Doo Dah Parade Returning Live to Old Pasadena

The pandemic is officially over.

The Doo Dah Parade returns live for the first time since the shutdown on Nov. 19.

And this year Pasadena’s “other parade” is returning to its Old Pasadena roots.

“The slogan that’s been going out is, ‘Back by popular demand,’ and I think that’s the case,” said Tom Coston, chair of the Light Bringer Project. “Everybody has been talking to us about coming back, and we’ve decided it was time to bring it back to Old Pasadena.”

Known as the twisted sister of the iconic Tournament of Roses Parade, the first Doo Dah Parade was actually on New Year’s Day in 1978 – a Sunday, which worked out because the traditional Rose Parade couldn’t be held until the next day, Jan. 2, due to the never on a Sunday Rule prohibiting the parade from being held on Sunday.

But a group of people at a local tavern thought it would be fun to have an alternate parade on New Year’s Day and the Doo Dah Parade was born. The satirical take on the Rose Parade is a revered local tradition that has been duplicated in other cities, including Columbus, Ohio, Ocean City, New Jersey, and Kalamazoo, Michigan.

The last time the parade was held in person was in 2019. In 2020 and 2021, the organizers decided to cancel the actual parade and instead held virtual equivalents because of COVID-19.

The parade will travel down Raymond Avenue and across Colorado Boulevard towards Pasadena Avenue according to Coston.

“We weren’t going to let it die or fade away,” Coston told Pasadena Now. “It’s kind of interesting that the [Colorado Street] Bridge party came back at the same time. All the pieces fell into place and we thought if not now, when.”