Photo: Ann Thomas / 760 WJR
DETROIT, November 4, 2022 ~ America’s Thanksgiving Parade presented by Gardner White, a tradition that has been delighting Detroiters for generations, returns to Woodward Avenue this Thanksgiving morning with a very special addition to the parade’s hallmark collection of papier-mâché heads.
“I was blown away when The Parade Company President and CEO Tony Michaels and Parade Foundation Chairman Bob Riney told me I was chosen to be the next big head,” said 760 WJR’s Paul W. Smith. “Never saw that coming! Now that it has actually happened, and knowing I will now be immortalized with the ‘who’s who’ of Detroit’s colorful past, I am both humbled and speechless.”
PODCASTS:
November 4, 2022 ~ Huntington Bank Chairman, President, and CEO Steve Steinour talks to Paul W. live from The Parade Company Pancake Breakfast, and he says it’s a privilege and honor to help the Metro Detroit community.
November 4, 2022 ~ Governor Gretchen Whitmer, The Parade Company President and CEO Tony Michaels, and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan President and CEO Dan Loepp talk to Paul W. about the importance and tradition of America’s Thanksgiving Parade presented by Gardner White.
November 4, 2022 ~ Congresswoman Debbie Dingell talks to Paul W. about politics and the importance of traditions, including America’s Thanksgiving Parade presented by Gardner White.
(CONTINUED) The announcement was made Friday morning as part of The Parade Company Pancake Breakfast presented by Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, an annual fundraising tradition attended by sponsors, donors, and civic leaders.
“We can’t do it without our great sponsors,” said The Parade Company CEO Tony Michaels. “These events are owned by the city, the people of Detroit, the region, and the state. It’s our job as a non-profit to follow that mission of making it better and bolder … put Detroit and the state on national television … and do it all bigger every year.”
Papier-mâché heads have been featured in Detroit’s Thanksgiving parade since its inception back in 1921. The original heads were crafted exclusively in Viareggio, Italy, where the medium has been a mainstay since 1540. Today, the heads are crafted in a similar style right here in Michigan by The Parade Company artists.
Famous Michiganders that have been honored with papier-mâché heads include Tom Selleck, Tom Izzo, Sparky Anderson, Aretha Franklin, Bob Segar, Henry Ford, Joe Louis, Gilda Radner, and Gordie Howe, among others.
America’s Thanksgiving Parade presented by Gardner White rolls down Woodward Avenue November 24.
PHOTOS:
November 4, 2022 ~ Huntington Bank Chairman, President, and CEO Steve Steinour poses with 760 WJR‘s Paul W. Smith at the The Parade Company Pancake Breakfast. Photo: Ann Thomas / 760 WJR
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