Local news covers the marching bands in the 2025 Macy's Parade

As I wrote yesterday, I'm breaking this year's edition of Local news coverage of marching bands in the 2024 Macy's Parade for Thanksgiving into two parts. Part one was WMUR covers the Spartans in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. Part two consists of the marching bands, beginning with Fox 5 New York reporting Alcorn State University’s Sounds of Dynomite: Marching band in Thanksgiving Day Parade.

FOX 5 NY's Kendall Green speaks with some members of Alcorn State University’s marching band "Sounds of Dynomite."

Yes, I'm sharing the bands in alphabetical order as listed on Macy's website with the last two swapped for a narrative. I'm glad it resulted in an HBCU band first. Also, I'm glad I got a non-NBC affiliate because of what I wrote last year.

By the way, notice how many of these segments are from local NBC affiliates. As I first wrote in CNN defends Big Bird after Ted Cruz calls one of the character's tweets 'Propaganda,' a pandemic update, "my readers should keep that relationship in mind when watching the clip above. It's not just news value that's driving it."

In this case, it is news value.

Follow over the jump for the rest of the bands in tomorrow's parade.

Part one of marching music for Super Tuesday on Marching Music Day

Happy Marching Music Day! March Forth! As I promised twice, I'm celebrating with a marching music Super Tuesday featuring the corps and bands from Super Tuesday states east of the Mississippi River.

I begin with the same corps I opened the past two Super Tuesday posts with, the Boston Crusaders. Watch Boston Crusaders | #dci2022 | Paradise Lost from Drum Corps International (DCI).

Boston, MA | 2nd Place (tie) | 97.325

Boston, Massachusetts' Boston Crusaders perform a segment from the corps' #DCI2022 production, "Paradise Lost," during the 2022 DCI World Championships hosted August 12-14 at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.

Don't bite that apple!

Vic Firth Marching uploaded the entire show as Boston Crusaders 2022 | DCI Finals Week Rehearsal | Full Production.

We're going BEYOND the lot to bring you a "pieced together' full production run of the 2022 Boston Crusaders show entitled "Paradise Lost.' Recorded over the course of a 3 hour rehearsal on Thursday, August 11th, this video APPROXIMATES a full production run-through (as best we could, given all the variables)! We hope you enjoy the video!

It's Vic Firth, which makes drum sticks, so of course the video focuses on the percussion.

FloMarching uploaded a clip from last year's show, Boston Crusaders 2023 'White Whale' Prelims Percussion Feature - 2023 DCI World Championships.


That was certainly the most nautical and fun part of the show. Once again, Vic Firth Marching has the complete program in Boston Crusaders 2023 | DCI Finals Week Rehearsal | Full Production.

We're going BEYOND the lot to bring you a full (edited together) production run of the 2023 Boston Crusaders show entitled "White Whale.' Recorded in rehearsal on Thursday, August 10th. We hope you enjoy the video!

I was so looking forward to typing "the whale lives" until I realized that the guard wasn't at this rehearsal. Darn. The show gained so much from their part of the performance.

Returning to DCI, I'm sharing Boston Crusaders | #DCI2021 | "Zoom" , the corps' pandemic program.

Boston Massachusetts' Boston Crusaders performs a segment from the corps' #DCI2021 production, "Zoom," during the DCI Celebration events hosted August 12-14 at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.

That was so much fun that, at the risk of overkill, I'm sharing Vic Firth Marching's Boston Crusaders 2021 Full Production | BEYOND THE LOT. Yes, I am a Boston Crusaders fan.

Vic Firth takes you BEYOND the lot with the BOSTON CRUSADERS as they perform their 2021 production "Zoom" during the DCI Celebration week in Indianapolis, IN!

That was a lot more entertaining than I expected from a show named after a video conferencing app!

Since I wrote that this is a marching music Super Tuesday and not a drum corps Super Tuesday, I'm embedding UMASS Minuteman Marching Band - 2018 Pasadena Rose Parade from Music213.

From Amherst, Massachusetts The University of Massachusetts (UMASS) Minuteman Marching Band performing at the 129th Annual Pasadena Tournament of Roses Parade on Monday, January 1, 2018

In case they look familiar, the University of Massachusetts (UMASS) Minuteman Marching Band were one of the bands featured in Two drum corps and some of my favorite bands marching in the New Year for 2018.

Time to move on from Massachusetts. Follow over the jump for drum corps and marching bands from the rest of the Super Tuesday states east of the Mississippi.

Drink to The Daily Show, Inside Edition, and AL.com all asking 'What is Juneteenth?'

Happy Juneteenth! I'm combining both silly and the serious takes on the holiday in this year's celebration of emancipation beginning with The Daily Show with Trevor Noah asking What is Juneteenth? Dulcé Sloan Explains.

Dulcé Sloan explains exactly what Juneteenth is, why it's celebrated, and how it should be commemorated.

Dulcé Sloan did a very good job of explaining the holiday while still making it funny. For something more serious, I'm sharing Inside Edition also asking What Is Juneteenth?

Why is June 19th known as Juneteenth? The answer is rooted in history. "Juneteenth is an African-American holiday that celebrates the emancipation of slaves in Texas in 1865," Scholar Lori Brooks told InsideEdition.com. Dr. Brooks explained that when Union General Gordon Granger arrived in Texas, it was June 18, "and the next day he announced the emancipation of African-American slaves." Dr. Brooks added that the holiday gained new interest in the 1960s, as part of the Poor People's Campaign.

Inside Edition does a good job with holidays, as I remarked in Happy Year of the Metal Rat!

After watching the video from Inside Edition I used in History Channel and Inside Edition explain Hanukkah, I'm more impressed with how they depict holidays. Inside Edition's interviewing people who celebrate the holidays they examine makes their reports not only more credible, but more informative and entertaining as well.

Inside Edition did the same in this video, making me glad I subscribed to their YouTube channel.

AL.com managed to bridge the comedy of The Daily Show with the middle-brow earnestness of Inside Edition when it asked What is Juneteenth?

We look at where the holiday of Juneteenth came from and why it's still a mystery to so many people.

In addition to the history, the video brought up the idea of Juneteenth becoming a national holiday. I'll drink to that!

Because today is also National Martini Day, the drink I'm sharing is Tipsy Bartender's Caramel Appletini.



It's booze in an apple. The caramel appletini!
A toast to Juneteenth!

A drum corps Super Tuesday 2020

As I've already done for Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada, and South Carolina, it's time to share some marching music for my readers to watch and listen while they are waiting for the results.  This time, it's a drum corps Super Tuesday as nine of the fifteen states and territories holding primaries and caucuses today have competitive drum and bugle corps.  No marching bands today!

I am proceeding roughly from east to west, moving time zone to time zone as polls close across the country.  In order, the states and their drum corps I am featuring are Massachusetts, North Carolina, Minnesota, Tennessee, Alabama, Texas, Colorado, Utah, and California.  I begin with the 2019 Boston Crusaders | Goliath representing Massachusetts.



Boston, MA | 6th Place | 94.488
Despite the biblical theme, this show has a patriotic element as it includes selections from "Hamilton."  May the candidates not throw away their shots, either!

Moving down the east coast, the next corps from a state voting today is Carolina Gold from North Carolina.  Watch Carolina Gold 2017.



12th place - 81.00
While Carolina Gold is the first DCA corps I am featuring this cycle, it won't be the last, as two DCA corps represent Minnesota, three if one includes the now inactive Minnesota Brass, Inc., which I am.  In fact, the Minnesota corps are next, as it's time to move to the Central Time Zone.  Follow over the jump.

Bloomberg and Patrick enter the Democratic nomination contest at the last minute

Eight years ago, I wrote "Bloomberg Television is owned by someone who thinks he should run the country."  That means I wasn't completely surprised when I heard last week that Michael Bloomberg files for Democratic primary in Arkansas.

Billionaire and former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has filed for the 2020 Democratic primary in Arkansas. John Harris, editor-in-chief and co-founder of Politico, joined CBSN with the latest on the 2020 race.

Bloomberg also filed in Alabama, the other state with an early filing deadline for its primary, along with 16 other Democratic and 3 Republican candidates.  Even so, he has not formally announced that he is running.

On the other hand, Deval Patrick, who was also mentioned in the above video, did.  Watch Former Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick joins 2020 presidential race, also from CBS News.

Former Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick officially entered the 2020 Democratic presidential race on Thursday. His announcement comes less than three months before primary voting begins. CBS News political correspondent Ed O'Keefe joined CBSN to discuss.

That Patrick is attracting Beto O'Rourke's former staffers shouldn't surprise me, as O'Rourke dropped out only two weeks earlier.  On the other hand, Patrick himself getting in the contest after the first filing deadlines have passed does.  As both videos point out, these are long-shot candidacies that the Democratic primary voters have not asked for.  Instead, they seem to be driven by candidate desires and anxieties by Democratic Party insiders, both donors and campaign professionals, about the current field.  In contrast, the Democratic primary and caucus electorate seem happy with the remaining candidates.  The viewers on YouTube appear to reflect the lack of support for both Bloomberg and Patrick, as both videos have more downrates than uprates.  The ratio doesn't lie.

I plan on having more on both candidates later, including drink recipes, graphs of their ideological positions from OnTheIssues.org, and reactions from late-night comedians.  Stay tuned.

Alabama recognizes Rosa Parks Day

Today is Rosa Parks Day.

Rosa Parks Day is an American holiday celebrated on February 4 or December 1 in honor of the civil rights leader Rosa Parks.

On December 1, 1955, after a long day of work Rosa Parks boarded a bus in Montgomery, Alabama. She took her seat in the ‘colored’ section, but as she rode the Cleveland Avenue bus home, the bus began to fill.

The Montgomery city ordinance allowed bus drivers to assign seating. However, it did not permit them to demand a passenger give up their seat. Despite this, bus drivers had customarily required black passengers to give up their seats to white passengers when the public transportation became full.

When Rosa Parks was asked to give up her seat, she refused. She was arrested and what followed is Civil Rights history. She was found guilty on December 5, 1955, of violating the city ordinance and fined $10 plus a court fee.

African American leaders, including E.D. Nixon and Martin Luther King, Jr., (see Martin Luther King, Jr. Day) organized the Montgomery Bus Boycott for the day of Rosa Park’s trial. The boycott was a success and lasted several months, devastating the transportation system in Montgomery.

HOW TO OBSERVE

Use #RosaParksDay to post on social media.

HISTORY

Rosa Parks Day was created by the California State Legislature and first celebrated February 4, 2000. California chose to recognize the date of Rosa Park’s birth.  Ohio and Oregon celebrate Rosa Parks Day on the day she was arrested, December 1.

In addition to Ohio and Oregon, Alambama now celebrates Rosa Parks Day today.  Watch Rosa Parks Day in Alabama from CBS 42.


WSFA gave additional details.

The bill to declare Dec. 1 as Rosa Parks Day in Alabama passed unanimously in both the House and Senate. From there, it went to Gov. Kay Ivey who signed the bill into law.

“The fact that we had a 102-0 vote to have this celebration to honor Rosa Parks shows that Montgomery, and hopefully the state of Alabama, is not stuck in history and that we are moving forward," [Montgomery Mayor Todd] Strange said.

Even though the bill was singed into law, Rosa Parks Day is not considered an official state holiday. However, the new law does state that cities and counties can make it a holiday if they wish.

Here's to remembering a civil rights pioneer, who also has Detroit connections, although that's a story for another day.