Thanksgiving Day Parade
The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade is the most popular parade in the entire United States. It is held every Thanksgiving Day in New York City. It is sponsored by the popular and wealthy Macy’s Department Store. This parade is magical for people of all ages, taking them away from their usual hustle of daily routines into a world of floats, celebrities, and giant balloons. The parade is generally about 3 hours long, starting in the morning and finishing in time to enjoy a great turkey dinner. Traditionally, Santa Claus arrives on the last float, stopping at Herald Square.
The parade started with immigrants who worked for Macy’s in the 1920’s wanting a way to celebrate their new life in America. They wanted to accept traditional Thanksgiving rituals like other Americans. During Thanksgiving of 1924, they paraded down 34th street with a band and floats, and live animals. The parade has continued every since. By 1933 the people lined up to watch the parade reached 1 million. In 1927, the live animals were replaced with very large balloons.
The first balloon in the 1927 Macy’s Day Parade was Felix the cat. He was filled with air. By the 1928 parade, helium replaced air in the balloons. The Mickey Mouse balloon became part of the parade in 1934. The parade did not take place from 1942 to 1944 due to World War II. Rubber and helium were desperately needed for the war, and the city of New York wanted to support the war efforts. The parade resumed in 1945. It became very well known in the movie ‘Miracle on 34th Street’ which debuted in 1947.
Today, more than 44 million people tune in to watch the Macy’s Parade. The parade has broadcast live on NBC since 1952. The parade continues down the same route since 1945. It begins at the intersection of 77th Street and Central Park West. The route turns onto Broadway continuing to Times Square, ending at Macy’s on 34th Street. The parade has had a few people seriously injured during the parades due to balloons getting tangled in street lamps and other obstacles. As a result, strict size regulations have been enforced since 1997, dampening the creative development of many new balloons.
