The Poinsettias, also known as the Poinsettia Ornaments, are a pair of novelty balloons from the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.
History with the Macy's Parade[]
The Poinsettia Ornaments made their debut in the 1985 Parade, debuting alongside various other ornament-shaped novelty balloons. The balloons decorated the Parade route with designs of festive poinsettias and holly, with boughs of silver throughout.
Two variations of the Poinsettia Ornaments were initially created - one of red, and one of white. The two pairs would appear concurrently in the Christmas section of the lineup and spread holiday cheer along the streets of Manhattan.
Beginning in the 1992 Parade, one White Poinsettia Ornament and one Red Poinsettia Ornament would help round out the lineup as they flew behind the jolly old man himself, Santa Claus, who rode in a merry snow goose-inspired sleigh.
In December 1992, the Poinsettia Ornaments flew south for the winter and appeared in an event at Disney's MGM Studios in Orlando, known Macy's New York Christmas, which featured the balloon likenesses of Goofy, Betty Boop and Snuggle Bear anchored to the buildings of the Streets of America recreating a quintessential NYC experience.
The Poinsettia Ornaments were retired from the line of march following the 1995 Parade, and their finale position was replaced by two Snowstar balloons.
For the 2004 Parade, an all-new pair of festive florals graced the skies of Manhattan. The balloons were near-identical to their previous incarnations, now using much bolder lines and vibrant colors. This version of the Poinsettias appeared in the lineup for several years, and were retired following the 2008 Parade.
More than ten years after their retirement, one of the Poinsettias appeared on stage alongside Celine Dion during her 2019 Parade performance on NBC telecast, serving as a backdrop to a magical moment alongside several other balloons and floats.
The Poinsettias were originally scheduled to appear in the reimagined 2020 Macy's Parade, guided along 34th Street by a team of mask-clad handlers. Rising cases of COVID-19 throughout New York City in the fall of 2020, however, caused all of the novelty balloons (except an Opening Macy's Star and a Red "Believe" Star) to be pulled from the line of march in order to further reduce participants.
The Poinsettias were then set to appear in the 2021 Macy's Parade, however they would once again be pulled from the line of march as the lineup team made changes.
The Ornaments were given another shot for their return to the lineup at the 2022 Parade, but they were pulled from the lineup once again at the last minute.
After three years of failed opportunities, the floral duo of ornaments finally made their grand return in the 2023 Parade, as part of the "A Merry Moment" ensemble to promote Universal's Holiday Parade featuring Macy's. One of them was seen at the TODAY Show Plaza on November 20th of 2023, alongside a Snow Crystal Ornament.