Carlo Allegri / Reuters
A balloon in the shape of Papa Smurf is held down by netting as it gets inflated with helium ahead of the Macy's Thanksgiving Parade in New York on Wednesday.
By NBC News wire services
Updated at 6:04 a.m. ET: NEW YORK ??Giant helium balloons rose above the treetops along New York's Central Park on Wednesday ahead of the 86th Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, the largest public event so far in a city still recovering from superstorm Sandy.
The parade that typically draws 3.5 million spectators and 50 million television viewers will follow a new route this year, skipping Times Square entirely ??to the chagrin of business owners there.
Instead, the procession will head down Sixth Avenue, before culminating at Macy's flagship store on 34th Street.
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"As it has during turbulent times in our history, we hope the Macy's Parade serves as a beacon of hope for all who tune in and gather with friends and family to give thanks this season, as they continue to heal from the devastating aftermath of Superstorm Sandy," Amy Kule, the parade's executive producer, said in a statement.
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The parade will feature 16 giant character balloons, including a 60-foot-tall Kermit the Frog, as well as 28 floats, 1,600 cheerleaders and dancers, 11 marching bands, and someone who looks a lot like Santa Claus.
From poor weather conditions in the Midwest to a worker protest at LAX, travel slowdowns and higher rental car costs have made Thanksgiving travel anything but smooth sailing. NBC's Ron Mott reports.
Celebrities including Whoopi Goldberg, Chris Isaak, Carly Rae Jepsen and the Muppets are due to appear or perform.
Macy's has said it will be providing transport and seats for some 5,000 people affected by Sandy, which last month inundated lower Manhattan with seawater, rearranged the New Jersey shore and Long Island, and tore up neighborhoods in far-flung areas of New York's outer boroughs.
Thousands of Sandy victims still displaced
At least 132 people died in the United States and Canada as a result of the storm.
"Coming here is a good distraction," said Chris Tamis, who along with his wife and two teenage kids was in New York to watch balloons being inflated for the parade.
Peter Foley / EPA
See images of the giant balloons and festivities at the 86th annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade
"A lot of people are coming to get away from it," said Tamis, who only recently got power back in his home in Smithtown, New York.
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On Wednesday, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced that the city, in partnership with local community organizations and businesses, was coordinating 26,500 Thanksgiving meals for people hardest hit by the storm.?
Other cities planned to have showy marching bands, cartoon character balloons and musical extravaganzas as well. Chicago, Philadelphia and Detroit were among the big cities hosting parades.
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For some, the once-sacrosanct harvest feast now starts the holiday shopping season ? and store openings keep getting earlier. Black Friday now starts on Thanksgiving day itself at many national stores and some shoppers eagerly race from their dinner tables to line up for bargains, delaying their second helpings until they've purchased the latest toys or electronic devices.
President Obama, with his daughters by his side, talks about less fortunate Americans this Thanksgiving, then pardons "Cobbler" and "Gobbler," two turkeys from Virginia.
Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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