Cincinnati's Thanksgiving Day Parade Was To Rival Macy's
WCPO Promotion Director Dreamed Of A Made-For-TV Extravaganza
On Columbus Day 1974, his first day on the job as promotion director at WCPO Channel 9, J. Albert Callahan presented a grand idea. He envisioned a parade on Thanksgiving Day, akin to the famous parade in New York. It would consist of floats, marching bands, and be broadcast not only in Cincinnati, but Lexington and Columbus and Louisville.
Not wasting any time, he started contacting sponsors and other entities. The Ohio State Marching Alumni Band and their 90 members were in. So were dozens of high school bands. Hanna-Barbera characters from Kings Island would roam the streets. Mailmen would collect letters to Santa. Miss America, Tawny Godin, would make an appearance. By the summer of 1975, 60 units and 4,000 participants had committed to the parade. Many theme ideas were presented, but āAmerican Christmasā won the day.
But whatās a parade without a Grand Marshal? Callahan swung big and landed international childrenās TV star Robert Keeshan, better known as Captain Kangaroo.
The parade route started at Fifth and Plum, moved east to Sycamore and north to Sixth. It moved at a three-mile and hour clip and stopped every 90 seconds for review.
Despite the cold weather, the parade was a hit. 13,000 people braved the elements, lining downtown streets.
The parade returned once again in 1976. Dubbed āCincinnatiās Mid-America Holiday Parade 76ā, the event turned out a staggering 50,000 folks under sunny skies with hundreds of thousands watching on TV.
In the summer of 1976, it was reported that ABC would televise the parade nationally but pulled out in late August due to ālack of clearances.ā
Once again, the parade was a success. But the show did not go on in 1977. Callahan left Cincinnati to become the marketing director for the āPhil Donahue Showā in Chicago.
And so ended the short-lived Cincinnati Thanksgiving Day Parade.