R.H. Macy is supposedly the mastermind behind the animated department store holiday window display, having created one in 1883, in which Santa’s sleigh was mechanized and moved around a track set up across his New York City’s store’s front windows.
After that, department stores in major cities would compete informally to see who could create the most talked about windows of the season.
While this competition still exists in New York City, it has faded in many other places, at least among large retailers, who often find themselves in buildings without display windows.
Macy’s carries on, however, exporting their designs from their NYC flagship store to their other stores across the country.
This year’s windows celebrate some well-loved tv specials: A Charlie Brown Christmas (marking its 50th anniversary this year), Yes, Virginia, and the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade.
These windows in downtown D.C. attract a lot of attention every year. The local day cares trundle their wards out to see them, and I’ve seen people out in the evening taking them in, too.
It’s always very exciting to see what the theme for the year is, and the store holds a formal unveiling of their windows the week before Thanksgiving.
Links to other holiday happenings on the web:
I’m still looking for bloggers who are interested in participating in the Virtual Advent Tour. You can sign up and request a date in the comments on the Dec. 1 post.