New York Yankees Day! [J. Mark English]

From Connor Ennis, of the New York Times:

Thousands of people streamed into Lower Manhattan on Friday to help the Yankees celebrate their 27th World Series championship with a ticker-tape parade.

It was the Yankees’ first return to the Canyon of Heroes since their last title, in 2000.

The parade started at 11 a.m. at Battery Park Place and finished roughly two hours later at City Hall Park, where Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg gave the team keys to the city.

For the Yankees and many of their fans, the parade was a long-awaited celebration, especially after the team’s success in the 1990s.

“It’s been too long, hasn’t it?” Derek Jeter said from the dais at City Hall. He was answered by loud cheers.

People began lining the streets early in the morning — with crowds as large as 20 people deep in some spots — and toilet paper and confetti littered the streets hours before the official festivities began. Construction workers took in the view while standing above the crowd on scaffolding.

Yogi Berra was among the participants, drawing cheers as he sat in a convertible that was near the lead of the parade. Mayor Bloomberg joined Manager Joe Girardi on the lead float, which also featured the World Series trophy.

The mayor’s office said that it expected anywhere from 500,000 to 1 million people to attend the parade. Performers like the cast of the Broadway hit “Jersey Boys” were scheduled to entertain the crowd at City Hall. It will be a rare day of celebration in an area of the city that has been severely affected by the economic downturn.

Hal Steinbrenner, the managing general partner of the Yankees, called it “a magical day.”

Public officials, both current (Senator Charles E. Schumer, Gov. David A. Paterson) and former (Mayors Edward I. Koch and Rudolph W. Giuliani), took part in the parade, while the hip-hop star Jay-Z stood next to Alex Rodriguez on one of the floats. He later performed his song “Empire State of Mind” on stage to conclude the ceremony.

One of those not in attendance was the Yankees’ principal owner, George Steinbrenner, who is in ill health.

“You think about the Boss,” the former Yankee Reggie Jackson said. “I wish he was here.”

Mayor Bloomberg presented Hal Steinbrenner with a key for his father, calling him “the biggest Yankee of them all.”

--------

Here is a look back at the first ticker tape parade ever:



Also, have you ever been curious as to how a ticker tape parade ever came to be?

Here is a bit from wikipedia:

A ticker-tape parade is a parade event held in a downtown urban setting, allowing the jettison of large amounts of shredded paper products from nearby office buildings onto the parade route, creating a celebratory effect by the snowstorm-like flurry.

The term originated in New York City after a spontaneous celebration held on October 29, 1886 during the dedication of the Statue of Liberty, and is still most closely associated with New York City. The term ticker-tape originally referred to the use of the paper output of ticker tape machines, which were remotely-driven devices used in brokerages to provide updated stock market quotes. Nowadays, the paper products are largely waste office paper that have been cut using conventional paper shredders. The city also distributes paper confetti.^[1]

In New York City, ticker-tape parades are reserved for special occasions. Soon after the first such parade in 1886, city officials realized the utility of such events and began to hold them on triumphal occasions, such as the return of Theodore Roosevelt from his African safari, and Charles Lindbergh's trans-Atlantic flight. Following World War II, several ticker tape parades were given in honor of victorious generals and admirals, including General Dwight D. Eisenhower and Admiral Chester Nimitz. The largest was given for World War II and Korean War General Douglas MacArthur in 1951.

Through the 1950s, ticker-tape parades were commonly given to any visiting head of state, such as Habib Bourguiba representing the fight over colonialism. In the 1960s, following the assassination of John F. Kennedy, they became increasingly rare.

They are generally reserved now for space exploration triumphs, military honors and sports championships. The section of lower Broadway through the Financial District that serves as the parade route for these events is colloquially called the "Canyon of Heroes". Lower Broadway in New York City has plaques in the sidewalk at regular intervals to celebrate each of the city's ticker-tape parades.

Many famous ticker tape parade celebrate sporting events such the Giants winning the Super Bowl in 2008 and the Yankees winning the World Series in 2009