We are so excited to announce some holiday news with the kick-off of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. This year also marks off a milestone anniversary for the parade as it turns 90 years old that will soon be seen by more than 50 million viewers on television, with a host of giant character balloons, dazzling floats, the nation’s best marching bands and performance groups, celebrities, and the official entrance of the one-and-only Santa Claus.
Since its origin in 1924, the Macy’s Parade has marked the official start of the holiday season, introducing a cherished march of magic that has dazzled generations of fans. For the 90th edition, the famed spectacle’s line-up will feature 16 giant character balloons; 27 novelty/ornament balloons, balloonicles and trycaloons; 26 floats; 1,100 cheerleaders and dancers; more than 1,000 clowns; and 16 marching bands and performance groups.
Originally known as the Macy’s Christmas Parade, the tradition was started by Macy’s employees who wanted to celebrate the holiday season with a grand pageant similar to the over the-top carnivals and festivals of Europe. The first Parade featured fanciful floats, employee marching bands, clown groups and real animals from the Central Park Zoo. Stretching from Harlem at 145th Street and Convent Avenue down more than five miles to Macy’s Herald Square, the first event was such a success that it was deemed by Macy’s to be an annual event from that point forward.
While many elements have grown and been adapted over time, the heart of the Parade has always involved Macy’s own employee volunteers, talented marching bands and dazzling floats – elements that have paved the way for imagination and grand spectacle. One of those jaw-dropping additions came in 1927. Replacing the live animals who some said scared children along the route, the Parade introduced its first inflatables, debuting four giant balloons filled with air and carried on sticks down the route. That inaugural balloon line-up included the first-ever, character-based balloon featuring the likeness of famed animated film star, Felix the Cat.
To make the balloons lighter than air, the following year, helium was added, helping the
giants float down the route. Since its inception, the Parade has marched during tumultuous periods in our collective history. Only one event has ever caused the cancelation of the Parade and that was World WarII. During a three-year period from 1941 until 1943, the event was put on hold due to the rationing of supplies such as rubber and helium and a moratorium on large public gatherings. After its brief hiatus, the Parade returned and grew in worldwide fame becoming even more synonymous with the holiday season after its starring role in the 1947 film classic, “Miracle on 34th Street.”
The parade will include some very special guests such as the iconic Kermit the Frog, Miss
Piggy, Fozzie Bear and the rest of the Muppets will dazzle and delight millions of fans as they kick off the celebration as only they can, with their signature musical and comedic revelry.
The parade will also feature a star-studded cast that will celebrate the holiday with America, giving fans along the route a thrilling moment with their favorite performers, along with providing the nation with performances from Kelsea Ballerini; Tony Bennett; Aloe Blacc; Chloe x Halle; Easton Corbin; Daya; De La Soul; Diamante Eléctrico; Brett Eldredge; Fitz & the Tantrums; Christopher Jackson; Johnnyswim; Sandra Lee; Maddie & Tae; Sarah McLachlan; NHL legends Adam Graves and Eric Lindros; Ben Rector; Regina Spektor; the cast and Muppets of Sesame Street; Sprout’s Chica; Timeflies; U.S. Olympic Gold Medalists Michelle Carter, Laurie Hernandez and Claressa Shields; U.S. Paralympic Gold Medalists Mikey Brannigan, Gianfranco Iannotta; Grace VanderWaal; and Jacob
Whitesides, among others.
The Parade’s signature giant character balloons have showcased the world’s most beloved cultural characters since the late 1920’s. Evolving from a simple paper sketch to giant wonders on Thanksgiving morning, the balloons are transformed by Macy’s “Balloonatics” into high-flying art.
This year, three new giant characters will take center stage including the return of Peanuts’ characters Charlie Brown and a colorful and whimsical Diary of A Wimpy Kid, as well as the debut of the stars from the new Trolls movie.
The balloon line-up will also feature the return of the Parade’s first balloon star as DreamWorks Animation’s Felix the Cat. Designed and built using the same methods from the late 1920s, Felix will make his way down the route as he first appeared, carried on sticks, mimicking his debut appearance in 1927. Returning giant balloon characters Angry Birds’ Red; Sinclair Oil’s Dino; The Elf on the Shelf ; Hello Kitty; Ice Age’s Scrat and his Acorn; PADDINGTON™; Pikachu; Pillsbury Doughboy; Red Mighty Morphin Power Ranger; Ronald McDonald; Skylanders Eruptor; SpongeBob SquarePants; and Thomas the Tank Engine. The returning balloonicles (a Macy’s Parade hybrid of cold-air balloon and vehicle) include the famed-spokesduck The Aflac Duck.
Specialty Parade entertainment always promises a unique, exciting, and sometimes humorous look at the nation’s finest performance groups. This year’s special groups include the high kicking Kilgore Rangerettes (Kilgore, TX), the dance stars of the world-renowned in-school arts education program, National Dance Institute (New York), the Armenian folk dance group Sayat Nova Dance Company (Boston) and the Tap Dancing Christmas Trees (Alameda, CA). Completing the performance groups are the Spirit of America Cheer and the Spirit of America Dance Stars, which both feature 550 of the nation’s best cheerleaders and most thrilling dancers.
Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade Details
The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade will begin at 9 a.m. from 77th Street and Central Park West. The procession will march to Columbus Circle, turn onto Central Park South and march down 6th Avenue/Avenue of the Americas to 34th Street. At 34th Street, the Parade will make its final turn west and end at 7th Avenue in front of Macy’s Herald Square.
For more information on the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, please visit www.macys.com/parade or call the Parade hotline at 212-494-4495. Follow @macys and join the conversation at #MacysParade on various social networks.
