Black Friday frenzy starts Thanksgiving night

>> let's begin with the black friday shopping rush. cnbc's courtney reagan is at a mall in dayton, ohio. good morning.

>> reporter: good morning to you. this mall has been open since midnight, and shoppers have been flocking in ever since. if this is the super bowl of retail, many of these shoppers are already playing in overtime.

>> slow down.

>> reporter: while it may not be what the ilgrims intended for those flocking to the stores on thanksgiving, it could be the start of a new tradition.

>> eat turkey, and then put the kids to sleep with my mom and go out with my husband.

>> reporter: retailers hope shopping bags will be as full as shoppers' stomachs. walmart, toys r u.s. and target all opened their doors by 9:00 p.m ., and kmart had three separate door-duster sales, the first starting at 6:00 a.m . thanksgiving morning. these stores hope the black friday creep into thursday will keep the cash registers ringing all the way through friday night this year.

>> it looks like all of the advertising and the earlier hours are going to pay off for retailers.

>> we got here around 3:30, so, you know, not all night, but it's worth it to see the looks on our families faces when they open up their gifts.

>> reporter: they are not alone. over the course of the weekend more than 147 million americans are expected to shop and spend.

>> got mickey. we got some tools. we got the fire rescue stuff. i don't know what else i can do some damage with with you i'll find out.

>> reporter: black friday weekend can generate up to 30% of all holiday sales for retailers.

>> better deals earlier available in the season and later in the season and black friday is that time when you can say, okay, christmas is in the air.

>> reporter: while black friday is still an event with many americans it's lost some proliferation with the internet. more and more shoppers are jamming servers from couches instead of busting doors at stores. thanksgiving sales are up 19% from last year. online or in store retailers are rolling out deals throughout the weekend, tryin to bring consumers back for more.

>> it's rough, but it's all worth it at the end of the day , you know, when you're out here trying to save a couple of dollars.

>> reporter: google says the top thanksgiving day -related shopping day include the lexus nexus and ipad and espresso maker so we'll see if that's what all the shoppers are going home from with the stores, too. tamron.