For the first time in its 92-year history, Chicago’s Thanksgiving parade will begin at 7:45 a.m. on Thanksgiving Day, an hour earlier than in previous years. A spokesperson for the event confirmed the change.
Because of the earlier start, the parade’s television broadcast will begin at 8:00 a.m., before the Chicago Bears play the Detroit Lions on Thanksgiving. The holiday parade will take place Thursday, Nov. 26, and will travel north along State Street from Ida B. Wells Drive to Randolph Street.
According to a press release, this year’s changes also include the selection of a Chicago Bears legend as grand marshal. Charles “Peanut” Tillman, a former Bears cornerback who played 12 seasons with the team, will serve as grand marshal. Tillman received the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year award for the 2013 season and is associated with the “Peanut Punch,” a play defenders use to force an opposing player to fumble the ball, which he popularized.
He will be joined by guest of honor Jake Connelly, a 14-year-old actor from Arlington Heights who played Derek Turnbow in the final season of the Netflix series “Stranger Things.” According to the release, Connelly recently appeared on Jimmy Fallon’s “The Tonight Show” and performed “Take Me Out to the Ball Game” at Wrigley Field.
The new start time will also eliminate an hour-long block of stage performances that previously took place before the procession reached the television broadcast zone. Information provided about the event indicates that more than 80 groups will take part in the parade, including 14 giant balloons, seven marching bands from across the country, five local marching bands, six equestrian units and 15 performance groups. According to the release, new attractions include a Cookie Monster balloon (the character from “Sesame Street”) and a new sleigh for Santa Claus.
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Source: Polski.FM
