macy's thanksgiving parade has been the official kick-off to the holiday season for many decades. in 1924, the event, known as macy's christmas parade was started by macy's employees and featured animals from the central park zoo. it was a big success and macy's declared it would be an annual event. the signa true giant balloons were introdued in1927 with the firstever chracter balloon of felix the cat. every year, more than 3.5 million people at home , all tuned in to see giant balloons, floats and balloonicles join celebrities, bands and clown crews in one of the most spectacutar holiday celebration in the world