This year marks the 100th anniversary of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. The first character balloon in 1927 was Felix the Cat, and the character to make the most appearances is Snoopy, with over 40.
1. This year marks the 100th anniversary of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. The first one, in 1924, happened when store employees marched to Macy’s Herald Square dressed in vibrant costumes. There WERE floats, professional bands, and live animals borrowed from the Central Park Zoo but it was originally Christmas-themed and it was meant to celebrate the expansion of Macy’s flagship Manhattan store.
2. It became an annual tradition after the first one attracted a crowd of over 250,000 people despite limited publicity leading up to it.
3. Before the Macy’s parade, there was the annual “Thanksgiving Ragamuffin Parade,” where local children dressed up as BEGGARS and asked adults on the street for pennies, candy, and apples. The Macy’s parade ended that tradition.
4. The character balloons debuted three years later, in 1927. The first was Felix the Cat.
5. The parade was broadcast on the radio for the first time in 1932. The first televised parade was in 1946 but it was limited to the New York area.
6. The Thanksgiving Day parade floats were pulled by horses until 1939.
7. Macy’s canceled the parade during World War Two from 1942 to 1944 because there were rubber and helium shortages.
8. Thanks to the parade, Macy’s is reportedly the second-largest consumer of helium in the world. Only the U.S. government consumes more.
9. One character has appeared in the parade more than any other: Snoopy. He’s appeared 43 times most recently as Beagle Scout Snoopy. He’ll also appear this year.
10. The singers on the parade floats all lip-sync. That’s true even if they’re amazing live performers. The floats just aren’t equipped to deliver the proper sound quality.
11. Marching bands have to apply more than one year ahead of time for a spot.
12. A Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade movie was once in the works, with a premise that involved the oversized balloons COMING TO LIFE. But nothing ever came of it, at least not yet.
13. This year’s parade is scheduled to begin at 8:30 A.M. Eastern Thursday morning, and will run for a full three-and-a-half hours until noon. It’ll air on NBC as usual, along with streams on Peacock and Fubo. Savannah Guthrie, Hoda Kotb, and Al Roker of the “Today” show will return as hosts.
14. This year’s parade will feature six new character balloons . . . four new “balloonicles” . . . and seven new floats.
15. New York City will be WET tomorrow, but the parade will happen rain or shine. There was some concern that strong winds could keep the balloons grounded like they were in 1971 and 2019.