Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade has decades-long ties to Raven Industries: Looking Back

Eric Renshaw
·4 min read
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Some of my most cherished childhood memories are of Thanksgiving mornings. I’d wake up a little later than on school days and the house would already smell of turkey and other delicious dishes. The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade would be on the ol’ Sears solid state, showing me a procession of floats, marching bands, and balloons. The balloons, especially, held my attention enough to keep me out of the kitchen so that my mother could get something done.

When my family moved to Sioux Falls, it soon seeped into my consciousness that a local company was making the majority of the giant balloons featured in the parade. Raven Industries was a diverse company with many projects and divisions, but the balloons, made by what would become its Aerostar division, put Raven on the national radar.

The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade began in 1924 as the Macy’s Christmas Parade. It was a way to celebrate the start of the Christmas season, an increasingly important time of the year for retailers.

The image shows a local test flight of the Spider Man balloon created for the 1987 parade. Aerostar would test these balloons at a field in the industrial park area of town when the weather was good. In inclement weather, the Dakota Dome was utilized.
The image shows a local test flight of the Spider Man balloon created for the 1987 parade. Aerostar would test these balloons at a field in the industrial park area of town when the weather was good. In inclement weather, the Dakota Dome was utilized.

The first year showcased employees of Macy’s Herald Square, dressed in vivid costumes, marching to the store accompanied by bands, floats, clowns, and live animals on loan from the Central Park Zoo. There were lions, tigers, and bears (oh, my!), among others. The final float was the man himself, Santa Claus, arriving at the store where he would remain, taking notes from children about their Christmas wishes.

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In 1928, the zoo animals, deemed too scary for some children, were given the day off. In their place were large helium balloons. The first set was designed by artist Tony Sarg, and constructed by the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company. The balloons were whimsical and expressionistic, but less likely to scare children. At the end of the parade, the balloons were released into the sky. There was a $100 reward to all who found and turned in the remnants after they returned to earth. In 1928, Macy’s began calling the event the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.

Tony Sarg continued to design balloons built by Goodyear through 1941, when the parade went on hiatus. The rubber used for balloons and other resources was needed for the war effort. Sarg died in 1942. When the parade resumed after the war, Goodyear handled the manufacture of new balloons, designed by various artists, until 1980. Kemp Balloons, Inc. took over manufacturing until 1983, when Macy’s approached Raven Industries. Raven signed on and began work on two new balloons for 1984. Raggedy Ann and Garfield would be their first entries into the event.

Raven reorganized in 1986, spinning off the inflatables division as Aerostar International Inc. Aerostar built inflatables for scientific research, parade balloons, and hot air balloons. That year the company produced Humpty Dumpty, baby Shamu, a starfish, and reworked the Olive Oyl balloon designed and built by Bob Kemp in 1982. Olive stood 75 feet tall, and was among the tallest balloons ever used in the parade. She was unable to stand upright during the 1985 parade; the cold, rainy weather was too much for the amount of helium her balloon could hold. To give the balloon more lift, Aerostar added Olive and Popeye’s baby, Swee’Pea, and a bunch of balloons for her to hold.

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From 1984 to 2019, Aerostar built all of the balloons used in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, with only two exceptions: Bart Simpson in 1990, and Petula Pig in 1997. Memorable among the over 130 balloons and other inflatables created by Aerostar are Spider-Man, several versions of Snoopy, two Smurfs, Hello Kitty, Buzz Lightyear, Spongebob Squarepants, and many others.

In 2019, Macy’s and Aerostar parted ways after 35 years. Many of the balloons manufactured by Raven’s Aerostar division will continue to make occasional appearances in parades going forward. Sure, it’s disappointing to watch the parade, knowing that the local connection is missing, but still. Who’s not going to watch? What goes better with the smell of turkey in the oven than the Macy’s parade?

This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade has deep ties to Raven Industries