The 2008 Rose Parade
Members of the Akashikita High School Green Band sprint down the parade route. The students, from Hyogo, Japan, earned their “green” name by playing charity concerts to promote efforts to fight global warming. (Spencer Weiner / Los Angeles Times)
Rose Parade photos
Rose Queen Dusty Gibbs, a student at Arcadia High School, enjoys the spotlight from a float sponsored by Macy’s. (Anne Cusack / Los Angeles Times)
The members of the Tournament of Roses’ royal court grace a float sponsored by Macy’s: Rose Queen Dusty Gibbs of Arcadia, at top, is surrounded by princesses (clockwise) Katie Merrill, Gaelen Stanford-Moore, Kelsey MacDougall, Courtney Rubin, Chloe Ghoogassian and Zena Brown. (Karen Tapia-Andersen / Los Angeles Times)
Grand marshal Emeril Lagasse opened the parade with his trademark refrain: “Let’s kick it up a notch. Bam!” The celebrity chef traveled the route in a 1910 Pierce-Arrow convertible. (Spencer Weiner / Los Angeles Times)
FTD’s “The Magic of Mardi Gras,” featuring a lion, jesters and carnival characters, won the Tournament Special Trophy for exceptional merit in multiple categories, including floats over 55 feet. (Spencer Weiner / Los Angeles Times)
The Los Angeles Dodgers mark 50 years in Southern California with “Celebrating America’s Favorite Pastime, the team’s first-ever Rose Parade float. (Anne Cusack / Los Angeles Times)
