watched Eat’n Park’s Christmas Star get a special lift to the top of the tree.

Like the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and the lighting of the Horne’s tree Downtown, the Eat’n Park Christmas Star is among those traditional holiday things that help us get into the holiday spirit.

The story of the star dates to early 1982 when then-Eat’n Park CEO Jim Broadhurst asked the company’s outside ad agency to create a holiday message that would “last for 20 years.”

After about 30 ideas, the Christmas Star was born. And it’s lasted far longer than anticipated.

“The idea of the relationship between the tree and the star illustrates an enduring holiday lesson – by helping one another, you’re making the world a brighter place,” Eat’n Park says on its site.

Of course, you can see the commercial whenever you’d like on YouTube.

But if you’re in Pittsburgh, Eat’n Park says to watch the programs listed below for the beloved commercial.

• WPXI
• Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade – Nov. 24, 9 a.m.
• Christmas at Rockefeller Center – Nov. 30, 8 p.m.
• Dolly Parton’s Christmas of Many Colors – Dec. 23, 9 p.m.
• It’s a Wonderful Life – Dec. 24, 8 p.m. 

KDKA

• Frosty & Frosty Returns – Nov. 25, 8 p.m.
• A Christmas Proposal – Nov. 25, 9 p.m.
• Rudolph – Dec. 10, 8 p.m.
• National Christmas Tree Lighting – Dec. 11, 8 p.m.

WTAE

• Love Actually – Nov. 29, 8 p.m.
• The Great Christmas Light Fight – Dec. 5, 8 p.m.
• Santa Claus is Coming to Town – Dec. 20, 8 p.m.
• A Very Backstreet Holiday – Dec. 20, 10 p.m.
• Home Alone – Dec. 24, 8 p.m. 

FOX

• The Masked Singer Christmas Special – Nov. 30 & Dec. 7, 8 p.m.
• Lego Masters: Celebrity Holiday Bricktacular – Dec. 19 & 20, 8 p.m.

WQED

• WQED Holiday Sessions – Dec. 11, 1 p.m.
• A Christmas Cookie – Dec. 11, 1:30 p.m.
• Holy Night: Christmas with the Tabernacle Choir – Dec. 13, 8 p.m.
• B.E. Taylor – Dec. 15, 8 p.m.
• Anthony Williams’ Urban Nutcracker – Dec. 19, 10 p.m.
• Curious George: A Very Monkey Christmas – Dec. 19, 4 p.m.
• Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra Family Christmas Show – Dec. 20, 10 p.m.
• The Nutcracker and the Mouse King – Dec. 23, 9 p.m.
• Ella Wishes You a Swinging Christmas with Vanessa Williams – Dec. 24, 7 p.m.
• WQED Presents: Live from Studio A – Holiday Jam 2007 – Dec. 25, 1 p.m.
• Happy Holidays in Pittsburgh – Dec. 25, 2 p.m.
• All Creatures Great and Small on Masterpiece: The Perfect Christmas – Dec. 25, 8 p.m.

Looking for some Eat’n Park Christmas Star items? Check out the Eat’n Park Smiley store for cookies, shirts and other goodies.

You can buy a shirt from Steel City reppin’ the Christmas Star.

Plus, you can add it to your Zoom or Teams (or other video chat app) backgrounds, get a mobile phone background image, share it on social media and much more from Eat’n Park’s site!