KHTS Radio Santa Clarita Radio – Santa Clarita News
sA float by the Santa Clarita-based cruise line company Princess Cruises was awarded the Craftsman Trophy at the 2015 Rose Parade held on New Years Day in Pasadena, officials announced Saturday.
Sponsored Articles
The float, themed “50 Years of Inspiring Travel,” was Princess Cruises’ first-ever debut at the parade in honor of the company’s 50th anniversary celebration, and was recognized for exceptional achievement in showmanship and dramatic impact.
“Since the theme of this year’s Rose Parade was ‘Inspiring Stories,’ we thought it was the perfect opportunity to launch our 50th anniversary-year celebrations,” said Jan Swartz, Princess Cruises’ president. “For the last five decades, our guests have been sailing with us to amazing places and they’ve returned with inspiring memories that have lasted a lifetime, and we want to celebrate this throughout our golden anniversary year.”
The 60-foot long, 24-foot high float featured the cruise line’s newest ship, Regal Princess, symbolically sailing through a variety of iconic landmarks from around the world, including the leaning tower of Pisa, the Eiffel Tower, the Golden Gate Bridge and more.
Related Article: Princess Cruises Announces ‘Love Boat’ Reunion
As a tribute to the television show that helped Princess Cruises rise to success, the six original cast members of “The Love Boat”– Gavin MacLeod, Fred Grandy, Ted Lange, Bernie Kopell, Lauren Tewes and Jill Whelan –rode on the float amongst 24,000 flowers, officials said.
Riding alongside the cast was 91-year-old World War II veteran Nathan Keith Abbott, who won a contest conducted by Princess Cruises asking their past guests to share an inspiring story that occurred during a Princess cruise.
Abbott’s cruise took him to the South Pacific islands where he served during the war, according to Princess Cruise officials.
Several other contest winners also rode the float, whose stories included an engagement in front of a glacier in Alaska, a renewal of vows to mark 50 years of marriage, a celebration of life after surviving breast cancer and more.
Flower vials personally signed by 16,000 Princess Cruises employees were also incorporated into the float to signify “their important role in the company’s successful past and exciting future,” officials said.
Photos Courtesy of Princess Cruises
Do you have a news tip? Call us at (661) 298-1220, or drop us a line at community@hometownstation.com.
That is amazing story about Princess Cruises float and about the original cast of the love boat. I really love this story. To the writer great job and keep up the good work.
As a former employee of Princesses Cruises & resident of Santa Clarita, I am so proud! Kudos to all that helped in designing & decorating this float! It is beautiful!