Details about the 88th annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade airing on NBC on Thursday, November 27.
American holiday, Thanksgiving Day is approaching and with this day of giving thanks, revising history, and gluttony we get the best and most awesome parade. On November 27, 2014, from 9 AM – noon, across all time zones on NBC, the 88th annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade which is held in New York City will occur. NBC’s Today anchors Matt Lauer, Al Roker, and Savannah Guthrie will host the parade that reaches out to millions each year. The parade whose origins began in 1924, will be led this year by the Little League World Series, Philadelphia’s Taney Dragons, including pitcher, Mo’ne Davis.
Also, joining the festivities this year are the Big Apple Circus, Before You Exit, William Blake, Sabrina Carpenter, Cirque du Soleil, Hilary Duff, Renee Fleming, Becky G., Lucy Hale, Nick Jonas, KISS, Sandra Lee, The Madden Brothers, Idina Menzel, Miss USA 2014- Nia Sanchez, MKTO, the cast and Muppets of Sesame Street, NEEDTOBREATH, NHL® legends John LeClair and Pat LaFontaine, Pentatonix, Romeo Santos, Cole Swindell, Meghan Trainor, The Vamps, Quvenzhané Wallis, and more.
This year, Macy’s will introduce the biggest class of new balloons in its history. Six new giant characters will take to the sky including the loveable Peruvian bear Paddington™; the always electrifying Pikachu™; the warm giggling Pillsbury Doughboy®; the vanquisher of evil the Red Mighty Morphin Power Ranger; the lava spewing Skylanders® Eruptor; and the friendly locomotive Thomas the Tank Engine®.
Rounding out the ballooning line-up are returning favorites including Adventure Time with Finn & Jake, Diary of A Wimpy Kid®, The Elf on the Shelf®, Hello Kitty®, Papa Smurf, Ronald McDonald®, Snoopy and Woodstock, Spider-Man, SpongeBob SquarePants and Toothless of How to Train Your Dragon. In addition, the balloon cast includes new balloonicles (a Macy’s Parade hybrid of cold-air balloon and vehicle) of the famed-spokesduck the Aflac Duck and Cloe the Holiday Clown, as well as the return of the KOOL-AID Man. In celebration of the 75th Anniversary of the film classic, balloonheads of The Wizard of OZ™ characters will also make a special appearance.
And Broadway returns with performances from “A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder,” “Finding Neverland,” “The Last Ship,” “On the Town” and “Side Show,” in addition to a sneak preview of NBC’s “Peter Pan Live!” and the return of the Radio City Rockettes ®.
On a personal note, I’ve lived in NYC since the summer of 2005 and in this time I’ve only ventured out once to see the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. It was cold and crowded, which truly overwhelmed me and almost gave me a panic attack. Normally, I love to trek through the smaller masses on the night before to watch the balloons in the parade get inflated:

Maybe this year I will put on my big girl pants, wear everything that I own to combat the cold, and get a prescription so I can attend the 88th annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in person.
Featured Image Courtesy NBCUniversal