Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade



The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade is an annual parade held every Thanksgiving Day in New York City. Originally called the Macy's Christmas Parade, it was first held in 1924 and has run continually since then, only missing three years due to rubber shortages during World War II. The two and a half mile parade features large balloons of well-known characters alongside floats and marching bands, ending with a float of Santa Claus upon his sleigh, marking the start of the Christmas season.

Interestingly, all performers in the parade, including those appearing through Sesame Workshop and others, must become "employees" of Macy's.

Kermit the Frog and the Muppets
The first Kermit the Frog balloon debuted in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in 1977. The balloon was 63 feet tall and 24 feet wide, and took four hours and 5,220 cubic feet of helium to reach its full size. It was constructed at the Goodyear plant in Rockmart, Georgia.

The Muppet cast made a live appearance in the 1979 Parade to promote The Muppet Movie. Miss Piggy rode the parade route in a Rolls Royce, followed by the rest of the Muppets in the Electric Mayhem bus.

Also in 1979, the Kermit balloon was the first inflatable from the parade to travel outside of the USA, heading to England to help celebrate the International Year of the Child.

The 1981 parade featured Beauregard's taxi, with Beauregard driving madly around the parade. Kermit, Fozzie Bear and Gonzo appear as passengers.

The 1985 parade was affected by heavy rain, which weighed down the balloons. The Kermit balloon ripped its stomach along Central Park West during the parade. An AP report said that "The Kermit balloon was punctured by a tree and almost crashed into spectators as it sailed down the parade route with its left foot dragging the street." With only about 20% of his helium inside the balloon, Kermit was carried for the rest of the parade by his green-clad frog handlers.

In 1987, Jim Henson and Kermit appeared live on the telecast to accept the Rollie Award, an award named for Rowland H. Macy, for their years of service to the parade. Kermit graciously accepted the award, saying, "Listen, to be immortalized in a large balloon about 75 feet tall and filled with gas is one of the greatest thrills of my life, and I wish everybody out there could have the same exciting thrill. And it would be a wonderful parade if they did."

The Kermit balloon suffered another mishap in 1991, when it scraped against high branches on Central Park West, tearing a hole in the balloon. "We thought he had turned into a tree frog," said Marc Schwab, the balloon captain. "Personally, I think he saw Miss Piggy on a sidestreet. But he was a real trouper. He was down, so to speak, but he wasn't out." The New York Times reported that the balloon, "borne by its crew and wildly cheered on by the crowd, galumphed on toward Herald Square." Parade producer Jean McFaddin talked about the incident in 1995, saying, "If a balloon gets disfigured so that it would be disruptive to children, we pull it out of the parade." Asked what would be disruptive enough, McFaddin answered, "If Kermit had his face torn off." Kermit was left in the parade in '91, although the mostly-deflated, 1,000-pound balloon had to be carried down Broadway by his handlers. "He looked like he was swimming," McFaddin said.

After this incident, the Kermit balloon was retired from the Parade.

In 1994, Kermit the Frog was named the parade's "Holiday Ambassador." Costumed versions of him and Miss Piggy were seen during the parade, riding in a horse-drawn carriage (underscored by "It Feels Like Christmas").

After an 11-year hiatus from the Parade, a new Kermit the Frog balloon debuted in 2002. The new balloon is 78 feet long, 61 feet high and 36 feet wide, with a volume of 11,000 cubic feet of helium.

To mark the occasion, Kermit was the official holiday mascot for Macy's in 2002, and he rode on Santa's sleigh at the end of the parade. During the broadcast, Kermit and Miss Piggy were interviewed by Today Show weatherman Al Roker to talk about the new balloon, as well as to promote It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie, which aired the following night.

In 2008, Kermit appeared live on the Central Park float, and performed the song "I Believe". In 2009, Kermit performed the song again, as a duet with Tiffany Thornton. The song was also performed on the Santa Claus float soon after.

The Muppets kicked off the 2016 parade with a pre-recorded musical number: "Hey, It's Macy's!", a variation of The Great Muppet Caper's opening number, "Hey a Movie!" The song was performed by a large crowd of Muppets, including Kermit, Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Gonzo, Scooter, Rowlf the Dog, Lew Zealand, the Swedish Chef, Sweetums, Pepe, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, Beaker, Statler and Waldorf, a couple of Chickens and some Penguins, along with assorted Macy's clowns and dancing Christmas trees. Following this, Miss Piggy appeared in an introduction with Matt Lauer and Savannah Guthrie, which led into a live performance of "Twist and Shout" by Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem. Toward the end of the parade, Miss Piggy and Tony Bennett gave a live performance of "Santa Claus is Coming to Town." Bill Barretta directed the pre-recorded opening.

Balloons
Several Sesame characters have also appeared in balloon form. Big Bird's balloon debuted in 1988; the balloon (designed by Michael Frith) featured Big Bird wearing a winter cap and a sweater, and carrying alphabet blocks. The Big Bird balloon led the parade in 1991 and 1998; the latter parade was particularly windy and rainy, and the balloon was kept low to the ground in order to test the wind.

After ten years, the original Big Bird balloon was wearing out -- according to a Christian Science Monitor article, "Its stitching is frayed, and he's been patched a lot." A new balloon was made in 2001, showing Big Bird playing a pair of cymbals.

A Super Grover balloon launched in 2003 (designed by Louis Henry Mitchell), and was followed by an Abby Cadabby balloon in 2007.

The Abby Cadabby balloon stands at 56 feet long, 37.5 feet wide, and 48.5 feet high; Abby and her magic wand are filled with 16,100 cubic feet of helium.

Float
A Sesame Street float first appeared in the parade in 1974, with Muppets and cast members waving to the crowd. The original float featured two buildings -- the 123 Sesame Street brownstone, and Hooper's Store. The streetlight with the Sesame Street street sign was located at the front of the float; a ramshackle fence was at the back, decorated with numbers and letters. Big Bird perched on the roof of the float; Cookie Monster and other Muppet characters stuck their heads out of the windows, and human cast members (including Mr. Hooper, Gordon and Bob) stood on the front of the float. This float appeared in five consecutive parades, through 1978.

In 1979, Children's Television Workshop celebrated the 10th anniversary of the show with a brand new float, a much taller, two-story structure. Big Bird sat in his nest at the top of the building, and cast members and kids appeared at the front of the float. A sign was carried in front of the float which said, "Macy's wishes Sesame Street a Happy 10th Year". As most of the main Muppet performers were working The Electric Mayhem Bus for The Muppet Movie, additional puppeteers were recruited. Among them were Kevin Clash, in his first Muppet-related performance. Clash performed Cookie Monster, and remembers having lost his voice from shouting in the gravelly impersonation throughout the route. It was at this parade's Henson after-party that Kermit Love introduced him to Jim Henson.

The 1981 float promoted the new Sesame Street Live shows, including walk-around characters. A sign was carried in front of the float: "Macy's presents Sesame Street Live".

The Sesame Street float was retired for over a decade subsequently, but returned in 1994, with an abstract design of the street made from books based on the show's current literacy curriculum. A Sesame Street float has been a part of the parade every year since.

In the 1997 parade, Elmo appeared alongside Katie Couric for a brief interview and to introduce the Sesame Street float.

The current Sesame Street float measures 32 feet long, 20 feet wide, and 2 stories tall. It was designed by Louis Henry Mitchell, who was asked to have it represent "the show’s history (the classic brownstone) while also doing something modern and visually exciting."

In 2002, the Sesame Street float featured a message about peace and universal goodwill, and the American cast was joined by a group of international Sesame Muppets. The international Muppets included Filfil and Nimnim from Egypt's Alam Simsim, Hu Hu Zhu from China's Zhima Jie, Rumpel and Samson from Germany's Sesamstrasse, Kareem, Dafi and Haneen from the Palestinian Shara'a Simsim, Abelardo and Lola from Mexico's Plaza Sésamo, Zeliboba and Businka from the Russian Ulitsa Sezam, and Moishe Oofnik from the Israeli Rechov Sumsum and Shalom Sesame. That year, the cast sang "We Are All Earthlings".

Alan Muraoka has choreographed the float performance in the 2001, 2013, 2014 and 2015 parades.

Fraggle Rock float
A Fraggle Rock float appeared in the Parade in 1983 and 1984 The float featured Junior Gorg sitting on top, swinging his club on a set based on the Gorgs' garden. Uncle Traveling Matt hid below Junior's line of sight. Below Junior, the float opened out into a lavish Fraggle caves set, where the main characters played instruments and sang while other Fraggles played around them -- including two Fraggles balanced on a seesaw. The Fraggles performed a short version of the "Fraggle Rock Theme".

In 1984, the float was also accompanied by a group of Fraggle walk-around characters.

Muppet Appearances at the Macy's Parade


Bold text indicates the debut of a new balloon, float or appearance.


 * 1974: Sesame Street float


 * 1975: Sesame Street float


 * 1976: Sesame Street float


 * 1977: Kermit the Frog balloon, Sesame Street float


 * 1978: Kermit the Frog balloon, Sesame Street float


 * 1979: The Electric Mayhem bus, new Sesame Street float, Kermit the Frog balloon


 * 1980: Kermit the Frog balloon, Sesame Street float


 * 1981: Kermit the Frog balloon, Sesame Street float


 * 1982: Kermit the Frog balloon, Sesame Street float


 * 1983: Fraggle Rock float, Kermit the Frog balloon


 * 1984: Fraggle Rock float, Kermit the Frog balloon, Sesame Street car


 * 1985: Kermit the Frog balloon


 * 1986: Kermit the Frog balloon


 * 1987: Jim Henson and Kermit accept the Rollie Award, Kermit the Frog balloon


 * 1988: Big Bird balloon


 * 1989: Big Bird balloon


 * 1990: Kermit and Miss Piggy walk-arounds riding in a Rolls-Royce car, Ernie and Bert walk-arounds sing "Do You Like Me?", Kermit the Frog balloon, Big Bird balloon, broadcast includes a tribute to Henson


 * 1991: Kermit the Frog balloon, Big Bird balloon


 * 1992: Big Bird balloon


 * 1993: Big Bird balloon


 * 1994: Costumed Kermit and Miss Piggy in a carriage, Big Bird balloon, Sesame Street float


 * 1995: Big Bird balloon, Sesame Street float


 * 1996: Big Bird balloon, Sesame Street float


 * 1997: Big Bird balloon, Sesame Street float


 * 1998: New Sesame Street float, Big Bird balloon


 * 1999: Big Bird balloon, Sesame Street float


 * 2000: Big Bird balloon, Sesame Street float


 * 2001: New Big Bird balloon, Sesame Street float, Kermit walk-around appears on a commemorative float with other children's characters


 * 2002: New Kermit the Frog balloon, Big Bird balloon, Sesame Street float


 * 2003: Super Grover balloon, Kermit the Frog balloon, Big Bird balloon, Sesame Street float


 * 2004: Kermit the Frog balloon, Super Grover balloon, Big Bird balloon, Sesame Street float


 * 2005: Super Grover balloon, Big Bird balloon, 123 Sesame Street float


 * 2006: Super Grover balloon, Big Bird balloon, 123 Sesame Street float


 * 2007: Abby Cadabby balloon, Kermit the Frog balloon, 123 Sesame Street float


 * 2008: Kermit the Frog rides on the Central Park float and performs "I Believe", Kermit the Frog balloon, Abby Cadabby balloon, 123 Sesame Street float with Lang Lang


 * 2009: Kermit the Frog balloon, 123 Sesame Street Float, Abby Cadabby balloon, Kermit rides on the Bountiful Harvest Cornucopia float and performs "I Believe" with Tiffany Thornton


 * 2010: Kermit the Frog balloon, 123 Sesame Street Float


 * 2011: Kermit the Frog balloon, 123 Sesame Street Float


 * 2012: Kermit the Frog balloon, 123 Sesame Street Float


 * 2013: 123 Sesame Street Float (featuring Jimmy Fallon and the Roots)


 * 2014: 123 Sesame Street Float


 * 2015: 123 Sesame Street float (featuring QuestLove)


 * 2016: Disney Muppets opening number, Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem performance, 123 Sesame Street float, Miss Piggy and Tony Bennett performance


 * 2017: 123 Sesame Street float (featuring Leslie Odom Jr.)


 * 2018: 123 Sesame Street float (featuring Anika Noni Rose)

Merchandise
Macy's also carries parade exclusive merchandise every year. An annual item is the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade Snowglobe, which features representative balloons and floats parading around in a circle. The Big Bird balloon has appeared in the Snowglobe, and the 2009 Snowglobe includes the Abby Cadabby balloon.

Macy's has also released special plush versions of Grover and Kermit.

UNO produced a special "Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade Edition" of the classic card game; the cards included pictures of the Super Grover balloon (pictured on the fours) and the Kermit the Frog balloon (pictured on the sixes).

Specials including Muppets
On November 21, 1978, WNET (the New York PBS affiliate) aired a special about the Macy's parade, hosted by Kermit and Fozzie Bear. Titled Hip Hip Parade!, it featured the duo commenting on the parade, and poking fun at the medium of television.

On Thanksgiving night 2011, NBC aired a Matt Lauer-hosted retrospective of the event and its broadcasts on NBC, including appearances by past hosts like Betty White (who hosted with Lorne Greene), Katie Couric, and Willard Scott. The special included ample archival footage of past Muppet appearances, including the Kermit and Super Grover balloons, Kermit's 2008 performance, Elmo and Couric talking in the booth (from the 1997 parade), Miss Piggy and Kermit talking on the program, and the 2008 Sesame Street float.