The 90th Annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade (2016)

The 90^th Annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade was held on November 24, 2016, in New York City and shown to viewers on NBC that same day from 9 a.m. to noon EST. It was hosted by Matt Lauer, Savannah Guthrie, and Al Roker. The lineup featured 16 giant helium balloons, 27 novelty/ornament balloons, balloonicles and trycaloons, 26 floats, 1,100 cheerleaders and dancers, more than 1,000 clowns, and 16 marching bands and performance groups.

Parade Lineup[]

Listed below are the Parade elements that appeared in the 2016 line of march. Each element is listed in their respective categories/sub-categories, with sponsors in bold.

Bold indicates a new Parade element, underline indicates an element that was brought back after an absence, and * indicates a Parade element that was retired after the 2016 procession.

Balloons[]

Giant Balloons[]

Charlie Brown (Peanuts Worldwide) - 1st time
Thomas the Tank Engine* (Fisher-Price) - 3rd time
Ronald McDonald (McDonald's) - 2nd time
Paddington* (The Copyrights Group) - 3rd time
Red Mighty Morphin' Power Ranger (Saban Brands) - 3rd time
Pikachu (The Pokémon Company International) - 3rd time
Hello Kitty (Sanrio, Inc.) - 5th time
Diary of a Wimpy Kid (ABRAMS The Art of Books) - 1st time
Trolls (DreamWorks Animation) - 1st time
DINO (Sinclair Oil) - 2nd time
Skylanders' Eruptor* (Activision Publishing, Inc.) - 3rd time
Angry Birds' Red (Rovio Entertainment) - 2nd time
Ice Age's Scrat and His Acorn (20th Century Fox) - 2nd time
Pillsbury Doughboy (Pillsbury) - 3rd time
SpongeBob SquarePants (Nickelodeon) - 4th time
The Elf on the Shelf (The Elf on the Shelf) - 5th time

Novelty Balloons[]

Yellow Macy's Stars (Macy's) - 2nd time
Baseball* (Macy's) - 9th time
Wiggle Worm* (Macy's) - 3rd time
Happy Hippo* (Macy's) - 3rd time
Trixie the Bouncing Dog* (Macy's) - 1st time
Felix the Cat* (DreamWorks Animation) - 1st time
Harold the Policeman* (Macy's) - 6th time
Harold the Fireman (Macy's) - 21st time
Rex the Happy Dragon (Macy's) - 2nd time
Pumpkins (Macy's) - 5th time
Red Candy Cane* (Macy's) - 12th time
Charlie, Kit & C.J. Holiday Elves (Macy's) - 4th time (Charlie and Kit); 2nd time (C.J.)
Red "Believe" Stars* (Macy's) - 2nd time

Balloonheads[]

Pilgrim Man & Woman (Macy's) - 12th time
Mama, Papa & Baby (Macy's)- 2nd time

Balloonicles[]

The Aflac Duck* (Aflac) - 3rd time
Mother Ginger* (Universal Orlando Resort) - 1st time

Trycaloons[]

Tough Guy & Bulldog (Macy's) - 6th time
Nutcracker & Mouse King (Universal Orlando Resort) - 5th time

Floats[]

Tom Turkey (Macy's) - 24th time
Snoopy's Doghouse (Peanuts Worldwide) - 2nd time
1-2-3 Sesame Street (Sesame Workshop) - 13th time
Free to Grow* (Sprout) - 5th time
On The Roll Again (Homewood Suites by Hilton) - 7th time
At the Ball Game* (Cracker Jack) - 3rd time
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Nickelodeon) - 5th time
It's All Rock & Roll (Gibson Brands) - 5th time
Building A Better World (Girl Scouts of the USA) - 1st time
Fun House (Krazy Glue) - 1st time
Big City Cheer! (Spirit of America Productions) - 2nd time
Girl-Powered Spinning Machine* (GoldieBlox) - 3rd time
Discover Adventure! (Build-A-Bear) - 2nd time
Big Apple (New York Daily News) - 12th time
The Colonel's Road Trip to NYC (Kentucky Fried Chicken) - 2nd time
Mount Rushmore's American Pride (South Dakota Department of Tourism) - 7th time
The Aloha Spirit (King's Hawaiian) - 1st time
Treasure Hunt* (Pirate's Booty) - 3rd time
China's Chengdu - Home of the Giant Panda (Sino-American Friendship Association) - 1st time
Frozen Fall Fun (Discover/NHL) - 6th time
The Cranberry Cooperative - 2nd time (Ocean Spray)
Stirrin' Up Sweet Sensations - 5th time (Domino Sugar)
Winter Wonderland in Central Park* (Delta Air Lines) - 8th time
Deck the Halls (Balsam Hill) - 1st time
Heartwarming Holiday Countdown (Hallmark Channel) - 2nd time
Santa's Sleigh (Macy's) - 8th time

Specialty Units[]

NYPD Motorcycles - 32nd time
"Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade" Banner* (Macy's) - 1st time
Big Red Shoe Car (McDonald's) - 17th time
Planters NUT-mobile* (Planters) - 6th time
Star Sound System 1 (Macy's) - 11th time
"Macy's Celebrating 90 Parades" Banner* (Macy's) - 1st time
Macy's REO Truck (Macy's) - 20th time
NYPD Mounted Unit - 90th time
Star Sound System 2 (Macy's) - 10th time
NYC Parks Mounted Unit - 29th time
Star Sound System 3 (Macy's) - 10th time

Toy Floats[]

Rocking Tortoise* (Macy's) - 35th time
Rocking Horse (Macy's) - 57th time

Marching Bands[]

West Virginia University Mountaineer Marching Band (Morgantown, WV), performed "Strike Up the Band"
Joe E. Newsome High School Wolfpack Marching Band (Lithia, FL), performed "Sunshine Medley"
Harrison High School Marching Band (Kennesaw, GA), performed "Shut Up and Dance” and “I Wanna Dance With Somebody”
Cary Senior High School Marching Band (Cary, NC), performed "The Incredibles"
Macy's Great American Marching Band (Nationwide), performed "It's Not Unusual"
NYPD Marching Band (New York, NY), performed "National Emblem March"
The U.S. Military Academy Band (West Point, NY), performed "West Point Joyful Fanfare"
Na Koa Ali'i Hawaii All-State Marching Band, performed "Drums of the Island" and "Pate Pate"
Grain Valley High School Marching Eagles (Grain Valley, MO), performed "Universal: Be Thou My Vision"
Greendale High School Marching Band (Greendale, WI), performed "Step in Time"
Hendrickson Hawk Band (Pflugerville, TX), performed "Ode to Joy"
Prospect Marching Knights (MT. Prospect, IL), performed "Buddy and Santa's Flight"

Guest Stars[]

Parade Official Amy Kule and Tatyana McFadden
Sandra Lee (Tom Turkey)
Christopher Jackson with the Cast and Muppets of Sesame Street, sang "Try A Little Kindness" (1-2-3 Sesame Street)
Sprout's Chica and Her Co-Hosts & Michele Lepe, sang "Growing Together" (Free to Grow)
Ronald McDonald and McKids (Big Red Shoe Car)
Aloe Blacc, sang "Candyman" (On The Roll Again)
Johnnyswim, sang "First Try" (At the Ball Game)
Mr. Peanut (Planters NUT-Mobile)
Jacob Whitesides, sang "Lovesick" (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles)
Diamante Eléctrico, sang "Déjala Rodar" (It's All Rock & Roll)
Maddie & Tae, sang "Fly" (Building A Better World)
Lunchmoney Lewis, sang "Mama" (Fun House)
U.S. Olympic Champions Laurie Hernandez, Claressa Shields and Michelle Carter (Big City Cheer!)
U.S. Paralympic Champions Gianfranco Ianotta, Mikey Brannigan and Hannah McFadden (Big City Cheer!)
Grace VanderWaal, sang "I Don't Know My Name" (Girl-Powered Spinning Machine)
Chloe x Halle, sang "Drop" (Discover Adventure!)
De La Soul, sang "Me Myself and I" (Big Apple)
Easton Corbin, sang "Let's Ride" (The Colonel's Road Trip to NYC)
Ben Rector, sang "Brand New" (Mount Rushmore's American Pride)
Fitz and the Tantrums, sang "HandClap" (The Aloha Spirit)
Timeflies, sang "Once In a While" (Treasure Hunt)
Panda Dancers (China's Chengdu - Home of the Giant Panda)
Daya, sang "Words" (Frozen Fall Fun)
NHL Legends Adam Graves and Eric Lindros (Frozen Fall Fun)
Regina Spektor, sang "Bleeding Heart" (The Cranberry Cooperative)
Kelsea Ballerini, sang "Peter Pan" (Stirring Up Sweet Sensations)
Brett Eldredge, sang "Let It Snow" (Winter Wonderland in Central Park)
Sarah McLachlan with the Brooklyn Youth Chorus, sang "Silver Bells" (Deck the Halls)
Tony Bennett and Miss Piggy, sang "Santa Claus is Coming to Town" (Heartwarming Holiday Countdown)
Santa Claus and Mrs. Claus (Santa's Sleigh)

Special Characters[]

Pilgrim Couple (Tom Turkey)
Turkey Tech Gobbler
Snoopy, Linus and Lucy (Snoopy's Doghouse)
Lewis the Duck (On The Roll Again)
Sailor Jack (Cracker Jack)
Mr. Peanut (PLANTERS NUTmobile)
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles)
Mother Nature (Rocking Tortoise)
Krazy Glue Dancers (Fun House)
Jumping Stilt Clowns
Goldie and Ruby Rails (Girl-Powered Spinning Machine)
Wompkee
Alice in Wonderland and Mother Goose
Flapper Dancers
Macy's Teddy Bears (Macy's REO Truck)
Stem (Big Apple)
Colonel Sanders (The Colonel's Road Trip to NYC)
Mount Rushmore Mascots (Mount Rushmore's American Pride)
Pirate's Booty Pirate (Treasure Hunt)
Pirate King and Pirate Queen (Treasure Hunt)
Jesters
Giant Panda (China's Chengdu - Home of the Giant Panda)
Unicycle Referees (Frozen Fall Fun)
Henry and Justin (The Cranberry Cooperative)
Cookie Engineers (Stirrin' Up Sweet Sensations)
Clara (Nutcracker Trycaloon)
Elf (Rocking Horse)
Sleigh Driver Elf (Santa's Sleigh)

Performance Groups[]

Sayat Nova Dance Company (Waltham, MA), performed "Vabouragan"
Spirit of America Cheer (Nationwide), performed "ROBO-Cheer"
Spirit of America Dance Stars (Nationwide), performed "90th Celebration"
Kilgore Rangerettes (Kilgore, TX), performed "Hooked on Marching...the Stars & Stripes Forever"
National Dance Institute (New York, NY), performed "Harlem Night Song"
Tap Dancing Christmas Trees (Alameda, CA), performed "We Need a Little Christmas"

Pre-Parade Acts[]

The Muppets, performed "Hey, It's Macy's!" and "Twist and Shout"
Holiday Inn, performed "Blue Skies" and "Shaking the Blues Away"
Waitress, performed "What Baking Can Do" and "Opening Up"
Cats, performed "Song for Jellicle Cats" and "Memory"
Cirque du Soleil's Paramour, performed "Hollywood Wiz"
Hairspray Live!, performed "You Can't Stop the Beat"
The Radio City Rockettes, performed "New York at Christmas"

Clowns[]

Hi-Roller Skating Clowns* - 12th time
90th Parade Clowns - 1st time
Turkey Tech Players & Sports Fans - 6th time
Breakfast Clowns - 6th time
Slumber Party Clowns - 1st time
Pre-K Clowns* - 11th time
Nutty Professor Einsteins & Wacky Graduates* - 17th time
Baseball All-Stars - 15th time
Malt Shop Clowns - 10th time
Pool Hall Clowns* - 8th time
Racing Rabbits* - 4th time
Birthday Party Clowns - 22nd time
Artist Clowns - 13th time
Dog Walker Clowns* - 1st time
Springtime Clowns - 14th time
POP! Flowers - 2nd time
Jester Clowns with Queen of Hearts - 7th time
Holiday Clowns* - 13th time
Keystone Cops & Robbers* - 8th time
City Tourist Clowns - 2nd time
Funny Firefighter Brigade - 18th time
Patriotic Clowns - 7th time
Hoedown Clowns - 5th time
Silly Seaside Clowns & Sea Creatures - 18th time
Silly Sailors - 2nd time
Viking Clowns - 4th time
Funny Farm Clowns - 23rd time
Half-Baked Holiday Sweets - 9th time
Sleepy Clowns - 17th time
Nutty Cracker Ballet Clowns - 5th time
Santa's Toy Box Clowns - 12th time
Rag Doll Clowns - 11th time

Stilt Walkers[]

Pencils* - 6th time
Apple* - 4th time
Hot Dog and Ice Cream Vendors - 3rd time
Jack and the Beanstalk - 7th time
Cowboy and Cowgirl - 2nd time
Hibiscus - 1st time
Sea Anemone - 4th time
Roosters* - 13th time
Bakers* - 4th time
Christmas Trees - 2nd time
Toy Soldiers - 9th time
Candy Canes - 6th time

Clown Vehicles[]

School Bus* - 9th time
Taxi Cab of Clowns - 8th time
Fire Truck Clown Vehicle - 11th time
Confetti-Pult - 4th time
Produce Wagon - 21st time
~~Half-Baked Delivery Truck~~ - 1st time

Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade Wiki