City of Alhambra (#68)
Float Theme: Circus Comes to Town When the circus comes to town, it's traditionally a time of celebration, much like the Tournament of Roses parade. For generations the circus has brought out the good nature of children of all ages throughout the world. The Alhambra float features a gigantic elephant waving an American flag and pulling a steam-driven calliope. Alhambra has participated in the Rose Parade for 79 years, and the float is decorated by more than 500 volunteers, primarily from the Alhambra Unified School District.
The elephant is covered with crushed walnut seeds and poppy seeds, and its plume is pampas grass; the calliope is created with full carnation heads, carnation petals, dried statice and chrysanthemums; and the musical pipes are decorated with rice, accented by silverleaf. The sides of the float are decorated with carnations, statice and chrysanthemums, and the deck is covered with orchids, roses and irises.
City of Anaheim (#48)
Float Theme: Always Fresh & Never Grows Old
"Always Fresh & Never Grows Old" is the theme of the 150th anniversary celebration of the City of Anaheim, which was founded in 1857. Internationally known for its good nature, as represented by the Angels major league baseball team and the Disney theme parks, the City of Anaheim invites Rose Parade viewers to join in the kickoff of the city's 150th anniversary celebration.
In its first Tournament of Roses entry since 1971, the float features such contemporary landmarks as the Disney monorail and the Angels' haloed "A." It also features oranges and grapes, which have been leading agricultural products in the area, and the Santa Ana River, which runs through the city and contributed the civic name, along with "heim," which means home in German.
City of Cerritos (#56)
Float Theme: Nature Rocks
Nature Rocks is an exuberant expression of the joy and fun that can be found in nature and creative expression. The first rock concert in history is about to begin as the Dino Mites, the architects of rock and roll, take center stage. Lead signer and guitar player, Elvis T. Rex, gyrates to the latest beat, sending two excited fans into an earth-pounding frenzy. The wonders of Stevie Ouranosaurus on electric piano will excite parade watchers, as will the drum rhythms of Ringo Deinonychus. Imaginative musical and stage equipment is artistically re-created with prehistoric bones, shells, flint, sticks and stones.
The dinosaurs are colorfully decorated in yellow and bronze chrysanthemums, green Kermit button mums, dendrobium orchid florets, dehydrated carrot and red bell pepper, and accents of limes, lemons and kumquats. Steel grass and oncidium orchids create Elvis's unique hair. Abundant gardens of over 50,000 fluorescent orange Mercedes roses cascade through floral clusters of bromeliad plants, heliconia, ginger and protea with accents of green cymbidium orchids.
City of Duarte, California/City of Hope National Medical Center (#29)
Float Theme: Looking Out For You
This float presents a beautiful nature study with a lifelike array of flora and fauna. The picturesque floral scene is set amid lush meadows deep within the Angeles Crest National Forest. Picnickers enjoy a delightful lunch at the base of a fire lookout tower framed by magnificent pine trees and garden meadows draped in thousands of vibrantly colored roses.
Natural colors and textures for the deer's fur are created by applying golden brown cinnamon spice over fuzzy layers of dried sphagnum moss. Rabbits are artistically decorated in soft gray cottonseed with white pampas grass detail. Raccoons are created in gray and black lichen moss. Nobel pine trees provide shade for the forest meadow garden that comes alive in brilliant colors of 12,000 roses, daffodils, Monte Casino, lilies, liatris, gerbera, irises and forsythia. Four pediatric cancer patients and a caregiver from City of Hope National Medical Center ride atop the Duarte/Hope's 34th consecutive Rose Parade float.
City of Glendale (#72)
Float Theme: Our Bear Essentials
A gigantic animated bear is sharing the essentials of good outdoor nature with a raccoon and rabbit as they float along in a canoe enjoying the pleasures reminiscent of those offered by Glendale's foothill environment. A participant in the Rose Parade for the past 93 years, the city of Glendale annually shares its good nature with its neighbors in Pasadena and around the world.
The large bear is covered with palm fiber, corn silk and strawflower, and his red ti leaf canoe floats on a stream of irises and orchids. In addition to the real pine trees on the float, manmade trees feature paperbark trunks and foliage of roses and orchids. The float's deck is decorated with roses and daisies.
