digg_url = 'http://digg.com/arts_culture/Photos_Darth_Vader_at_NJ_s_Annual_Festival_of_Ballooning'; Just 50 miles from NYC, Readington, NJ is hosting the The 26th Annual Quick Chek New Jersey Festival of Ballooning. The festival, which started yesterday, offers a number of different balloons, including a Pepsi can, a version of Noah's Ark, and some bees. But the coolest--or at least the Sithest--one would be Michel Lambert and Benoit Lambert's Darth Vader Balloon. The Darth Vader Balloon's Belgian creators received permission from LucasFilm to......

Brooklyn street artist D.Billy has been adorning the town with impermanent art. The temporary "tags" have been spotted under and above ground, and his mediums have included balloons, streamers and artist tape. He says of his work:I have begun to add visual representations of sound effects to public spaces as a sort of dimensional graffiti. After embellishing the found scenes and photographing the results, I leave my additions in place to engage passers-by for as......

Yesterday's lovely weather made the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade a big crowd pleaser. An estimated 3.5 million spectators watched as giant balloons, floats, and hundreds of parade performers sauntered from 77th and Central Park West to Herald Square. Some people waited since 4AM in hopes of catching a glimpse of their favorite performers, who included Dolly Parton, Wynonna, the cast of Legally Blonde, American Idol winner Jordin Sparks, Good Charlotte, Menudo (really!), the Rockettes......