Eighteen years ago today, Philadelphia finally got the parade it had been waiting a quarter-century to see.
On Friday, October 31, 2008, the Phillies rolled through the city in a World Series celebration that started at 20th and Market at noon and wound four miles down Broad Street to Citizens Bank Park. Pat Burrell led the way, riding atop a carriage pulled by a half dozen Clydesdales, with Phillies players and personnel following on double-decker tour buses, beers in hand and fans lining the streets to catch every glimpse.
The turnout was staggering. Two million Philadelphians showed up for the scene, more than the population within the city limits, and for plenty of them it was the first championship parade they had ever seen - or had been alive to witness.
It had been 25 years since a Philadelphia team last won it all. The 1982-83 76ers, with Moses Malone and Julius Erving, had long since faded into memory. By Halloween 2008, that drought was over, and the city treated the moment like the end of a curse.
The so-called Curse of Billy Penn traced back to 1987, when One Liberty Place became the first building to rise above City Hall’s height at 17th and Chestnut Streets. For nearly a century before that, no Philadelphia building had topped the statue of William Penn on City Hall.
Between 1894 and 1908, no building in the world stood taller. Once Penn was left looking up, the sports losses piled on: from 1987 to 2008, the Flyers reached two Stanley Cup Finals, the 76ers made one NBA Finals, the Eagles went to one Super Bowl and the Phillies got to one World Series - and lost all five.
Then came 2007, when the Comcast Center became the city’s tallest building and a Billy Penn statuette was placed on the final beam. The founder could look out over Philadelphia again. A year later, the Phillies - built around a homegrown core and long defined by near-misses - had finally climbed to the top, and the city answered with a full-throated celebration.
The parade finished at Citizens Bank Park, where manager Charlie Manuel arrived in the back of a silver convertible sports car wearing a pinstripe tuxedo. The rest of the starting lineup came in behind him, though not many matched that level of polish.
At the pitcher’s mound stage, Harry Kalas introduced the ‘08 banner as it was raised beyond center field. Managing partner David Montgomery followed with a speech, and the crowd was roaring long before Manuel stepped to the microphone.
Kalas then brought several players into the spotlight one by one, each apparently a little further along in the celebration. First came World Series MVP Cole Hamels, then closer Brad Lidge.
Next up was Chase Utley, whose speech was as laconic as his playstyle.
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