Associated Television International to Present 85th ANNUAL HOLLYWOOD CHRISTMAS PARADE Featuring Olivia Newton-John, Mickey Mouse, and More!

The 85th Annual Hollywood Christmas Parade Featuring Marine Toys for Tots Foundation, produced by Associated Television Internationaland presented in associations with The City of Los Angeles, will be led this year by award-winning singer, songwriter and actress Olivia Newton-John, who will serve as Grand Marshal, and will be joined by four other Former Grand Marshals of the Parade to help celebrate this historic occasion in style, including: Mickey Mouse, Larry King, Louis Gossett Jr. and Robert Wagner.

Today the parade is announcing sponsors, bands, balloons, floats, characters/novelties and equestrian units which will be part of the 2016 parade making its 3.2 mile trek through the streets of Hollywood, CA at 6:15 p.m. on Sunday, November 27, 2016. The parade will be hosted by Erik Estrada, Laura McKenzie, Dean Cain and Montel Williams, with Co-Hosts Elizabeth Stanton and Garrett Clayton.

2016 Parade Sponsors will include: Marine Toys For Tots Foundation; Express Employment Professionals and the Express Clydesdales; www.StarCentral.com; Rilakkuma; Sister Cities of Los Angeles; Miss Hollywood International Studios; Nebuta Float (www.lanebuta.com) and Taiko Drums; Hot Wheels; DogVacay; Coalition to Salute America's Heroes (with a car transporting Emmy Awardâ-nominated Jack Scalia, Sergeant Mary Herrera, Army (Retired) and Jill Hinds, Veteran; Gumby (who will appear in the parade with Joe Clokey, the son of the late Art Clokey, the creator of Gumby, www.gumbyworld.com); Chuck E. Cheese's Where A Kid Can Be A Kid; www.clubcar.com; BalSam Hill Christmas Trees and CEO Thomas Harman; Air Force Mini Jet Team; Archibald Mouse; 501st Legion & Rebel Legions & Mandelorian Mercs; and Easy Choice Health Plan (www.easychoicehealthplan.com) (which will have an informational booth about Easy Choice Health Plans at the northwest corner of Hollywood Boulevard and Highland Avenue from 11:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. on parade day, November 27th). Media Sponsors include: The CW, The Hallmark Channel, KOST 103.5 FM, Entertainment Tonight and Variety.

A new float making its debut in the parade this year will be Battlefield Earth, based on the author L. Ron Hubbard's 1982 New York Times best-selling science fiction novel of the same name, featuring characters from the story, including Johnny Goodboy Tyler (played by actor Aaron Groben), Chrissie (played by actress Lauren Compton) and the supernatural being, Terl. In keeping with the novel's storyline, the float will be surrounded by Scotsmen wearing traditional kilts playing bagpipes and drums.

The Nebuta Float will return to the parade this year, and is inspired by the popular Nebuta Festival of Aomori Prefecture, one of the largest and most famous festivals in all of Japan that dates back hundreds of years. The Nebuta Float was designed by Japanese Masters Artist, Hiroo Takenami, specifically to be showcased here in Los Angeles. Its colorful design is carefully hand-painted and constructed of traditional washi paper and outfitted with over 3,000 LED lights. This year's float depicts the "Legends of Yoshitsune," the story of the celebrated General of the Minamoto clan, Minamoto no Yoshitsune, who by divine power safely travels across the ocean for battle.

The 85th Annual Hollywood Christmas Parade will culminate with the much-awaited arrival of Santa Claus and His Reindeer, ushering in the holiday season, accompanied by his United States Marine Corps escorts, Gunnery Sergeant Ruben Rivera and Staff Sergeant Cathleen Barsallo. In celebration of the Parade's 85th Anniversary Santa's Elves have adorned his ceremonial robe with snowflakes and thousands of Swarovski Crystals, in addition to weaving in 500 red crystals in the Poinsettia on Santa's hat.

Jim Romanovich, President of Worldwide Media for Associated Television International, said: "One of the greatest holiday traditions of all time is celebrating 85 years, and we are once again, ready to make this the biggest and best Christmas parade of the year. Being that this is the 85th Anniversary, we are bringing back former Grand Marshals to help celebrate the night. The Hollywood Christmas Parade is loved by many millions of families each year. We are thrilled that both The CW and our good friends at Hallmark are back as our television partners and we are honored to also be once again partnered with Toys for Tots. The overwhelmingly generous support of our media partners The CW, Hallmark, KOST 103.5 FM, Entertainment Tonight, Variety and so many more, continues to help provide the necessary awareness tools for the Marine Toys for Tots program which is essential in their providing gifts to less fortunate children everywhere."

Come hear 17 award-winning bands from around the country which will be featured in this year's parade. They include: Marine Band San Diego, U.S. Marine Corps Color Guard; BarRon Collier High School Cougar Band (Naples, FL); Cherry Creek High School Marching Band (Greenwood Village, CO); Fayette County High School Marching Band (Fayetteville, GA); Frank Scott Bunnell High School Bulldog Marching Band (Stratford, CT); Gilmer High School Marching Band (Ellijay, GA); Greater Atlanta Christian School (Norcross, GA); Korean American Youth Performing Artists (KAYPA) (Chino, CA); Milton High School Band (Milton, GA); Lafayette Jefferson High School Band (Lafayette, IN); Lincoln High School "Patriot" Marching Band (Sioux Falls, S.D.); Los Angeles Catholic Schools Band (Torrance, CA); Los Angeles Police Emerald Society Pipes and Drums (Fullerton, CA); Monache Marauder Band and Color Guard (Porterville, CA); Pacific American Volunteer Association World Traditional Korean Marching Band (PAVA World, Los Angeles, CA); The Pride of Dutchmen Marching Band (Orange City, IA) and The Pride of Eastside (Eastside High School) (Covington, GA).

Twenty-two larger than life inflatable character balloons will float down the streets of Hollywood on parade night including: Dr. Seuss' The Cat In The Hat (Presented by Entertainment Tonight and Wrangled by Hollywood Central Park); Gumby (Wrangled by Make-A-Wish Foundation); Penguins of Madagascar (Wrangled by Civil Air Patrol); Dr. Seuss' Grinch Santa(Sponsored by the Coalition to Salute America's Heroes, Wrangled by the American Legion Auxiliary); Pirate & Chest (Sponsored and Wrangled by Author Services, Inc. and Galaxy Press); Dr. Seuss' Thing 1 and Thing 2 (Wrangled by the Hollywood Arts Council); Rilakkuma(Brown Bear), Korilakkuma (White Bear) and Kiiroitori (Yellow Bird) (Sponsored and Wrangled by Rilakkuma); Dog With Newspaper (Sponsored and Wrangled by DogVacay); Santa Garfield(Sponsored by and Wrangled by Easy Choice Health Plan); Pacman (Wrangled by the Kiwanis Club); Toy Soldier (Wrangled by U.S. Air Force); Two Elves and Four Lollipops (Sponsored and Wrangled by Hollywood Hotel).

Six Equestrian Units will be featured in this year's parade, including: Broken Horn Ropers (Bakersfield, CA); Express Employment Professional's and the Express ClydesDale Horses (Oklahoma City, OK); Majestic Acres (Ramona, CA); Knott's Merry Farm (Buena Park, CA) with Santa Snoopy, Charlie Brown and Lucy; Valley Center Vaqueros (Valley Center, CA) and Mane Attraction (Riverside, CA).

The parade will also include dozens of celebrities from film, television and stage and local politicians; the United States Marine Corps Color Guard and United States Air Force Color Guard; 44 movie picture cars supplied by Nate Truman's Star Car Central; Mini Jets and P51 Mustang Plane; Characters and Novelties including: Gumby with Joe Clokey, son of Art Clokey, creator of Gumby; Hot Wheelsâ; 501st Legion & Rebel Legions & Madelorian Mercs; Chuck E. Cheese and Helen Henny; Club Car;, a double-decker bus with Sister Cities of Los Angeles and former Councilmember Tom LaBonge; Archibald Mouse and author
Sylvia Lieberman and daughter Dr. Carole Lieberman; The Way To Happiness float and the Miss Hollywood International Studios float.

A Pre-Parade All-Star Concert will kick-off the festivities at 5:00 p.m. in the streets of Hollywood, CA with the following performing artists: Olivia Newton-John; Cyndi Lauper; Kenny G; WAR; Eric Benét; Scotty McCreery; The Empty Hearts super group with All Star members from Blondie, The Cars, Chesterfield Kings and The Romantics; Band Of Merrymakers featuring Mark McGrath and Lisa Loeb. Celebrity magicians, Murray SawChuck, Tommy Wind and Naathan Phan, stars of The CW's hit primetime television series, Masters of Illusion, will also perform.

The live parade, taped for network television broadcasts, will travel along a 3.2 mile U-shaped route starting at Orange Street and Hollywood Boulevard traveling east on Hollywood Boulevard to Vine Street, turning south on Vine Street to Sunset Boulevard, and then turning west on Sunset Boulevard traveling back to Orange Street. Grandstand seats are now completely SOLD OUT. FREE Curbside Seating will be available along the parade route, starting at the intersection of Hollywood Boulevard and Highland Avenue, continuing along the rest of the parade route on Vine Street and Sunset Boulevard.

The 85th Annual Hollywood Christmas Parade will premiere as a two-hour primetime special on The CW Network on Friday, December 16, 2016 at 8:00 p.m. ET/PT (7:00 p.m. CT)repeating on Hallmark Movies & Mysteries channel on Wednesday, December 21, 2106 at 3:00 p.m. ET/PT (2:00 p.m. CT). The parade will also air to more than one million American servicemen and women worldwide on American Forces Network. An American tradition, the live parade in the streets of Hollywood annually attracts more than one million spectators.

For further information, please call the 24/7 Hollywood Christmas Parade Hotline toll free at 1-866-PARADE1 (1-866-727-2331). For highlights of past parades, and to learn more about this year's 85th Anniversary, please visit the parade's official website at www.thehollywoodchristmasparade.org. Stay in touch with us via https://www.facebook.com/xmasparade and https://twitter.com/HlywdChristmas @HlywdChristmas #HollywoodChristmasParade #HCP2016

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