Ticker Tape Parade
A celebratory parade, largely held in an urban setting, characterized by lots of falling confetti made from shredded office paper and dropped from the city building windows. Although such a parade can be held almost anywhere urban, they are still strongly linked in the public mind with the Canyon of Heroes -- lower Broadway in the Financial District of New York City, which has been the site of more than 200 such parades since 1886
The name itself is somewhat of an Artifact Title. In early days, people recycled used ticker tape as streamers and confetti; however, ticker tape became obsolete in the 1960s with the advent of electronic displays. The term "tickertape parade" is still in common usage, though. (And instead of ticker tape, waste paper and toilet paper sliced using paper shredders is used. The city of New York also provides confetti for use during such parades.)
Comic Books
- Tintin In America ends with one.
Film
- The Incredible Mr. Limpet. While he's protecting the convoy heading to Europe, the title character daydreams about the awards he will receive for his services, including such a parade in his honor.
- Howard Hughes gets a tickertape parade in The Aviator.
Music
- The Decemberists utilize this term in their song The Perfect Crime #2."
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It was like a tickertape parade/when the plastique on the safe was blown away |
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Newspaper Comics
- In one Calvin and Hobbes comic, Calvin has an Imagine Spot where he's thrown a tickertape parade for getting his homework done.
- A comic from Bill Mauldin show such a parade in Europe for the American troops liberating the city. However, the commanding officer is being pelted with fruit from his own men on a truck behind him
Video Games
- This is the player's reward for the Level 11 quest in Kingdom of Loathing. It's the longest and most annoying quest in the game.
Western Animation
- At the end of The Simpsons episode "Deep Space Homer", the carbon rod credited with saving the space shuttle from burning up in Earth's atmosphere gets a tickertape parade in its honor.
- In another Simpsons example, there's a gag where the family hold a fake parade (with Lisa as an astronaut) so they can drop leaflets for Marge's pretzel-selling business.
- In the Pink Panther short "Pink of the Litter", Pink was hired to clean all the litter in town. After he does, he is given a tickertape parade... and then has to clean up after it.
- The ending credits of The Real Ghostbusters.
- Roger of American Dad threw himself a ticker tape parade because a deli named a sandwich after him.
Real Life
- The Ur Example and Trope Maker is the 1886 celebration of the dedication of the Statue of Liberty in New York City.
- It is at such a Ticker Tape Parade celebrating the end of World War Two that The VJ Day Kiss happened.
- It's become tradition to have a similar parade when a local professional sports team wins a championship. For example: The New Orleans Saints; the 2009-2010 Super Bowl champions, had the interesting distinction of being both a typically downtrodden franchise and based in a legendary party town, meaning they had one Hell of a parade.