Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade 2010

The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade was known as the Macy’s Christmas Parade. But then, leave it to a department store to get an early jump on the holiday season. Thursday marks the 84th edition of the popular procession, and some 3.5 million people will line the streets of the city to catch of glimpse of the bands, the balloons and, if he’s not too busy tweeting angry things to Matt Lauer, Kanye West. We checked in with Bob Grippo, author of “Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade,” for a geographical tour of the march’s storied history. This is the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade’s New York.

The Macy s Thanksgiving Day Parade will then turn east toward 6th Avenue where it will march down the Avenue of the Americas. At 34th Street, the parade will make its final turn west marching in front of Macy’s Herald Square.

The first parade consisted of some 300 Macy’s employees marching with two dozen animals borrowed from the local zoo, including camels and elephants. The live beasts, however, frightened children, and after three years, they were replaced by balloon animals.