Glad you think I'm that young. Watching which parade has been an institute for whom in which decade? If you guessed Macy's in the 40's in NYC before TV, you're probably right. Parades on TV are as much fun as intermural hockey. Houston had "decent" parades in the 70's and 80's (I was personally shocked that they were broadcast beyond Houston,) but its time has come and gone, especially if you can't even get a remotely known celebrity involved.
I can't remember the last time I watched a Thanksgiving parade. It's been 35+ years. Actually, it's hard to believe I ever watched them. Times have changed.
My family still always watches the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade on NBC. I definitely agree that this has been an institution for a long time now, for many families.
In junior high through undergrad, I marched in what felt like a trillion parades for a trillion holidays from small Texas towns to Ireland for St. Patrick's Day and England for New Years 1998-99. They're fun to be in, but holy crap I can't stand watching the things. Not on TV, at least.
