Target Audience

Expectant youngsters watch the 1968 parade

"It was Macy's annual Thanksgiving Day parade and for three hours a slice of the city . . . was turned over to New York's children." Excerpt from NYTimes article, 1968 [4]

From the outset, the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade has explicitly catered to the children in its audiences. In 1927 the parade was promoted as “Macy’s Annual Spectacle for Children.”[1] Later, in a 1946 review of the parade, the New York Times described it as “a parade that belonged to the young.”[2] The following year, the New York Times reported that the parade, which "belongs to the children,” once more "delighted the city's small-fry."[3]

While the parade’s abundance of colorful sights and sounds appeals to an audience of all ages, its showcasing of giant helium figures familiar to a young audience is designed to thrill, and whet the material appetites of, the children.

"[The Children] arrived early in the morning, filled with anticipation, and they left at noon smiling with delight" Excerpt from NYTimes article, 1968 [5]

Small-fry attend the 1941 parade

To learn more about Macy's' consideration of a children's market in designing the parade,
visit the New-York Historical Society's website.

Back to the Top / On to The Parade: Reflecting a Changing Nation

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[References]
[1] "Christmas Parade Staged In Broadway," New York Times (1857-Current file), Nov 25, 1927, ProQuest Historical Newspapers The New York Times (1851 - 2002), 13.
[2] "Sun, Smiles Beam On Macy's Parade," The New York Times New York Times (1857-Current file), Nov 29, 1946, ProQuest Historical Newspapers The New York Times (1851 - 2002), 31.
[3] "Topics of The Times," New York Times (1857-Current file), Nov 27, 1947, ProQuest Historical Newspapers The New York Times (1851 - 2002), C30; "Thankful America Shares Its Plenty With Needy World," New York Times 1857, Nov 28, 1947, ProQuest Historical Newspapers The New York Times (1851 - 2002), 1.
[4] "Good Grief! Snoopy Makes Macy's Parade," New York Times (1857-Current file), Nov 29, 1968, ProQuest Historical Newspapers The New York Times (1851 - 2002), 48.
[5] IBID.
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[Images]
Expectant youngsters watch the 1968 parade: excerpt from "Good Grief! Snoopy Makes Macy's Parade," New York Times (1857-Current file), Nov 29, 1968, ProQuest Historical Newspapers The New York Times (1851 - 2002), 48.
Small-fry Attend the 1941 parade: excerpt from "Santa Still No. 1 to Small Fry Among Throng at Toyland Parade,". New York Times (1857-Current file), Nov 21, 1941, ProQuest Historical Newspapers The New York Times (1851 - 2002), 12.