The Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders, one of the crowd favorites for years, will return as a feature of the First Ever 16th Annual World’s Shortest St. Patrick’s Day Parade® in Hot Springs March 17.
“Ever since the Cheerleaders were featured in the 2013 Parade they have been considered part of the Parade ‘family,’” said Steve Arrison, CEO of Visit Hot Springs and one of the founders of the internationally acclaimed St. Patrick’s Day event. “The crowd loves them, and they love being a part of our zany little celebration. It would be hard to imagine the Parade without the Cheerleaders firing up the spectators.”
The 2019 parade will feature Ralph “Karate Kid” Macchio as the celebrity grand marshal, and Stephen “tWitch” Boss, Ellen DeGeneres’ favorite DJ and “So You Think You Can Dance” star, as the official parade starter.
The World’s Shortest St. Patrick’s Day Parade® has brought worldwide attention to Hot Springs and helped expand the city’s reputation as a city that knows how to have fun.
It began in 2003 when some friends sharing an adult beverage came up with the idea of using nearby 98-foot-long Bridge Street as the location for some fun. Bridge Street was named by Ripley’s Believe It or Not as the world’s shortest street in everyday use. The parade swiftly gained attention around the globe for the hilarious premise that gave birth to its annual aura of spectacular hilarity and now, Arrison said, 30,015 people are expected to gather in downtown Hot Springs for the Parade and a free music concert afterward.
It annually features a lineup of outrageous wackiness that includes a troupe of Marching Irish Elvis Impersonators, green Irish wolfhounds, zany floats and marching units, plus a surprise or two.