The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade was started in the 1920s . With many of Macy’s department store employees mostly first-generation immigrants and Proud of their new American heritage, they wanted to celebrate the United States holiday of Thanksgiving with the type of festival their parents had loved and enjoyed in Europe

The 2009 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade (the 83rd annual) is set to take place at 9 a.m on Thursday, November 26. A new parade route is being unveiled for 2009. For the first time, the parade will skip Broadway and travel down to Columbus Circle starting outside the American Museum of Natural History, between 77th and 81st and make a turn onto Central Park South. When the parade reaches Seventh Avenue it will turn and go down Seventh Avenue, taking it through Times Square, to 42nd Street. It will then turn east to Sixth Avenue and travel down to 34th Street and Herald Square by Macy’s. The parade will turn at Macy’s and end at Seventh Avenue.

This years parade will feature 1,500 dancers, cheerleaders, singers and performers; 15 giant character balloons; 800 clowns; 35 novelty or ornament balloons, balloonheads and balloonicles; 24 floats; 10 marching bands; and a slew of celebrity performers.

New balloons for 2009 are: Sailor Mickey Mouse, Ronald McDonald, Spiderman and the Pillsbury Doughboy. New floats for 2009 are: the Local Heroes Helping Everyday float, and for the first time in 40 years there will be a new Santa’s Sleigh.

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