The Thanksgiving Day Parade

Tweet

No, I didn't stay up for it, I taped it.(My regular bedtime recently has been about 6a.) I'm such a kid I do enjoy seeing the regular characters depicted in balloon style for this special day. I get a kick out of seeing the often updated versions of such icons as Ronald McDonald, Snoopy, Sonic, Baby Yoda, Dough Boy, Smokey the bear, and so many others. This year there was a pretty float from Louisiana with an alligator on the front and a showboat and French Quarter mix made up the rest of the float. I really liked it. Of course, Santa Claus was there with the sleigh, gift bag, and the reindeer. On November 28, 1924, the Thanksgiving Day Parade(originally the Macy's Christmas Parade) first made its debut in New York City. The parade route is two and a half miles long and goes from 77th Street to midtown Manhattan. One of the earliest balloons added to the parade is Smokey Bear, one which first was added to the parade in 1966 to promote a cartoon that would air that evening. He stands 51 feet tall. Ronald McDonald is another long-time icon of the parade. He first flew in the parade in 1987 and is 68 feet tall. Incidentally, one year poor Ronald had an arm torn off and another year it ran into a tree. Poor Ronald! Did you watch it? The image is courtesy of Flickr.com