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, the parade was first held in 1924 and has been cancelled only twice due to rubber shortages during World War II. The 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.

Kermit the Frog balloon
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 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. 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's head. After this incident, the Kermit balloon was retired from the Parade.

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. (Not so coincidentally, their new TV-movie, It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie aired on NBC a day later.)

In 2008, Kermit appeared live on the Central Park float, and performed the song "I Believe".

Sesame Street 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".

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 current Sesame Street float measures 32 feet long, 20 feet wide, and 2 stories tall.

The Sesame Street cast has performed songs in many Parades, including:


 * 1990: Ernie and Bert walk-around characters sing "Do You Like Me?"
 * 1997: Cast members sing "Rubber Duckie"
 * 1998: Cast members sing "Sing"
 * 1999: Cast members sing "How Do You Do?"
 * 2000: Cast members sing "Reach Your Hand Up High"
 * 2001: Cast members sing "A Little Bit"
 * 2002: American and international Sesame characters sing "We Are All Earthlings"
 * 2003: Cast members sing "Good Morning World"
 * 2004: Cast members sing "The Street We Live On"
 * 2005: Cast members sing "Dancing Shoes"
 * 2006: Cast members sing "Another Sunny Day"
 * 2007: Cast members sing "It Feels Good When You Sing a Song"
 * 2008: Cast members sing "Songs" with pianist Lang Lang

In 2002, the Sesame float featured a timely message about peace and universal goodwill, and the American cast was joined by a group of international Sesame Muppets. The international Muppets included Filfil, Nimnim and Khokha from Egypt's Alam Simsim, Zuzu from South Africa's Takalani Sesame, 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, and Zeliboba from the Russian Ulitsa Sezam. This year, the cast sang "We Are All Earthlings".

Several Sesame characters have also appeared in balloon form. Big Bird's balloon debuted in 1989, and was updated in 2001 with a new model. A Super Grover balloon launched in 2003, and was followed by an Abby Cadabby balloon in 2007.

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".

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
 * 1983: Fraggle Rock float, Kermit the Frog balloon
 * 1984: Fraggle Rock float, Kermit the Frog balloon , Sesame Street car with Oscar, Big Bird, walk-around Ernie, Bert and Cookie Monster
 * 1985: Kermit the Frog balloon
 * 1986: Kermit the Frog balloon
 * 1987: Jim Henson and Kermit accept the Rollie Award, Kermit the Frog balloon
 * 1988:
 * 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
 * 1992:
 * 1993: Big Bird balloon
 * 1994:
 * 1995: Sesame Street float
 * 1996: Big Bird balloon, Sesame Street float
 * 1997: Sesame Street float
 * 1998: New Sesame Street float, Big Bird balloon
 * 1999: Sesame Street float
 * 2000: Big Bird balloon, Sesame Street float
 * 2001: New Big Bird balloon, Sesame Street float
 * 2002: New Kermit the Frog 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 , 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 Caddaby balloon, Kermit the Frog balloon , 123 Sesame Street float
 * 2008: Kermit the Frog rides in the Central Park float and performs "I Believe", Abby Cadabby balloon , 123 Sesame Street float with Lang Lang

Merchandise
Macy's also carries parade exclusive merchandise every year. Many of those items have featured the Muppets, including a water globe featuring the Big Bird balloon, and plush versions of Grover and Kermit.

Sesame Street characters
This is a list of characters from Sesame Street who have appeared on the Sesame Street float each year. The list is partial; other characters may have appeared on the float as well.


 * 1974: Big Bird, Cookie Monster, Mr. Hooper, Gordon, Bob.
 * 1975:
 * 1976:
 * 1977:
 * 1978:
 * 1979:
 * 1980:
 * 1981:Big Bird, Sesame Street Live characters
 * 1982:Big Bird, Maria, Mr. Hooper, Gordon, Susan
 * 1997:
 * 1998:
 * 1999:
 * 2000:
 * 2001: Big Bird
 * 2002: U.S. characters: Big Bird, Elmo, Zoe. International: Filfil, Nimni, Khokha, Zuzu, Hu Hu Zhu, Rumpel, Samson, Kareem, Dafi, Haneen], Abelardo, Lola, Zeliboba.
 * 2003:
 * 2004:
 * 2005:
 * 2006: Abby Caddaby, Big Bird, Elmo, Zoe, Alan.
 * 2007: Abby Caddaby, Big Bird, Elmo, Zoe, Alan.
 * 2008: Abby Caddaby, Alice, Big Bird, Elmo, Zoe, Alan, Bob, Herry, Telly, Baby Bear, Grover, Grundgetta, The Count, Prairie Dawn, Ernie, Bert, Murray Monster, Karina the Ballerina, Rosita, Oscar, Leela, Maria, Susan, Gina, Luis