With the holiday season at hand, mild weather and big crowds greeted Santa and entourage and the rest of the entrants in the 91st anniversary edition of the Hollywood Christmas Parade on Sunday evening, Nov. 26.
Thousands of spectators lined the 3.2-mile, U-shaped route to watch nearly 100 celebrities and VIPS, more than a dozen performers, 10 bands, six four-story-high character balloons, three floats, nearly 40 movie cars and eight novelty vehicles — ending with an appearance from Santa Claus himself and his reindeer.
Santa’s always the most sought-after star for this march. After all, the parade, which debuted in 1928, was known as the “Santa Claus Lane Parade” for many years.
Movie funnyman Joe E. Brown was the first grand marshal in 1932 — a role later filled by such luminaries as Bob Hope, Gene Autry, Jimmy Stewart and John Wayne. The parade has been held every year since then, except from 1942 to 1944 due to World War II, and in 2020, when it was canceled because of the pandemic.
This year, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass was the top dignitary rolling down the route. And Los Angeles City Councilmember Nithya Raman, who represents Hollywood and its environs, welcomed all to come to the parade.
But the parade wouldn’t earn its Hollywood cred without a guest list of celebrities, including dancer-singer Paula Abdul, singer Dwight Yoakum, radio host Kerri Kasem, pop duo Aly & AJ and Saturday Night Live veteran Chris Kattan, comic Craig Robinson, plus actors Ernie Hudson, Brandon Routh, Ming-Na Wen, Denise Richards and Tatyana Ali.
The parade, which supports Marine Toys for Tots, launched at Orange Street and Hollywood Boulevard, before traveling east on Hollywood Boulevard to Vine Street, south on Vine Street to Sunset Boulevard and then west on Sunset, back to Orange.
Retired U.S. Army Col. Paris D. Davis, who was awarded the Medal of Honor in March — nearly 60 years after being nominated for his heroism during the Vietnam War — served as…
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