Disney Parks Christmas Day Parade History

December 24, 2013

Disney Christmas Parade Logo

Well it’s almost here.  I’m talking about the Disney Parks Christmas Day Parade.  The parade will be broadcast on ABC at 10:00 am EST/ 9:00 am PST on Christmas Day.

Just a little bit of history in regards to this parade.  The parade has aired annually since 1983, with the exception of 2000 when Disney aired a Christmas Eve “Tracking Santa” special instead.  The parade has always featured Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Pluto, Donald and a cast of many more.  Now most Disney fans know this, but the parade is taped in November. Until the early 1990’s though, the parade was actually live on Christmas day.  Back then it was also broadcast on CBS, till 1996 when Disney purchased ABC.

The first parade in 1983 was called Walt Disney World’s Very Merry Christmas Parade.  The hosts for that first parade were Joan Lunden and Mike Douglas.  Moving forward, Alan Thicke would eventually replace Douglas as host and none other than Regis Philbin was seen as the on-street interviewer.  Eventually, Regis took over as co-host with Joan.  Kelly Ripa would replace Lunden and and join her TV show partner Regis.

Over the years other hosts have been brought in and out including, Ben Vereen, Jerry Van Dyke, Suzanne Somers and Ryan Seacrest, just to name a few.  This year the hosts are Nick Cannon from Disneyland and Neil Patrick Harris and Lara Spencer from Walt Disney World.  The parade also features many different Disney stars and musicians to entertain the crowds.  Be sure to tune in to ABC for the parade and leave your comments on our facebook page to let us know what you thought of the parade.

Minnie Mickey Parade

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