Macy’s annual Thanksgiving day parade
With Thanksgiving right around the corner, Macy’s annual Thanksgiving Day Parade is preparing to air. This national celebration has been going on for 98 years, and the floats and balloons have greatly improved since then.
Macy’s first parade took place on November 27, 1924. Originally the floats were based on stories and nursery rhymes such as little red riding hood. Employees of the Macy’s store dressed up in clown, cowboy, or knight attire. Animals from the central park zoo and Santa Claus also made an appearance.
This year’s float lineup includes Pinkfong’s Baby Shark, Toys R Us Geoffreys Dazzling Dance Party, and The Wondership by Wonder bread. Performing from the floats will be artists such as Big Time Rush, and Fitz, and the Tantrums. Marching bands such as the Macy’s Great American Marching Band, NYPD’s Marching Band will be making appearances in between the floats.
Clowns and balloons have been a traditional part of the parade since the very start. This year, 30 groups of clowns will help entertain the masses of people; including sleepy clowns, spacey clowns, and superhero clowns. They have a magnificent array of over 25 balloons, some as tall as a 4-story building. Previous years included Goku from the legendary franchise Dragon Ball and Grogu from the Mandalorian. However, they also have new balloons like Stuart the Minion from Despicable Me and Greg Heffley from Diary of a Wimpy Kid.
Also, in the parade are balloonicles, which are balloon vehicles, a variant of traditional large balloons. The newest member of the balloonicle team is Striker the U.S. Soccer Star. Some returning ballonicles are Baby Dinos, Go Bowling, and the Nutcracker.
Millions of people watch the parade across the nation. Last year, NBC topped over 25 million viewers. Mia Hoxie, a DBHS freshman, said, “I have watched it before, and I plan to watch it this year.” Hoxie then stated, “I watch it with my family because it is entertaining, and I would consider it a tradition to watch it”.
Prisca Bertrand, another freshman at DBHS, said, “I have never watched it”. However, Bertrand also stated that she “think(s) of the parade itself as a tradition.”
Too many families across the nation, this parade is an annual tradition. The Macys Thanksgiving Day Parade starts on November 24th at 8:45 a.m. on the NBC news channel.
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