Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade Woody Woodpecker Balloon 1982-1996
Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade Woody Woodpecker Balloon 1982-1996 Woody Woodpecker is a cartoon anthropomorphic woodpecker that has appeared in theatrical short films produced by the Walter Lantz Studio and distributed by Universal Studios from 1941-1972. At one time Woody Woodpecker was the official mascot of Universal Studios, like Mickey Mouse or Bugs Bunny were for their companies. The story of Woody Woodpecker's history in the parade began sometime in the 1960's, when creator Walter Lantz had contacted Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company about the possibility of featuring a larger-than life balloon replica of Woody in the parade. However, Goodyear declined, citing that the character's design could not be properly replicated into an aerodynamic balloon. As a result, the idea was dropped for over a decade, enough time for the bird to make his debut in the parade atop the Rocking Giraffe in 1976. The 75 foot by 45 foot balloon, one of the largest ever built for the parade, made its grand debut in the 56th Annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade but almost immediately ran into trouble when its head was punctured three blocks along the route. The thirty-five handlers keeping the 450 pound balloon in tow lowered it to the ground, carrying it along the parade route for the rest of the two mile trek. Woody ran into many issues with running into trees and weather that made him deflate and hard to manage and he was retired in 1996. In 1994 Woody was featured in a starring role in the Seinfeld episode The Mom and Pop Store. Inspired by a previous incident of the balloon in the parade, the show featured a sequence in which Jerry Seinfeld unintentionally punctures it, forcing its handlers (involving Elaine's boss Mr. Pitt) to carry the deflating balloon across the route. During the NBC broadcasts of the 1983-1996 parades, a sound clip of Woody Woodpecker's laugh was heard whenever the balloon was on camera, with hosts like Willard Scott trying to do an impression of the character's iconic laugh. This video is one of those examples. Enjoy and Be A Kid Again.... #macysthanksgivingdayparade #woodywoodpecker #mikesdeadformats Source: macysthanksgiving fandom @teapea59 appears to be the original source of some of this video
