The first Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade was in 1924 and animals were borrowed from the Central Park Zoo to give it a little flair. After the first couple of parades, when it became apparent that the animals weren’t as kid-friendly as Macy’s might have liked, they asked a theatrical designer to come up with some animal-shaped balloons. Felix the Cat, one of the first, was made at the Goodyear Tire company in Ohio in 1927. For a few years the balloons were released after the parade and anyone who found one was entitled to a reward at Macy’s. But this was stopped in 1933 after a couple of mishaps with the balloons. By 1934, Walt Disney characters such as Mickey Mouse and Pluto joined the parade. During WWII, the rubber balloons were donated to the war effort and the parade didn’t resume until 1947. It then began to develop as we know it today: floats, celebrities, bigger and better balloons, and national TV coverage.

So to prepare for the big day, imagine my surprise when I learned that the balloons are inflated just a few blocks from the Gotham Den! I headed out and immediately was in a sea of strollers. (Oh, I guess this is all about kids and not necessarily all about ME.) Slowly I made my way towards the American Museum of Natural History. And I mean very slowly. Two full city blocks showcase these huge characters that are slowly blown up and brought to life. Nets and sandbags are used to keep the balloons from escaping during the night. So here are a few photos to give you an idea of their size. And these were the smaller ones!

And of course we have the Energizer Bunny:

And towards the end of my evening…an encounter with Mayor Bloomberg: