November 23, 2022 – Theme Week Day 3

We’re closing out our Mini Thanksgiving Theme Week with one of my favorite turkey day traditions – the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade! The first parade took place in 1924, but it’s not the oldest Thanksgiving parade. That honor goes to Philadelphia’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. The first Macy’s parade looked a lot different than it does today. There were floats and professional bands, but also live animals borrowed from the Central Park Zoo! The animals were part of the parade until 1928, when they were replaced by huge balloons. For several years, the giant balloons were released and slowly deflated. Whoever found the balloon could return it to Macy’s for a $100 prize (that’s more than $1600 today!). The first character to be made in balloon-form was Felix the Cat. Snoopy has appeared in the parade more than any other characters, debuting in 1968. Each balloon requires up to 90 handlers as it makes its way through the parade route. Because of all the massive balloons, Macy’s is reportedly the 2nd-largest consumer of helium in the world, after the U.S. government. Learn more here.