The history of Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade: 5 facts you may not know

As far as holiday traditions go, the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade is about as essential to the cozy November holiday as turkey and stuffing.

While it’s had some interruptions and mishaps along the way, the show has still managed to go on almost every year for nearly a century.

Let’s look back at five historical facts about the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade:

1. It was originally a Christmas parade

The original store was about 20 blocks south on Sixth Avenue near 14th Street. Macy’s has been at its current flagship location, at Broadway and 34th Street, since 1902. Continuing expansion made the location what Macy’s called the “world’s largest store,” an entire city block with more than 1 million square feet of retail space.

In celebration, employees organized a Christmas parade in 1924 featuring “floats, bands, animals from the zoo and 10,000 onlookers,” according to a Macy’s history page. It also started way up at 145th Street. The parade concluded with Santa Claus and the unveiling of the store’s Christmas windows. Three years later, the Christmas Parade was renamed the Thanksgiving Day Parade.

Macy’s didn’t invent the practice. Philadelphia has the oldest Thanksgiving Day parade: Its Gimbels Thanksgiving Day Parade, now the 6ABC - Dunkin’ Thanksgiving Day Parade, debuted in 1920.

Felix the Cat was one of the first giant balloons to appear in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. The parade in New York City, as much a holiday tradition as turkey, football and dinner-table debates, started in 1924. Balloons first appeared in 1927, replacing live animals from the Central Park Zoo.

Dog (1929): In 1929, the balloons were equipped with safety valves that allowed helium to slowly seep out. The balloons would float for a few days and land somewhere with return address labels attached. If any viewers were lucky enough to find the balloons, they would get a special gift from Macy's. That lasted for a few years. These days, the balloons are deflated after the parade.

Mickey Mouse (1934): Macy's designers collaborated with Walt Disney to produce a Mickey Mouse balloon in 1934. Throughout the years, Macy's has produced three more versions of the famous mouse: a more updated look in 1977, Bandleader Mickey in 2000 and Sailor Mickey in 2009.

Officer SOS 13 (1937): The police have always been associated with the parade, whether they are patrolling the streets or flying through the air as balloons. "Officer SOS 13" debuted in 1937 and represented the dedication of law enforcement officials.

Superman (1939): "It's a bird! It's a plane!" No, its a typical joke that's associated with the Superman balloon that debuted in 1939. The Man of Rubber has graced the parade with three different versions of himself, also in 1966 and in 1980. The third version is the largest balloon ever to appear in the history of the parade (104 feet long).

Eddie Cantor (1940): Eddie who? Eddie Cantor, the "Banjo Eyes" song-and-dance man who had already peaked in popularity before he floated down Broadway. He is known for songs like "Makin' Whoopee" and for being only the second balloon in the parade to be based on a living person (the Marx Brothers were the first). Cantor's balloon doesn't appear in the parade anymore, and neither do other balloons based on real people.

Uncle Sam (1940): Two years after this, Macy's brought the parade to a halt for the first time. World War II had started, and because of rubber and helium shortages, balloons were deflated and donated to the government. The parade came back in 1945 with a record-breaking 2 million spectators lining the streets.

Elf gnome (1947): The parade started being televised in the late 1940s. It first appeared on CBS, but NBC has been the official broadcaster since the 1950s. There have been a variety of hosts for NBC's coverage of the parade, including Betty White, Ed McMahon, Bryant Gumbel, Willard Scott, Katie Couric, Meredith Vieira, Ann Curry, Matt Lauer and Al Roker.

Mighty Mouse (1951): Mighty Mouse soars above the crowd as he hogs the spotlight in his balloon debut.

Popeye (1957): Popeye's debut was marked by rainy weather in 1957. The spinach-eating sailor was constructed with an indentation on the top of his hat. During the parade, the downpour filled his cap with gallons of water and caused him to veer over the crowd, where he dumped cold water all over the surprised spectators.

Donald Duck (1962): The iconic cartoon character makes his second appearance in 1962.

Sinclair Oil dinosaur (1963): The Sinclair Oil mascot looks as though it is diving toward the crowd during its debut in 1963.

Underdog (1965): "There's no need to fear, Underdog is here!"

Aviator Snoopy (1968): Eight different versions of the Snoopy character have appeared in the parade, the first being Aviator Snoopy in 1968.

Kermit the Frog (1977): A "Muppet Show" ad promotes the launch of the Kermit balloon in 1977.

Woody Woodpecker (1982): The Woody Woodpecker balloon makes its first appearance.

Garfield (1984): Garfield's grin keeps getting wider as technicians pump helium into the big balloon.

Bugs Bunny (1989): Bugs Bunny floats over the Great Lawn in Central Park.

Bart Simpson (1990): "Cowabunga!" Bart Simpson skateboards down Broadway as he makes his parade debut. In 1993, Bart split his seams due to extremely windy conditions.

Izzy (1993): Izzy, the mascot for the 1996 Olympic Games, carries the Olympic torch.

Blue (1999): The dog from the animated show "Blue's Clues" floats high above the parade.

Jeeves (2000): The Ask Jeeves balloon casts a reflection in a Times Square window. Jeeves was the mascot for the search engine Ask.com, then known as "Ask Jeeves."

Pikachu (2001): The lovable Pokemon floats over New York in its first appearance in 2001.

SpongeBob SquarePants (2004): SpongeBob left his pineapple home in the sea to attend his first Macy's parade in 2004.

Scooby Doo (2005): The Scooby Doo balloon hangs over Central Park West as it is pulled through the parade in 2005.

Buzz Lightyear (2008): The "Toy Story" star floats down Broadway in 2008.

The Pillsbury Doughboy (2009): The 2009 parade route changed for the sixth time in parade history, and it was the first time it did not travel through Broadway on its way to Macy's flagship store on 34th Street.

B. Boy (2011): B, designed by film director Tim Burton, floats in 2011.

Elf on the Shelf (2012): This balloon was created by Keith Lapinig of Queens, New York, for a design contest in 2012. The public voted for their favorite elf balloon out of 85 submissions.

Toothless (2013): Toothless, from the movie "How to Train Your Dragon," made its debut in the 2013 parade. Toothless was four stories tall, as long as 12 bicycles and as wide as seven taxi cabs.

Caterpillar balloon (2019): A colorful caterpillar balloon inches its way down the route.

A Thanksgiving tradition: Balloons from the Macy's Parade

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2. The parade was first broadcast on the radio

You had to use your visual imagination when the first broadcasts of the parade took place in 1932 – that’s because they were on the radio.

The parade was first televised in 1946 in New York and then nationally on NBC the next year.

3. The balloons have been around almost since the beginning

According to Mental Floss, the balloon attractions debuted in 1927, inspired by a balloon float. Even then, they were massive – one was a 60-foot dinosaur – and, in those days, they had more to deal with than just high winds and crazy weather: Until 1938, an elevated train ran down Sixth Avenue.

Well-known characters have been part of the parade since that 1927 outing. Felix the Cat was there from the beginning, and Mickey Mouse joined in 1934, the same year that featured a balloon based on popular entertainer Eddie Cantor. “Peanuts” characters, especially Snoopy – who made his first appearance in 1968 – are regular visitors.

One tradition didn’t last long. The balloons were originally allowed to float away, and those who found them got a gift certificate from Macy’s.

4. The route has changed over time

Confetti flies at the start of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade on Thursday, November 28, 2019. Scroll through the gallery to see more photos from the 2019 parade:

A "PAW Patrol" balloon makes its way down the parade route.

Singer Ciara takes part in the festivities.

"Dragon Ball" character Goku makes an appearance.

Parade volunteers fight with winds as they hold a Power Rangers balloon on Columbus Circle.

A colorful caterpillar balloon floats during the parade.

Smokey the Bear looms over the crowd.

Boy band NCT 127 waves to fans.

Hello, Pikachu.

Revelers dance during the parade.

A "SpongeBob SquarePants" balloon catches a beam of light.

Entertainer Billy Porter rides one of the floats.

Astronaut Snoopy makes its way down New York's Central Park West.

People get ready before the start of the parade.

Officials are measuring wind speeds throughout the route, and workers can lower the balloons to make them more manageable if winds get too fast, Macy's spokesman Orlando Veras said.

If the winds get too strong, workers can divert the balloons down a side street and deflate them, New York Police Chief Terence Monahan said.

James Leach plays the trumpet as parade participants assemble at the start.

The Grinch balloon looks as mischievous as ever.

Revelers rest as they wait for the start of the parade.

In photos: Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade 2019

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For years, the parade’s Midtown route went right down Broadway, Manhattan’s spine. But in 2009, the route was moved to Seventh Avenue because of new pedestrian plazas along Broadway. It was changed to Sixth Avenue in 2011. Given the parade’s draw as a tourist attraction, this did not go over well with some folks.

For 2019, the route started at 77th Street and Central Park West, where it took a left turn at 59th Street. It continued to ride past Central Park until it reached Sixth Avenue. From there, it headed down to 34th Street, where it hung a right and ended at the flagship store.

And because of the pandemic, 2020 saw a very shortened only-for-TV route near the flagship store.

You can check out the 2.5-mile route for 2023 on Macy’s website.

5. The parade has seen other obstacles

In 1957, a wet day got wetter for people near a Popeye balloon: The character’s hat filled with water and drenched parade watchers. The same thing happened in 1962 with a Donald Duck hat.

Superman once lost his arm to tree branches.

But the worst was probably 1997, a blustery day in the Big Apple. During that parade, winds reached more than 40 miles per hour, and the balloons were difficult to control. One balloon struck a lamppost and injured four people; one woman was in a coma for a month. The Pink Panther threatened a woman holding its ropes.

“The balloon was caught on top of me and my daughter,” she told The New York Times. “We thought it was going to smother us.”

CNN’s Forrest Brown contributed to this article.