PASADENA, Calif. — Spectators who claimed their spots for the Rose Parade hours before it began were rewarded Thursday with spangled dancers paying tribute to Broadway, a lush garden wedding flanked by sari-clad models representing India’s Bollywood film industry and a giant robot with a surprise under his hat.
A 49-foot-tall mechanical man named Asimo tipped his top hat on a float sponsored by Honda Motor Co. The crowd was wowed when fireworks and streamers shot out of his headgear — a nod to this year’s theme, “Hats Off to Entertainment.”
At one point, the towering robot snapped an overhead cable holding a street sign, but no one was injured, said a police spokeswoman.
Pasadena police estimated that more than a million people descended on the city for the parade and the annual Rose Bowl game that follows it, plus various other Tournament of Roses festivities.
The parade featured 21 marching bands and 18 equestrian units along the 5 1/2-mile route. This year’s grand marshal was 82-year-old actress and recent “Dancing With the Stars” contestant Cloris Leachman.
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