AP TELEVISION

New York - November 28, 2013

1. Mid - crowds along parade route

2. Wide - Snoopy balloon

3. Mid - balloon wranglers walking under Snoopy

5. SOUNDBITE (English) Dana Kuzmetzkoff

"Greatest day ever. Thanksgiving Day parade. Why wouldn't I want to be out here?"

2. Wide - turkey on float at Macy's parade

3. Close - two kids dressed as pilgrims on top of a float

10. SOUNDBITE (English) Lisa Certo, parade spectator

"We got here at seven. And we just wanted to experience it once at least."

12. Mid - marching band

13. Wide - Hello Kitty balloon

14. SOUNDBITE (English) Johnny Dume, parade volunteer

"It's nice, you know. Seeing everybody smiling - the kids, the floats - it's great."

15. Mid to wide - band on a guitar float

16. Mid - Richard Simmons on a turtle float

18. SOUNDBITE (English) Blue Gengo - parade spectator

"It's amazing, it's really cool to see New York City come together. It's, it's sort of like a, I feel like we're all together as a family, looking at a lovely parade."

19. Wide - Miss America riding on a float

21. Mid - cheerleading group

22. Wide - Spiderman balloon with punctured arm

The big balloons soared - and so did the crowd's spirits - as the annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade made its way through the streets of New York City.

There'd been some concerns about whether the wind could keep 16 giant balloons grounded on Thursday. But the parade went off without a hitch.

Balloon handlers were keeping a tight grip on their inflated characters. The wind was around 26 mph.

The Spiderman balloon suffered a punctured arm after it was deflated by a tree in Central Park but it kept on going.

The cheering throngs were bundled against a 30-degree chill, but the sun was shining.

People lifted small children onto their shoulders.