I was taking a walk in Pasadena the other day and saw a sticker that read "The Doo Dah Preservation Society." I was intrigued by the name of the society and even more so by the flying saucer, so I had to do some research.
The Doo Dah Preservation Society is a non-profit organization that helps run and maintain the Pasadena Doo Dah Parade, which is a very cool DIY-style parade that started in Old Pasadena in 1978. The 44th Occasional Pasadena Doo Dah Parade will be held starting along its original route in Old Pasadena on November 19, 2023. The parade starts at 11:00. The parade's website describes the free event:
The Pasadena Doo Dah Parade is free to watch, so bring your lawn chair and enjoy the nationally known twisted sister of the Tournament of Roses Parade and enjoy all the funky, whacky, irreverent, satirical, and silly fun!
The Doo Dah Parade website provides more history of the parade:
Known as the twisted sister of the conventional Rose Parade, the Occasional Pasadena Doo Dah Parade began as a grassroots event in 1978 and over the past decades has gained national attention for its eccentric and, often, irreverent satire. The parade which has spawned numerous off-beat replicants across the country was even highlighted in the Wall Street Journal in 2015. It was also named "America's Best Parade" by Reader's Digest, and was featured in the book 50 Places You Must Visit Before You Die.
If you want to actually BE in the parade, there's an entry form to fill out. The website posted this call for participants:
Are you a… homemade conveyance, art car, mutant vehicle, living room furniture, eccentric marching band, rockin' band, performance artist, cornball, show-stopper, hoofer or crooner, pundit, anachronist, believer or nonbeliever, fantasist, surrealist, Dadaist, space traveler, time traveler, absurdist, weirdo, not weird enough, type A, type B, and type C, campy schtick, satirist, or country western hick?
Doesn't this parade sound absolutely terrific? It certainly does to me! It also reminds me a lot of the gravity-powered-art-vehicle B.R.A.T.S. parade in Bisbee, Arizona that I wrote about last year. Please go check out the Doo Dah Parade—I bet it's a fun and interesting time, with plenty of awesome people (and art-mobile) watching!
For more information and to see an historical timeline and pictures of the parade through the decades, check out this article.
