Remove giblets and place in a saucepan (excepting only the liver, unless you particularly like liver-flavored gravy), with half a chopped onion, two stalks of sliced celery, a cored and quartered apple, and several sliced carrots. Salt and pepper it, add a bay leaf, and leave it on low heat to simmer for several hours. You're basically making turkey giblet stock, so whatever procedure and spices you use to make stock, go ahead and use them at this point. I like adding several leaves of rosemary and a few peppercorns, for example. This stock makes a creamy, rich gravy, so desired on Thanksgiving Day.

Thoroughly rinse the turkey, inside and out, and lightly pat dry. Stuff the cavity, packing the stuffing firmly. We always use the same stuffing for our Thanksgiving, but whatever stuffing recipe you use, make sure that every ingredient is fully cooked. Any extra stuffing we bake separately, covered, in a casserole dish. Using liberal amounts, rub salt and pepper into the skin of the turkey, both top and bottom. Then sprinkle parsley over the bird and rub it in, especially into the crevices and by the wings. Then rub sweet delicate Hungarian paprika in a heavy, even layer over the entire bird. A sprinkle of garlic salt is the final step, rubbed lightly into the seasonings already coating the skin.

Place the turkey on a raised wire baking rack in large metal pan (turkey must not be sitting on the bottom of the pan!). Put about 1" water in the pan, along with a quarter stick of butter (sliced into four pieces and dropped into the corners), 3-4 cored and quartered apples, and one or two pared onions. Cover the top of the turkey with a single layer of thickly-sliced country bacon, but cover it completely! Toothpicks help secure the bacon to the turkey.

Don't forget the legs, they get pieces of their own. Put foil around the wings, because they're thin and will burn otherwise. Over bacon drape a wet hand towel (the towel will be ruined, so don't use your prettiest! It should be fairly wet, almost dripping). Put heavy foil between the edges of the turkey and the pan, so they don't touch. Then fold a large piece of foil four times and place a square of foil over the breast. Then put at least three layers of heavy foil over the top and to the edges of the pan, crimping them tightly.

Put the bird in a preheated 375°F oven for about 2 hours, until thoroughly heated. Then raise the heat to 400-450°F, depending on the sizzling, for about 1 - 1 1/2 hours. Look at the bird and its moisture content, and finally bake at 500°F for 1/2 to 1 hour. Dad can tell by the aroma when the bird's heat needs to be raised, and when it is done, but this is the procedure he nearly always follows.  Enjoy the people gathered to celebrate Thanksgiving while the turkey cooks.

Finish the gravy by straining the broth and discarding the vegetables. The meat can be set aside and served later, or eaten then. Add a can of cream of mushroom soup, and stir until thoroughly mixed.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.In a mason jar, shake water and flour vigorously and add it to the gravy until thickened.  Remove the turkey and discard the foil and bacon. Remove stuffing to a serving bowl.