When Doug Turner invited a few neighbors over for a winter gathering at his house in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, little did he imagine it would become the hottest party of the season.
And Turner, 87, probably didn’t expect that just a few days after the event, he would be stopping by TODAY to tell his newfound fans how it went.
“It was a rager, yeah,” Turner said as he visited TODAY this week along with one of his neighbors, Michelle Hernandez. “We started at 4 p.m. and most of the 24 people invited showed up and we just ate food and drank beer and even snuck into my whiskey stash and drank that. It was pretty wild, it lasted until midnight.”
Turner went viral after Hernandez shared a TikTok video him handing out his hand-designed party invitations, which included details for the Feb. 15 festivities: “4 p.m. until the cops arrive."
Her video has now been viewed more than 2 million times on TikTok, with people around the country and the world quickly becoming invested in Turner and his wholesome gathering.
“Stop this legit made me tear up this is SO SWEET,” one person commented on Hernandez’s video.
“I’ll be waiting in New Zealand for updates lol,” another person wrote. Another person chimed in, "I am in Canada 🇨🇦 and I would certainly go."
Celebrities including Michael Bublé even got in on the action, sending Turner some whiskey for the occasion.
Doug’s Winter Party may have been a global phenomenon, but the actual event remained exclusive, with only a couple dozen neighbors attending.
However, Hernandez helped Turner livestream the event so fans around the country — many of whom were throwing their own versions of Doug’s Winter Party in his honor — could tune in.
Turner also shared a few video updates from the event.
“It’s been going about five or six hours or so, I’m starting to kind of tired,” he said in one video. “It’s been a great connection with a bunch of good neighbors … We didn’t get rid of all the food and drinks, but we did put a big hole in the pile, anyway, so I hope we see you next time.”
Most importantly, “the cops never showed up,” Turner said.
Turner seemed bemused by all the attention his party has received, and he admitted on TODAY that it feels “kind of embarrassing to me because my dad was not a braggart and he hated it, so he’d be unhappy with this.”
However, he also said it was heartwarming to see how his gathering inspired others to come together.
“If other people really are setting up parties for their neighborhood friends, that’s going to be a good thing in the country because we’re kind of divided now,” he said. “This might fix some of that, I hope.”
In the age of electronic invites, many people were especially charmed by Turner’s homespun invitations, but Turner said he couldn’t imagine doing it any other way.
“I can’t even type, so it had to be hand-designed,” he said.
As for whether there will be a Doug’s Winter Party 2026? Turner said he’s planning on it, but “it might be quieter.”
“I might just go with paper and no electronics,” he said.
