By Scott Shephard
Oh, the power of free association! It was a complete accident that I came across this photo and it immediately brought back memories of getting to see the Macy's Thanksgiving parade a few years ago in New York City.
But it also brought back memories of the summer of 1984, when the movie "Ghostbusters" was released. Our family saw it and we, like millions of others, bought the soundtrack. To be honest, I don't remember much about the movie. I do remember the "shocking" way in which the Ghostbusters freed NYC of the evil ghost. And, because it got played over and over and over, I remember the song "Ghostbusters" by Ray Parker Junior.
Which brings me back to the Macy's parade: The ballon is the Pillsbury Dough Boy. Because Pillsbury had concerns about letting their corporate icon be associated with a ghost, the movie makers came up with their own happy, puffy guy. His name was Stay Puft. But hard core movie buffs would have already known that. Incidentally, General Mills (Pillsbury et al.) didn't introduce the balloon version of the Dough Boy until 2009, 25 years after the movie.
Canon 5DIII 1/180s f/5.6 ISO400 96mm
