The nation's largest fireworks show lit up the sky in a burst of red, white and blue over the Hudson River straddling New York and New Jersey on Sunday night.
"It's amazing on TV," said Marcos Jimenez, a golf caddie who joined thousands of others lining the riverfront for a prime view of the show. "I figured seeing it live would be even better."
Budget cuts forced some communities to pull the plug on the pyrotechnics, but the gigantic Macy's fireworks show went on as planned on Manhattan's West Side, where it moved in 2009 after eight years on the East River.
Ten-year-old Nathan Felde of Folsom, Calif., watched with his parents and 6-year-old brother, Elijah, who screamed at the sight of a glowing red circle with a blue ring around it.
"Look Nathan, it's Saturn!" Elijah said.
The show, which aired live on WNBC, began just before 9:30 p.m. with huge fireballs exploding in the night sky to the strains of patriotic tunes like "Stars and Stripes Forever" and "The Battle Hymn of the Republic."
Austin Noon, 12, of Ontario, Canada, said his favorite firework was one that looked like a face, with a red circle, two dots for eyes and a smile.
His mother, Janet Noon, said the family often comes to the United States for the Fourth of July. "It's so festive, we had a lot of fun," Noon said. "We like to crash birthday parties."
The shimmering fireworks that streaked across the night sky replaced a blazing sun that broiled the Tri-State area with temperatures in the 90s.
