--- title: Macys Thanksgiving Day Parade in Movies and TV Shows description: The parade was shot live in Miracle on 34th Street Friends and Seinfeld canonical: https://time.com/3605657/macys-thanksgiving-day-parade-movies-tv-shows/ author: Laura Stampler article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2014-11-26T15:27:00.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-05-11T04:48:17.795Z og:title: 5 Famous Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade Scenes in Film and TV og:description: From 'Miracle on 34th Street' to 'Seinfeld' og:url: https://time.com/3605657/macys-thanksgiving-day-parade-movies-tv-shows/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: TIME og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: 5 Famous Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade Scenes in Film and TV twitter:description: From 'Miracle on 34th Street' to 'Seinfeld' twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production --- # 5 Famous Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade Scenes in Film and TV > Sponsored content. 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The Brief is available free at time.com/newsletters, where readers can select it along with any of TIME's other six newsletters. There is no subscription required to receive it. #### Is The Brief free? Yes. The Brief is a free daily email newsletter from TIME. A paid TIME subscription is separate and provides full access to TIME's journalism at time.com/subscribe-agent. #### Who writes The Brief? The Brief is led by editor Richard Hall and draws on reporting from TIME's newsroom. Every edition is assembled by TIME editors rather than generated automatically. by [Laura Stampler](https://time.com/author/laura-stampler/) ## Laura Stampler Nov 26, 2014 3:27 PM UTC by [Laura Stampler](https://time.com/author/laura-stampler/) ## Laura Stampler Nov 26, 2014 3:27 PM UTC Over the years, various film and television directors have made the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade part of a plot, which usually involves shooting the parade live. Anyone who wants to film the parade for commercial use must work with the company to obtain permissions, Macy’s tells TIME. Upon securing a permit, sections aren’t roped off for filming, and production crews can’t interrupt the line of the march. Here are some notable examples of films and TV shows that have featured the iconic American tradition: **_Miracle on 34th Street_** **(1947)**  'Miracle on 34th Street' 20th Century Fox It’s perhaps one of the most iconic representations of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in film, and arguably helped put the event on the map, for few knew of the parade outside of New York prior to the film, according to [Turner Classic Movies.](http://www.tcm.com/this-month/movie-news.html?id=1043529&name=TCM-and-Macy-s-to-Bring-MIRACLE-ON-34th-STREET-to-Herald-Square) And although it started in 1924, the event wasn’t nationally broadcasted until 1947, concurrent with the movie’s release. Twentieth Century Fox [positioned](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0039628/trivia) cameras throughout the parade route and from a third-floor apartment. **_Tower Heist_** **(2011)**  'Tower Heist' Wilson Webb—Universal Film crews shot during the parade itself — which [included](http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2011-11-10/explore/ph-ho-movie-rev-tower-heist-20111110%5F1%5Fparade-balloons-movie-wallet) an actual cameo of Joan Rivers on a float. Although the crew also had to [recreate](http://www.dnainfo.com/new-york/20101204/upper-west-side/macys-thanksgiving-day-parade-recreated-for-film-shoot) part of the parade for additional footage. > [](https://twitter.com/boners/status/139705163681251328) **_Sweet Charity_** **(1969)** Shirley McClaine created her own parade marching band. **_Seinfeld_** **(1994)** > [](https://twitter.com/RetroNewsNow/status/534514863423619072) Elaine gets her boss a gig as a coveted “balloon handler” for the parade. **_Friends_** **(1994)** The gang gets locked out of Monica’s and Rachel’s apartment after watching the parade on the terrace. 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