A November Metamorphosis on CPW

New York

When I was a little girl, my sister loved the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. I never found it that big a deal. Until today.

I live on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, the location for inflating the parade balloons, and the official start of the parade--at the Museum of Natural History. Every year since I've lived here, I seem to have something that keeps my from going to see the start of the parade since it's so close. But I never quite make it downstairs by 9 am when the floats, balloons, and celebrities start wending their way down Central Park West toward Macy's.

Last night, walking home from dinner near midnight, I saw the huge spotlights, tanks and tanks of helium, and partially inflated Ronald McDonald and Sponge Bob in the middle of the street. There were lots of crowds milling around 79th Street, and lots of excitement on the faces of tired children.

This morning, I woke to the sound of drummers and realized the parade was about to begin, and they were having a practice run a few blocks above the starting point. I knew it was cold out, and supposedly windy. There was enough concern about wind to make the New York Times with the possibility of cancellation of the three story high balloons.

I dressed, grabbed an umbrella, and went out to the street with easily 20,000. It was raining steadily as I walked closer to 79th Street wondering how far I could get before I needed a VIP pass. I ran into my neighbor, Michael, and we walked together, It turned out we couldn't get farther than 81st, but that was OK. The floats were merging there with the tall balloons, so we had catbird views, really.

Then it began. The Energizer Bunny, Ronald McDonald in person on a float and via balloon, Rene Fleming standing atop a float featuring the Statue of Liberty with tiny lights around her crown that twinkled ( later, Rene would sing America The Beautiful in front of Macy's...well, lipsink and two falconers with a peregrine and a gyr falcon on their wrist), the Harlem Globetrotters walked right by me. It was amazing.

Michael, a New Yorker since 1970, talked about the years and years that he's watched the parade. "This is the parade's 80th year," he said. "Macy's workers started the tradition in the 1920s because they wanted to honor America--many of them were first generation immigrants and parades/festivals were, of course, a common way of paying homage.."

I looked up the history, and balloons were introduced in the late 20s--one early balloon was of the singer Eddie Cantor. The parade began on 145th Street in the early days but much of the fun was Macy's employees dressed as clowns and other characters. They released hundreds of balloons in those days, and when one was found, even weeks later, Macy's awarded you a prize for finding it.

During World War II, the parade was suspended because both helium and rubber were scarce, and because there wasn't much to celebrate. Post war New York was a different thing all together. The route changed to the current one: 79th and Central Park West, down 7th Avenue to Macy's. More floats were added, the event was televised, and soon it became a national event. Even in 1963, only days after President Kennedy's murder in Dallas, the parade went on while the nation mourned because "the children needed it."

So, on this rainy, cold, drab Thanksgiving, I'm pretty impressed with the city that doesn't sleep. What an amazing production: bands from all over the country, elaborate floats, giant balloons, celebrities from all over the country--even the Clydesdales.

Even the wind settled down for the window of time necessary to slowly move hundreds of people down to the final stage on 34th Street.

Great job, New York.
M.C.