Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade 2010 a holiday tradition

Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade 2010 is billed as a star-studded affair, with Santa Claus making his initial appearance of the holiday season.

Georgia Ewing, 3, from London, shares a bench, but not her ice cream, with the Minions from "Despicable Me," in New York, November 22, 2010. The Minions are in New York to appear in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade and celebrate the December 14th DVD release of "Despicable Me."

Diane Bondareff/Universal Studios Home Entertainment/Handout/Reuters

By Pat Murphy, Staff

November 24, 2010

A big part of many families' Thanksgiving Day tradition is to take in the annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade.

Once again, NBC will televise the parade from New York City live across the US, beginning at 9 AM ET Thursday.

Some of the live musical acts scheduled to perform during the parade include Arlo Guthrie, Gladys Knight, Jessica Simpson, Kanye West, Macy Gray and Mannheim Steamroller, in addition to a number of marching bands from around the country.

Giant balloons are another feature of the annual event. Snoopy the Flying Ace, Diary of A Wimpy Kid, 'Super Cute' Hello Kitty and SpongeBob SquarePants are just a few of the big names who will be floating through Manhattan on Thursday.