Inside Detroit's Iconic Thanksgiving Tradition at The Parade Company | WCSX Rockin' Road Trip - video Dailymotion

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00:00We're at the Brea Company in Detroit. The Rock and Road Trips with 94.7 WC SX. Right now, Joel Morgan and I are big heads. So actually, clearly, I am Stevie Wonder.

00:12Joel, are you going to be Bob Seger this year in the Thanksgiving?

00:15Yes. You ready?

00:16You got to walk five miles with the Bob Seger head on.

00:19I like that all-time rock and roll.

00:22Da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da.

00:25People who wear the big heads in the parade. What's the official title, Joel?

00:30American Thanksgiving Parade presented by Gardner White.

00:33Well, he said, then they have to wear the big hats for five miles.

00:38That's some dedication and, quite honestly, some really good balance.

00:42These hats will keep you warm, man, from that parade.

00:45Oh, my God. I'm, like, already getting sweaty.

00:47You know, it's not so bad, though. It's balanced.

00:49They're not as heavy as I thought they would be, either.

00:51Derek Schmidt, the art director of Parade Company, informed us that there is no place that has more big heads than what the parade company does.

01:00I feel like sometimes, in radio, though, with some people, there are a lot of big heads.

01:04Right.

01:04All right, we're over by the Mother Goose floats.

01:09That's a pretty big float there, Donnie.

01:11Vanna White's got nothing on you, Joel.

01:13So, Mother Goose has been a part of every single parade since 1924.

01:19This isn't the original.

01:20This is at least fourth generation, right?

01:22They tweak it every once in a while.

01:24Like, for instance, a couple years ago, they had to put new glasses on Mother Goose.

01:27Her prescription got changed, so they had to put new glasses on.

01:30She's got bifocals now. Like, I get it. I do.

01:33We got Jack jumping over the candlestick.

01:36Little Miss Muppet eating her toughmits.

01:38And Humpty Dumpty.

01:39And Humpty Dumpty.

01:39He didn't have a great fall. He's having a great Thanksgiving.

01:43I caught a fish.

01:45It was about that big.

01:47But he got away, so there you go.

01:51Booger Jack, is it gone?

01:53It's all gone.

01:54All right.

01:54No boogers were wiped on Parade Company property.

01:57Donnie, I think this dog needs just a little touch-up.

02:00I'm going to touch him.

02:00I don't think you should do that, so I...

02:02Hey, don't touch that!

02:04Okay? Sorry, man!

02:05You know, Donner and Dasher and Cupid and Blitzen...

02:10You know, Dasher and Donner and...

02:13What do you use a call?

02:15But he's skipping Dancer and Prancer?

02:16I'm not trying to.

02:19Dasher and Dancer and Donner and Blitzen...

02:21Hobbit and Cupid and Donner and Blitzen...

02:24Did we just say some of the...

02:25All right, anyway.

02:26The deer that you see behind us are reindeer.

02:29Do they fly?

02:29They do.

02:30But when this was built, they were like,

02:32We want to make something that's generational.

02:34So what did they do, Joel?

02:35A lot of this stuff is made out of, like,

02:36papier-mâché and styrofoam and stuff.

02:38But these are made out of fiberglass so that they'll last longer

02:41so that many generations of fanglers to America's Thanksgiving Parade

02:46presented by Gardner White will say,

02:48Hey, I saw that when I was a kid.

02:50And this is the only two-car float that they have.

02:55There you go.

02:55That's where you drive it, Peter.

02:57And they've got a driver in there,

02:58and then they've got another person who actually does the steering back in this end.

03:02And Santa never gets off.

03:04He just, he does his whole presentation and everything right there on.

03:08And if he has to go to the bathroom, they've got to put a body on this thing.

03:11Yeah.

03:12They thought of everything.

03:13For our next feat of amazement at the parade company,

03:17Joel will lift this car.

03:19Joel, are you ready?

03:20I am ready, Donnie.

03:22I'm feeling very strong.

03:28Now that you've seen how much fun you can have at the parade,

03:31let's talk to Kim and see how you can become involved.

03:35Yeah, so you've got a lot of volunteer opportunities.

03:38Definitely, definitely.

03:39We just put out the application for this year's parade.

03:43It takes about, I would say, four to six hours of your time on Thanksgiving Day.

03:46So we are currently signing up for band marshals, balloon handlers,

03:51flow drivers, unit marshals, banner carriers.

03:54If you want to have an unforgettable day on Thanksgiving, this is the thing to do.

03:59Go to our website, www.theparade.org.

04:03You'll see right under volunteer with us,

04:06there is a bubble you click on and fill out the parade application.

04:09There are also opportunities where companies or groups of people can come in

04:14and as like a team builder, volunteer right here at the parade company.

04:19You're right.

04:20We have volunteer groups of 10 that come in throughout the season

04:23to help with painting and like construction of floats.

04:26You can go to the same website at www.theparade.org,

04:31volunteer with us, scroll down till you see group opportunities,

04:35and you can click on group opportunities and we'll get you scheduled.

04:39What's up, WCSX staff?

04:40I think we need to talk about mixing, you know, work with fun, like seriously.

04:45And then in a variety of things, and these people are pros.

04:47They've been doing it for a lot of years, so don't feel like,

04:49I don't have enough skills.

04:51Oh, you've got enough skills.

04:52Trust me.

04:52They'll find something for you to do.

04:55We will.

04:57All right, Kim, thanks for your time.

04:59Absolutely.

05:00Thank you, guys.

05:00The Weird, The Wild, The Wonderful.

05:03Rockin' Road Trips with 94.7 WCSX.

05:07When you get back from a rockin' road trip,

05:10nothing hits the spot like a cold Faygo pop.

05:13Faygo, the one true pop.

05:14All right, Kim, thanks for your time.

Inside Detroit's Iconic Thanksgiving Tradition at The Parade Company | WCSX Rockin' Road Trip

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