Macy's Flower Show on Parade

Last Friday, most dogs not using the newspaper for house-breaking, probably came across this two-page ad placed by Macy’s:

On Sunday, those same dogs dug out their most ridiculous spring ensembles (and in some cases, the matching human-sized versions as well) and participated in Macy’s Petacular Fair. This was, however, only a portion of a larger event: Macy’s Flower Show.

As the description below this blog’s title suggests, I am an avid fan of Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. As a result of my obsession, I’ve learned that Macy’s often re-purposes Parade paraphernalia for their other events. Take for example the following image from this past Sunday:

The two novelty balloons featured come direct from the Parade. The Dachshund (or wiener dog) is Frida, a reproduction balloon circa 1933 – the original, incidentially, was actually named Fritz. The Macy’s star is of the variety usually seen leading and closing the Parade.

Re-purposing is not limited to inflatables either; Last holiday season, the live-action/CG film Charlotte’s Web was promoted via a Parade float. On this day, it served as a promotional concert stage for the DVD:

Promotional floats and balloons are often a one-time deal though, so just like the baseball player balloon in Miracle on 34th Street, they find new life through a new paint-job. Case-in-point was the Disney/Pixar sponsored Falloon (combination float and balloon) promoting A Bug’s Life. Prominently featured on it was a cold-air inflatable of Heimlich the Caterpillar from the film. After the 1998 parade it was never seen again. Or was it? During Macy’s 2001 Flower Show, Heimlich re-appeared as a generic caterpillar atop Macy’s Broadway marquee.

It is not my intention to give the impression that the Flower Show is comprised merely of Parade cast-offs; there were a variety of inflatables and sculptures that appeared to be created expressly for it:

And of course there is the flower show itself within the store and in its Broadway windows featuring a new theme annually. This year’s theme is “Flora Exotica,” and features stunning African motifs and animal topiaries. It runs through April 15th at Macy’s flagship Herald Square store in New York City.