Macy's Thanksgiving Parade

The first Thanksgiving Day Parade was held in 1924 was called the 'Macy's Christmas Day Parade', despite the fact that it took place on a Thanksgiving Day. It took three years to actually re-name it as 'Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade' in 1927. American parades actually are an extension to the European tradition. In the 1920's, many store employees of Macy's department were second generation immigrants and were proud of their new American heritage. They wanted to introduce their beloved European tradition to an American Holiday and so they marched from 145 Street down to 34th Street dressed in fancy costumes such as clowns, cowboys, knights and sheiks. There were 25 live animals in their parade that they borrowed from the Central Park Zoo along with floats and professional bands. The parade was an instant hit and they attracted an audience of about over a quarter of a million people.

In 1927, large balloons were introduced for the first time in the shape of Felix the Cat. There was a tradition about releasing the balloons that would float for days and the lucky finders could claim a prize for the balloons but this custom is now extinct. Children simply love Macy's Thanksgiving Parade. Parade continued to grown in 1930s and crowd of over 1 million people lined the routes of the Parade by 1934. New balloons were introduced in the shape of Walt Disney characters and there were radio shows telling all about the ceremony and Santa's arrival at 34th Street. During World War II, the Parade was suspended but was resumed in 1945 and was televised in New York. A new route was chosen for the Parade, which is the present route of the Parade.

Nationwide television network covered Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade and made it more and more popular and celebrities like Sid Caesar, Danny Kaye and Howdy Doody made their appearances in the parade. Macy's Parade continues to this day and valiant balloon wranglers go on with the tradition in all conditions. In 1963, Parade had to be held less than a week after President Kennedy's assassination and the country was still in mourning but Macy's employees decide that they could not disappoint millions of children and went on with the Parade. In 1971, balloons and floats had to be absent because it was an exceptionally windy day and TV had to use clips from the 1970 Parade. Some of the favorite Macy's Thanksgiving Parade balloons and floats are Snoopy, Kermit the Frog, and Superman. It is a magical experience for adults and children alike and is unique to New York.