Thanksgiving deja vu on menu at Macy's parade
The Ronald McDonald balloon float got its close up Wednesday in Manhattan after crews inflated it in preparation for Thursday's Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. Credit: Olivia Falcigno
One of entertainment icon Cher's biggest hits — 1989's "If I Could Turn Back Time" — will fit right in if she belts it out Thursday as a featured performer at the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.
The 97th annual unofficial kickoff to the holiday season will have the usual parade staples that always give the event a time-standing-still vibe — towering balloon floats of Snoopy, Ronald McDonald and the Pillsbury Doughboy. But Cher, and performances by the casts of the Broadway musical "Back to the Future" and a rebooted version of "Spamalot," will add to the always popular timewarp-on-parade.
And, as usual, festivities kick off at 8:30 a.m. at 77th Street and Central Park West, the 2.5-mile parade's starting point, before it crawls south to Sixth Avenue and ends with musical performances in Herald Square. The parade typically draws well over 3 million spectators plus a national television audience of nearly 50 million more.
Children and adults gawked in equal measure at the balloon floats being inflated Wednesday.
Credit: Olivia Falcigno
On Wednesday, crews descended on Manhattan for another time-honored tradition — inflating some of the 25 balloons that will fly over the parade route. New balloons this year will feature a Beagle Scout Snoopy, Kung Fu Panda and Leo the Lizard from the new Adam Sandler-voiced Netflix animated feature, "Leo."
Returning balloons will include Bluey, Chase from Paw Patrol, Grogu — also known as Baby Yoda — Pikachu, SpongeBob SquarePants and Stuart the Minion.
The parade will also feature 31 floats, including the Muppets from Sesame Street, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles with a performance by 90s R&B hit makers Bell Biv DeVoe, a Brach’s candy float featuring singer Brandy and a float promoting the new Willy Wonka movie. The parade can't end, of course, without the appearance of Santa Claus to close the procession.
Spectators looking to watch in person are urged to arrive at 6 a.m. at designated viewing areas on Central Park West from 75th to West 61st streets, and on Sixth Avenue from West 58th to West 38th streets.
What's a Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade without the department store's own balloon float? (Above, being inflated Wednesday in Manhattan.) Credit: Olivia Falcigno
Crowds are urged to steer clear of viewing on Sixth Avenue between West 38th and West 34th streets, due to the national television broadcast on NBC.
John Asbury is a breaking news and general assignment reporter. He has been with Newsday since 2014 and previously worked at The Press-Enterprise in Riverside, California.
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