Photos: Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade ushers in holiday season in New York

New York: Beloved characters like Snoopy and SpongeBob SquarePants soared through the skies above New York City Thursday while bands march along the streets below as the annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade ushered in the holiday season.

The parade started on Manhattan's Upper West Side making its way alongside Central Park in front of big crowds and a national television audience before ending in front of Macy's flagship store on 34th Street.

Among the big names performing is Cher, who just released her first Christmas album . The Oscar-, Emmy- and Grammy Award-winner has a prime spot — performing just before the arrival of Santa Claus, which marks the end of the parade.

Other celebrities and musical groups taking part include Jon Batiste, Bell Biv DeVoe, Brandy, Jessie James Decker, Pentatonix and Miss America 2023 Grace Stanke. The parade also includes performances from the casts of some Broadway shows.

New balloons debuting this year include Leo the lizard, a character from a Netflix film, who is more than 40 feet (12.5 meters) tall, as well as ones that have been there before — like SpongeBob, coming in at 44 feet (13.4 meters).

Some characters, like Snoopy, have been in the parade for many years, but this year's balloon is a new Beagle Scout Snoopy version — celebrating the 50th anniversary of his first appearance in the Peanuts comics.

The parade isn't just about what's going on in the skies, though. At street level, the procession includes more than two dozen floats, interspersed with marching bands from around the country and a number of clown crews among the 8,000 people participating, organizers said.

Thousands lined the streets in coats on a sunny morning. Children were on the shoulders of their parents, shouting as Snoopy and SpongeBob and Leo the Lizard went by.

This is the 97th time the parade has been held since 1924. The broadcast is hosted by Savannah Guthrie, Hoda Kotb and Al Roker from “Today” and airs on NBC.

Monkey D. Luffy from One Piece. | President Joe Biden and his wife Jill called NBC during the parade. The president told Al Roker that people should take a moment to be thankful to live in a country with so much.

Red Titan from Ryan’s World. | “We’re the greatest nation in the world. We should focus on that. We should focus on dealing with our problems and stop the rancor,” Biden said.

The Pillsbury Doughboy.

Grogu balloon from The Mandalorian.

A man dressed as Santa Claus.

The Sinclair's Dino balloon.

Members of a marching band.

Kung Fu Panda's Po balloon.

Handlers guide the Pikachu and Eevee balloon along Central Park West during the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade, Thursday, Nov. 23, 2023, in New York.