Steve Mellon, Post-Gazette Black Friday will be full of the post-Thanksgiving tones of local acts such as, clockwise from top, Norman Nardini

This is the first time Weekend Mag has ever come out on Thanksgiving Day, so Happy Thanksgiving -- hope you enjoy the food, the family and the football.

You might be wondering, "Isn't this the day when you guys do the listing of all the holiday shows on TV?" Yes, it is. But we're doing the Video Game Guide today (the usual get-ready-for-Black Friday feature) and you can get all those TV listings in tomorrow's Mag & Movies.

Rick Madonik, Toronto Star Steven Tyler and Aerosmith will bring their tried and true to the Mellon Arena Saturday night.

We're not putting forth any big entertainment plans for this day, but, if, as in the commercial, you wanna get away, there are a few escapes. The usual feast of Thanksgiving movies is served, led by "Rent," starring Taye Diggs and Jesse L. Martin in the screen version of Jonathan Larson's revolutionary rock opera about a group of bohemians struggling to survive amid poverty, illness and AIDS. Dennis Quaid and Rene Russo update "Yours, Mine & Ours," the 1968 Henry Fonda-Lucille Ball movie about a couple trying to settle down with 18 children. And John Cusack and Billy Bob Thornton are Christmas Eve partners in crime in the comic thriller "Ice Harvest."

At least one turkey is safe today. It's Oscar the Ocellated Turkey at the National Aviary, who has now recovered from his broken leg earlier this year and is, according to the Aviary, "as feisty as ever." The Aviary, on the North Side, opens the door to the bird cage from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. with a Raptor Encounter (10:30 a.m.), Penguin Premiere (1 p.m.), lunch feeding in the Wetlands (1:30 p.m.) and lunch feeding in the Tropical Forest (2:30 p.m.). For details, call 412-323-7235.

The day after Thanksgiving means Black Friday in the malls and the main drags. In the evening, things are rocking and the sound is classic Pittsburgh:

The Tribe assembles as Rusted Root, in its 17th year, kicks off a 13-city tour with a concert at the Carnegie Music Hall in Oakland. The last time we saw Root was at the Katrina benefit at the Mellon Arena, where they turned up with a new drummer, Jason Miller (Jim Donovan is a busy father and drum teacher) and a slightly less propulsive sound. It's been a fairly quiet year for Pittsburgh's favorite jam band, but the members stayed busy. Jenn Wertz added to the band's extended family with the birth of a baby boy, Gibson, last New Year's Day. Patrick Norman is a new father and has also recorded his first solo CD, "Digital World." Liz Berlin was busy with her own kids, while releasing a solo record, "AudioBioGraphical." Frontman Michael Glabicki continues to work on another solo project that he sounds really excited about and John Buynak is pursuing visual art. They all come together for a show at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $25. Call 412-323-1919.

The Decade is long gone, but the sound lives on this weekend at Moondog's, which pays tribute to the irreplaceable Oakland club with a Decade Reunion Weekend. Actually, there were several different sounds at the Decade, from the R&B swing of Bon Ton Roulet to the muscular bar-rock of the Iron City Houserockers to the thrashier young punks like the Addicts and Trash Vegas. The latter two are part of Decade Outlaw Night Friday with Norman Nardini, Gil Snyder, and The Dime Store 45s. Admission is $8. On Saturday, Joe Grushecky and the Houserockers -- featuring three of the old I.C. Houserockers -- make the name proud ($10). One of the ironies of this show is that Ron "Moondog" Esser, who now owns Moondog's, worked for the bitter Decade rival Graffiti. "Dom [DiSilvio, of the Decade] started it all and I worked for Tony [DiNardo, of Graffiti]. I used to sneak into the Decade and say, 'Don't tell Tony you saw me here.' I remember one night toward the end [of the Decade] I went in and saw Warren King and it was so hot and so crowded, but I was just so glad to be there." Both shows are at 9 p.m. Call 412-828-2040.

Speaking of the Decade and Graffiti, Pittsburgh's premier rhythm-and-blues singer Billy Price (who rocked them both) goes to sea on the Gateway Clipper Majestic with his crack band and boatload of soul. It boards at Station Square at 7 p.m. and sails at 8 p.m. Tickets are $16. Call 412-355-7980.

The biggest group in town is in action as well. Yan Pascal Tortelier, principal guest conductor, leads the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra and the Mendelssohn Choir of Pittsburgh in "French Lushness," a program of music by Berlioz, Bizet and Ravel at Heinz Hall. Concerts are at 8 p.m. Friday and 2:30 p.m. Sunday. Tickets are $17 to $69. 412-392-4900.

Rewinding to the afternoon, here's a good way to avoid the malls and experience cutting-edge art. The Mattress Factory Family & Community Day, free for all ages, consists of tours of the new exhibit "Messages & Communications," interactive art, movement and book projects all day. Special guests include dancers Peter Kope and Michele de la Reza of Attack Theatre and cellist Dave Eggar. Tours begin at 1 p.m.; art projects at 2 p.m. The museum is at 500 Sampsonia Way, North Side. Call 412-231-3169.

Santa Claus is coming to town, but not by sleigh. He's on the Santa Trolley at the Pennsylvania Trolley Museum in Washington from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday through Sunday and Dec. 3-4 and 10-11. After meeting with Santa on the scenic trolley ride, kids can check out the large Lionel train layout. Admission is free if you bring an unwrapped toy (minimum $10 value) for the "Toys for Tots" campaign. Otherwise, admission is $6; $5 seniors and $4 for kids 3-15. The museum is located opposite the Washington County Fairgrounds. Call 724-228-9256.

Calvin Johnson, singer-guitarist and founding member of Beat Happening, The Go Team, Dub Narcotic Sound System and The Halo Benders, does a solo show at the Andy Warhol Museum, with quiet acoustic pieces and jazzier material. He's joined by Tender Forever (Melanie Valera's lo-fi pop ballads) and Hotness (techno-pop with a pink-clad Clinton Doggett dancing, singing and banging pots and pans). It starts at 8 p.m. Tickets are $5.

Gary Owen -- the dancing "Mr. Broccoli" in "Daddy Day Care" and the goofy redneck deputy in "Held Up" -- spends the weekend at the Improv, Waterfront, with shows at 8 and 10 p.m. Friday, 7 and 9 p.m. Saturday and 7 p.m. Sunday. Owen just signed a development deal with Fox TV and will appear in the Wayans brothers' movie "Middle Man." Tickets are $20. Call 412-462-5233.

Also in the clubs, jam band Ekoostik Hookah grooves into Mr. Small's Theatre at 8 p.m. And funk-metal band Jimmie's Chicken Shack plays the Rex at 8 p.m.

Fifth Avenue goes to the 5th Dimension on Saturday morning for the 25th annual Celebrate the Season Parade. Marilyn McCoo and Billy Davis Jr., husband and wife and members of that group that turned out hits such as "Up, Up and Away," "Wedding Bell Blues" and "(Last Night) I Didn't Get to Sleep At All," join the parade that begins at Mellon Arena and travels down Fifth Avenue, from 9 to 11 a.m. Also joining the line will be the legendary Radio City Rockettes, stepping out from their performances at the Benedum, plus high school bands, drill teams, holiday floats and Santa Claus. It's presented by Kaufmann's and WPXI.

After the parade, folks can head over to the Food Court at Two PPG Place for "A Charade-Tastic Christmas," a musical program with singing, dancing and charades, balloon creations by Don-na The Snow Queen and a holiday workshop. It runs from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and it's free.

Aerosmith ... again? Yep. Once a year isn't enough for the bad boys from Boston. They return to Pittsburgh to make a little extra money for the holidays, having just released a new live album "Rockin' the Joint." This time, they rock the joint, in this case the Mellon Arena, with Lenny Kravitz at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $55 to $125. 412-323-1919.

There will be much laughter and merriment in Greensburg on Saturday. Bill Cosby, still a fixture on Nick at Night, brings his easy-going, homespun family comedy -- and maybe that dentist bit -- to the Palace Theatre for shows at 4 and 8 p.m. Tickets are $50 to $65. Call 724-836-8000.

Blackalicious, a hip-hop outfit that can be spoken of in the same sentence with De La Soul and the Roots, regroup after this week's earlier postponement for a show at Mr. Small's Theatre in Millvale, touring on the new album, "The Craft." Timothy Parker, aka Gift of Gab, recently told the Lexington Herald Leader of the duo's high expectations. "We definitely look at what we do as a book. The music we're doing is a chapter in a book. When we looked at people we were aspiring to be like, we looked at people like Miles Davis and Prince, people who have massive bodies of work. At the end of the day, that's what we want to leave behind." Tickets are $14 advance; $16 at the door. Doors open at 9 p.m., music at 10 p.m. Call 1-800-594-TIXX.