Macy’s revealed a new Snoopy balloon for its 100th Thanksgiving Day Parade, and for the first time the beagle takes flight as Joe Cool, with Woodstock riding along. A tie-in merchandise collection is rolling out at Macy’s ahead of the November 26 parade.
Snoopy has flown over Manhattan as an astronaut, an ice skater, and a Beagle Scout. This year he is putting on sunglasses.
Macy’s revealed a brand-new Snoopy balloon for the 100th Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, and the beagle is going up as Joe Cool, his sunglasses-wearing college alter ego, for the first time in parade history.
Woodstock rides along.
The parade takes place Thursday, November 26, 2026.
Snoopy has been doing this since 1967
The persona is new. The appearance is not.
Snoopy first flew in the Macy’s parade in 1967 and has appeared more times than any other character balloon. His return in 2021 marked a record-breaking 40th parade appearance.
Each version has been a different Snoopy rather than a repeat. Astronaut Snoopy flew across multiple eras, tied to the Peanuts connection with NASA’s Apollo missions, and was retired after the 2022 parade. Beagle Scout Snoopy debuted in 2023 after being revealed at Comic-Con that July.
There was a Skater Snoopy in the 1980s, which lasted a single parade appearance in 1987 before being retired.
For the centennial, Macy’s went with the version that wears shades and leans against a wall.
Snoopy was Macy’s first Holiday Ambassador
In 2023, Macy’s named Snoopy its first-ever Holiday Ambassador, a role created for him rather than one he inherited. A commercial was produced by Bill Melendez Productions, featuring original animation of Snoopy and Woodstock with the Peanuts gang in Macy’s-branded apparel.
No other character has held that position.
There’s a merchandise collection to go with it
Macy’s is running a tie-in collection alongside the balloon debut, following the pattern it has used for previous new balloons.
The retailer’s parade shop lists limited-edition plush toys, tote bags, and additional items tied to the new character balloon, with more products expected in stores and online through the fall.
Disney got the same treatment in August
The Joe Cool collection is the second balloon-tied capsule for the centennial parade.
In August, Macy’s launched a Disney collection built around the new Sorcerer’s Apprentice Mickey balloon, also debuting at the 100th parade. That lineup spanned apparel, accessories, and collectibles from Citizen, Crocs, Hallmark, Loungefly, Super Smalls, and Swarovski, with select items launching on macys.com and the full assortment following in stores.
Mickey first appeared in the Macy’s parade in 1934, which makes the Disney and Peanuts collections a pairing of the two longest-running character relationships the parade has.
Why the centennial matters for collectors
The 100th parade is doing what anniversaries do to a merchandise line.
Macy’s has been building commemorative assortments across the year, with the Disney collection explicitly designed around the evolution of characters through the parade’s history rather than a single current design.
For Peanuts collectors specifically, a first-ever Joe Cool balloon gives the 2026 parade a piece of merchandise that cannot be repeated. The design exists because of this year.
The parade steps off November 26. The balloon goes up then.
Article compiled with the help of the Pirates & Princesses newsroom.
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Hat Tips:
Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and Macy’s, Inc. (September 2026), the Joe Cool Snoopy balloon reveal, the November 26 parade date, and the parade shop merchandise listings
Good Housekeeping (September 2026), the report that surfaced the collection
Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade Wiki (retrieved September 2026), Snoopy’s 1967 debut, the 40th appearance record, the Astronaut and Beagle Scout balloon histories, and the 2023 Holiday Ambassador designation
Disney Parks Blog and ABC7 New York (August 2026), the Disney and Macy’s Sorcerer’s Apprentice Mickey collection and its brand partners
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