Has the Macy's parade always been so blatant in its subtle and not so subtle plugs for products and recording artists (and I use that latter term loosely)? I don't recall it being such a three-hour commercial from when I watched it in my younger days.
Well, I think things started to get more commercial when more than one network started doing major coverage of the parade. I was flipping back and forth between NBC and CBS this morning, and you could tell each network had their specific highlights and featured acts. And if you want a balloon in the parade, the character has to be commercial in order for their to be money to build it. And just like Broadway shows are avenues for product placement, it's probably more a matter of a company approaching Macy's to be in the parade rather than the other way around.
I missed all the Broadway performances on NBC, but I did catch the ones from
Brooklyn and
The Producers on CBS which were done on location - one location being on a platform with the Brooklyn Bridge as the backdrop, and the other one being the St. James Theatre - well, on the street outside the St. James Theatre. - 45th, I think.
I normally stick with the NBC coverage, but the CBS coverage was fun, and some of their guest commentators were fun too. I especially liked seeing "Rod" and Jahn Tartaglia, as well as Michael Park. -Sheesh, I wish he would take a break from "As the World Turns" and go back to the stage.
Of course, both networks utilized lip-syncing, but that's sort of inevitable under the circumstances. However, I had to wonder if the CBS performances were partially live. Hmm... And NBC had some true unknowns featured - at least unknown to me. And did NBC's soap opera, "Passions" really deserve a car?
