By Mark Kennedy
Cher is obviously a superstar but even a superstar can be the opening act when it comes to Santa.
Organizers of this year's Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade have nabbed the Oscar-, Emmy- and Grammy Award-winner for their 97th annual event. Cher will make her appearance just before the parade's end, signaled by the arrival of Santa’s sleigh, parade organizers said.
This year’s parade will feature 16 giant character balloons, 26 floats, 32 novelty and heritage inflatables, 12 marching bands, 700 clowns and eight performance groups.
It's a busy time for Cher, who is preparing to release a 25th-anniversary edition of her Grammy-winning album “Believe” and just dropped her first new album in five years, “Christmas.”
For the first time in its long history, the holiday tradition will begin at 8:30 a.m. ET, half an hour earlier than previous years, kicked off by multi-instrumentalist and Grammy-winner Jon Batiste.
There will be appearances by Bell Biv DeVoe, Brandy, Chicago, En Vogue, ENHYPEN, David Foster and Katharine McPhee, Drew Holcomb and The Neighbors, Jessie James Decker, Ashley Park with some Muppets from “Sesame Street,” Pentatonix, Paul Russell, Amanda Shaw and Alex Smith, and Manuel Turizo.
U.S. Olympic gymnastics silver medalist Jordan Chiles, U.S. track and field Paralympian Ezra Frech and U.S. Paralympic swimming gold medalist Jessica Long and Miss America 2023 Grace Stanke will also join the festivities.
Seven new balloon giants will join the lineup: “Beagle Scout Snoopy,” “Blue Cat & Chugs,” “Kung Fu Panda’s Po,” “Leo,” “Monkey D. Luffy,” “Pillsbury Doughboy” and “Uncle Dan.”
Broadway will be represented by performances from “& Juliet,” “Back to the Future: The Musical,” “How To Dance In Ohio,” “Shucked” and “Spamalot,” with an appearance by Josh Gad and Andrew Rannells of “Gutenberg! The Musical!"
Returning giant balloons include “Bluey,” “Diary of a Wimpy Kid,” “Paw Patrol,” “Ryan's World,” “Pikachu,” “Ronald McDonald,” "Stuart the Minion" and “SpongeBob SquarePants.”
The Macy’s parade has been a traditional holiday season kickoff and spectators often line up a half-dozen deep along the route to cheer the marchers, floats, entertainers and marching bands. The parade has lately asked icons to be the last guest before Santa, with last year Mariah Carey fitting the bill.
A marching band from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, the scene of one of the nation's worst school shootings, will represent Florida. Other marching bands this year will represent Alabama, Indiana, Wisconsin, Michigan, Washington, New York, Illinois, New Jersey and Texas.
Floats include ones from brands like Lego, “Peanuts,” “Baby Shark,” “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” and “Sesame Street.”
The parade airs on NBC and streams on Peacock. Savannah Guthrie, Hoda Kotb and Al Roker from “Today” will host and a Spanish language simulcast on Telemundo will be hosted by Carlos Adyan and Andrea Meza.
Actor and comedian Rob Schneider tells Cheddar that Netflix gives content creators a free hand and space to work on compelling narratives. "What's a necessity for them is to keep cranking out material," he explains.
The actor and comedian said in an interview with Cheddar that he looks up to the British actor John Cleese of "Monty Python" and "Fawlty Towers." Schneider's Netflix show, "Real Rob", also stars his wife, Patricia, who is also a writer on the show, and it is loosely based on their life.
Cook County Commissioner John Fritchey, who holds a medical marijuana card, says the drug's ability to relieve pain makes it a much more effective way to combat opioid addiction. “Why would we continue, in light of the crisis that we have, to prescribe opioids for pain relief?” Fritchey told Cheddar Tuesday.
The former Miss Universe says her social media content has been stolen in the past. "You have to be really careful," Culpo told Cheddar.
A recent survey by Parents Magazine found that 62 percent of participants waited more than five weeks to get their children help with mental health issues. A majority of those said they were trying not to overreact to their child's behavior, explains Liz Vaccariello, Editor-in-Chief of Parents Magazine.
The obstacle race organizer had to be tough enough to convince the rapper to skip his own workout routine, said Rich Abend, VP of Global Partnerships. "[Flo Rida] happens to be an incredibly fit person," he said.
For years, Barbie symbolized unattainable and one-dimensional beauty standards for girls around the world, but Mattel is trying to change that. There "was a lot of noise in culture," says Andrea Nevins, director of "Tiny Shoulders: Rethinking Barbie," a new Hulu documentary that will premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival.
Facebook released new details Tuesday regarding how it patrols content posted on its platform. In the 8,500-word document, Facebook disclosed what content it deems appropriate and what it considers offensive, covering everything from sex to drug use to hate speech. The social media company is also changing the way it handles cases of potentially offensive content.
We also dig into the latest quarterly earnings report from Google's parent company, Alphabet. The company beat expectations on earnings and revenue, thanks to strong ad growth. It's Alphabet's best earnings report since 2009.
And Cheddar's Hope King sits down with fashion icon Rachel Zoe at Suiteworld 18 in Las Vegas. Zoe talks about how she's grown her businesses over the years and how important social media is to her brand. Zoe is best known for her clothing line and Instagram series, "Real Life With Rachel Zoe."
The actress may propagate healthy and clean eating on her lifestyle platform Goop, but there's one surprising food item she can't resist, reveals Elise Loehnen, the website's Chief Content Officer.
The celebrity stylist and designer told Cheddar's Hope King that she has turned from TV to Instagram to bring viewers "an inside look" at her life. "It's important for me to really show people real life and the struggles," says Zoe.
