The Pasadena Doo-Dah Parade is all the Rose Parade is Not!
Embrace the Chaos, the Outlandish, the Fun!
Perhaps the most irreverent, fun-loving, and wacky event in the greater Los Angeles area, the Doo-Dah Parade has been meandering its own path since 1978. It’s as outlandish as West Hollywood’s Gay Pride Parade, but much more family friendly. Doo-Dah is a parade for everybody and anybody.
There were actually 2 parades in 1978, the first on Sunday, January 1st, as a result of the Rose Parade not being held on a Sunday, and again on Saturday, December 30th of 1978, because there were no rules. In fact, there still aren’t any rules to this chaos-loving event. The date was moved to the end of November in the early 1980’s and mostly stayed near Thanksgiving until the pandemic. It went virtual out of necessity in 2020 and is finally back IRL this year after a hiatus.
The Doo-Dah Parade’s concept is to do everything counter to what the Rose Parade does: usually on a Sunday, no theme, no judges, no prizes, and an adult “Queen” of the most outlandish sort. Oh, and the Rose Parade route has been followed backwards: starting at the end and ending at the beginning, though now it takes place further east than it used to. There aren’t any clear rules, and anything is subject to change.
I encourage you to bring the family and come stake out a spot along the parade route this Sunday morning. The parade starts at 11am and it’s free to watch. Expect nothing and everything, but there will be happy people, at least one thing you’ve never seen before, and silliness all around. I can’t think of a better way to encourage your children to be themselves!
