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97 PARADES AND COUNTING!
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in: 2020s Parades, Lineups, 2022 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade

The 96th Annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade (2022)

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The 96th Annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade was held on November 24, 2022, in New York City starting at 8:45 a.m., and was shown to viewers live on NBC and Peacock that same day from 9 a.m. to noon EST. The broadcast was hosted by Savannah Guthrie, Hoda Kotb, and Dylan Dreyer. The lineup featured 16 giant character balloons, 28 floats, 40 novelty and heritage inflatables, more than 700 clowns, 12 marching bands and 10 performance groups, a host of musical stars, and the one-and-only Santa Claus.

Overview

Stepping off at 8:45 a.m. sharp, the 96th edition of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade kicked off at 77th Street and Central Park West with a ribbon cutting ceremony from executive producer Will Coss and TODAY correspondent Dylan Dreyer. Following behind the iconic Tom Turkey float were thousands of balloon handlers, float escorts, cheerleaders, dancers, stilt walkers, special characters, and guest stars, who helped create another holiday treat for children everywhere.

Four brand-new giant balloons were introduced to the line of march. Bluey, the heeler pup popular among the preschool set, played the world’s largest game of Keepy-Uppy; the mischievous banana-craving Minion Stuart took hold of an animated man dressed as a banana, as Frantic Bananas below tried to escape his grasp. Greg Heffley from the mega-popular Diary of a Wimpy Kid series returned as an all-new balloon–accompanied by a balloonicle of the infamous slice of cheese emitting an odor most foul; and DINO, the iconic apatosaurus of Sinclair Oil, who was joined by a new Baby DINO to represent the company’s growing family.

Also debuting in the balloon category was The Hottest Heart—a collaboration by Adidas and rapper Bad Bunny. Kicking the Parade into high gear was a balloonicle of Striker, the U.S. Soccer Star, who encouraged fans to cheer on the U.S. men’s soccer team for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

Trundling underneath them were 28 full-sized floats, five of which were all-new. Geoffrey, the mascot of the Toys”R”Us brand, laid down the beats on his own float to announce the return of Toys”R”Us mini-stores inside of Macy’s locations across the nation. Country star Cam rode on a Wonder Bread-sponsored falloon that gently floated on clouds. Ballet Hispanico performed a dreamy number with a float from the new Netflix flick, Slumberland, and Ziggy Marley brought his popular reggae style to the popular Baby Shark float.

In a special collaboration with the Wampanoag people, the People of First Light float, honored and told the story of resilience, tradition and an enduring vibrant culture. Reaching into their own Parade heritage, Macy’s presented an elaborate Winter Dragon that slithered down Broadway, inspired by the classic Doodlebug float that first appeared in 1968.

As is tradition, Santa Claus rode onto 34th Street just before noon in his colossal emerald and golden sleigh, following a much-publicized performance by superstar Mariah Carey, and announcing the unofficial start of the 2022 holiday season.

Parade Lineup

Listed below are the parade elements that appeared in the 2022 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. They are categorized by unit type, with their respective sponsors in bold. Home locations of talent ensembles are featured in brackets, and the guest star’s float appearances are indicated in bold.

Bold denotes a new parade element, an underline indicates a unit that was brought back after an absence, a strikethrough signifies a parade unit that was sidelined before or during the march, and an asterisk (*) indicates an element that was retired after the 2022 Parade.

Balloons

Giant Balloons

Novelty Balloons

Balloonicles

Trycaloons

Floats

Specialty Units

Toy Floats

Marching Bands

Guest Stars

Special Characters

Performance Groups

Pre-Parade Acts

Clowns

Stilt Walkers

Clown Vehicles

Trivia

  • The 2022 Parade was going to be the third consecutive Macy's Parade to implement a Health and Safety plan in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Originally, all participants were to be fully vaccinated two weeks before Parade Day in order to participate, however the mandate was dropped on September 27, 2022 with proof of a negative COVID-19 test in its place.[3] Other safety procedures were planned to be enforced, but were later dropped include:[4]
    • Select costumes and jackets being shipped to avoid crowding in costume areas.
    • Select pre-Parade events and trainings remaining virtual in 2022.
    • Potential mask mandates at indoor trainings and events.
  • Toni, the Bandleader Bear, the Poinsettia Ornaments, Harold the Fireman, and the Rocking Giraffe were all planned to make appearances for the 2022 Macy's Parade, though they were later cut from the lineup.[5]
  • During the 2022 Macy's Balloon Inflation Celebration, the floats were assembled along Central Park West between 77th Street and 86th Street, allowing guests to get a sneak peek of their assembly for the first time ever.
  • Balloons that experienced defects included Ada Twist, Scientist (whose face was missing a marginal amount of helium), and Stuart the Minion (whose left arm was bent).
  • Due to health complications involving blood clots, Al Roker was unable to host the NBC broadcast. Fellow TODAY meteorologist Dylan Dreyer would take his place uptown, though she did not appear in the 34th Street hosting booth. As such, this would also mark the first parade to be hosted by all women.
  • Celebrities interviewed during the NBC broadcast included Ana Gasteyer (American Auto), Karamo Brown (Karamo), President Biden and First Lady Jill Biden, Jake Lacy (A Friend of the Family), and Andy Cohen (Bravo's Watch What Happens Live).
  • Celebrities featured in the "Thanksgiving Messages" segment of the NBC telecast included Blake Shelton (Barmageddon, The Voice) and Gwen Stefani (The Voice), Melissa Rauch (Night Court), George Lopez and Mayan Lopez (Lopez vs Lopez), Raymond Lee (Quantum Leap), and Terry Crews (America's Got Talent).
  • The Fraggles of the Apple TV+ series, Fraggle Rock: Back to the Rock, were showcased in a series of short segments throughout the official Parade broadcast, featuring Uncle "Traveling" Matt's journey to the iconic parade; some segments featured a cameo appearance by actress Jessica Chastain.
  • The NBC broadcast of the 2022 Parade drew more than 27.7 million viewers (including streams on Peacock), and was the most-viewed Parade telecast in five years.[6]
  • The NBC broadcast of the 2022 Parade was nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Daytime Special.[7]
  • The 2022 Parade was the last to utilize branding in collaboration with design studio Carpenter Collective. The following year, the procession's promotional campaign was given a refresh in partnership with Mattson Creative.[8]

NBC Credits

  • Executive Producers: Brad Lachman and Bill Bracken
  • Directed by: Ron de Moraes
  • Written by: Mark Waxman and Brad Lachman
  • Music Director: Ray Chew
  • Coordinating Producer: Carmela Tripodi
  • Producer: Matt Lachman
  • Production Supervisor: Nicole Gauthier
  • Script Supervisor: Becky Wahle Camp
  • Art Director: Ed Helbig
  • Line Producers: Adam Wald, Cate Cetta Scola, and Jana Lerner
  • Senior Technical Manager: Mike Matthews
  • Technical Managers: Aaron Sasson, Joe Cocozza, and Mike Ryan
  • Production Manager: Hatice Soyal
  • EHS Supervisor: Vincent Lacerra
  • COVID Compliance Supervisor: Jazmin Anthony
  • Music Manager: Jaynell Grayson
  • Music Production: Al Theurer
  • Segment Directors: John Coleman, Brad Lachman, and Alex Vietmeier
  • Associates Directors: Eve Adair, Bill Bracken, Casey B. Davis, Janine DeVito, Dawn Dicicco, Renee Goldkorn, Susan Kramer, Adam Mishler, and Mike Torello
  • Stage Managers: Eddie Valk, Joey Despenzero, Jeff Leib, Julie Lorusso, and Vinny Sinopoli
  • Production Coordinators: Dabney Rauh and Peter Charney
  • Script Coordinator: Krysten Pollard
  • Music Coordinator: Scott Siegel
  • Production Assistants: Marissa Alejandre, Justyn Ashe, Alex Austin, Jacáda Bost, Lauren Chorlton, Doug Gallo, Lily Guthrie, Madeleine Hoffman, Jonathan Jackson, Ryan Kane, Mikelle Kelly, Megan Parr, Tori Pierce, Amanda Price, TIm Regan, Quan Robinson, Allie Rotche, Jesse Slade, Yanni Sofillas, and Savannah Wolfe
  • Technical Director: Brad Gersten
  • Lighting Director: Geoff Amoral
  • Announcer: Les Marshak
  • Backtimer: Molly Gray
  • Post Production Supervisor: David Emanuele
  • Editor: Colin Dow
  • Senior Audio: Jorge Silva, Chris Acker, and Joseph Shalhoup
  • Audio: Greg Acker, John Ariz, Mel Cubero, Andrew DiCamillo, Frank Duca, Will Finan, Josh Flower, Ricardo Gomez, Jack Goodwin, Holly Murray, Andrew Puccio, Christian Schrader, Bob Selitto, Anthony Sozio, Ryan Stotts, Jim Tomlinson, Gianluca Trombetta, Jim Van Bergen, Kenny Villalobos, and Amanda Wong
  • Graphic Design: Michael Cole and Mark Perricone
  • XPression: Layne Dornstein
  • Senior Video: Oliver Bosill
  • Video: Taylor Dees and Chris Halloran
  • Video Playback: Kevin Hamel
  • Video Record: Alan Buchner
  • Cameras: William Angelucci, John Atkinson, Dan Balton, David Burgess, Ryan Celecia, Zachary Enfield, Dan Erbeck, Keith Greenwood, Jake Hoover, Ray Hoover, Kat Kallergis, Matthew Kelly, Evans Kotsis, Martin Marietta, Ben Parsons, Vin Rega, Ron Rigoli, and James Scurti
  • Promotional Consideration Furnished by: Apple Video Programming LLC.
  • Special Thanks: Mayor's Office of City Wide Events, NYCDOT, NYPD, Mayor's Office of Media & Entertainment, Macy's Parade Families and Dedicated Volunteers

For Macy's

  • Executive Producer: Will Coss
  • Creative Producer: Wesley Whatley
  • Parade Producer: Jordan Dabby
  • Production Operations: Kathleen Donohue Wright
  • Line Producer: Carolynn Kolinsky
  • Studio Operations: Lenny Drenski
  • Publicity: Orlando Veras, Christine Olver Nealon, and Ryan Gannon
  • Associate Producers: Sara Flores and Kimerly Montgomery
  • Financial Operations: Camille Davis
  • Talent Producers: The Talent
  • Production Managers: Katherine Christakos, John De Leon, Carolyn Dellisanti, Robert DiGiovanni, Jenna Geniale, Tanner Glaves, Elizabeth Gonzales, Charles Hoppe, Paul Lopacinski, Erin Stief, and Evelyn Tam
  • Parade Studio: Gerard Anegelella, Emily Black, Rudy Botelho, Christian Bracco, Cameron Carnivale, John Cheney, William Cooney, Alyssa Devers, Geoffrey Donnelly, Brian Drew, Simon Fisher, Matt Guarino, Josephine Hong, Eric Hudspeth, Alexander Kanderis, Tina Pfefferkorn, Noelle Rasco, Dennis Salerno, Thomas Schnakenberg, Cory Stallworth, Gregory Thompson, and Cory Watson
  • Production Coordinators: Liz Colabraro, Billy Cowles, Marty Galak, Eric Gelb, Darlene Peaco, Kylie Remley, Lauren Rossi, Jordanna Terrell, Geneva Wilson, Mackenzie Schroeder, Nicola Shackman-Ryden, and Matthew Taft

See also

Notes and References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 Returning Parade elements included the Parrot and Toucan Stilt Walkers (last seen in 2013), Star Sound System 2 (last seen in 2019), the Slumber Party Clowns (last seen in 2019), "The Holidays Are Here!" Banner (last seen in 2019), Star Sound System 3 (last seen in 2017), and the Christmas Tree Stilt Walkers (last seen in 2020).
  2. ↑ The Cowgirl Stilt Walker was unable to appear, as the scheduled performer dropped out shortly before the Parade.
  3. ↑ COVID-19 Update - New York City Mandates. SpiritofAmericaProductions.com. September 27, 2022.
  4. ↑ 2022 Macy's Parade Health and Safety PDF
  5. ↑ JamarcusMudkip. "2022 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade Website Walkthrough." YouTube.com. March 3, 2023.
  6. ↑ Maas, Jennifer. "NBC’s Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade Scores Its Most Viewers in 5 Years With Streams on Peacock." Variety. November 25, 2022.
  7. ↑ "National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (NATAS) and CBS Announce 2023 Daytime Emmy Nominations," The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. April 26, 2023.
  8. ↑ Instagram post from Mattson Creative.
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