The final preparations for the Parade of Giants began on the morning of March 3rd, 2012. Kevin Obregon and the Friends of Reverchon Park joined the other teams and their giants just outside the construction warehouse. Here, they held interviews with various news teams and prepared to roll out the giants onto the main road. Many of the photos taken during this prep stage are the only known photos of the Julien Reverchon Giant in full, natural sunlight.

As preparations continued, the Giants were gradually lined up to be moved out. While some giants were carried by their handlers, others were to move on their own carts. Julien’s giant was one of the latter, hence his later title of “The Rolling Giant”. The puppetry of his head and arms were managed with bamboo poles.

One by one, the giants made their way to the street for the parade, Julien included. This is where much of the true artistry of his creation was showcased, with expressive moving eyes and a head with the ability to turn side to side. In his finality, the Julien Reverchon giant was a staggering 15′ in height.

Few clips of the parade are known, but the one below from X+ showcases part of the parade as it moved down Singleton.

Winds were strong on the day of the parade. Unfortunately, Julien was one of the few giants not filmed in motion before reaching the bridge.

He would not make it to the bridge unscathed.

Due to the strong winds and the weight of his beard, Julien’s neck snapped before reaching the bridge. He stayed behind and found himself at the back of the parade line for last-minute repairs.

Thankfully, Julien’s head itself was largely undamaged. For a portion of the parade, the team detached his head and hands and continued on while the body lagged behind. He can be seen near the end of this video, at the back of the line just before reaching the bridge.

The team appeared to take turns carrying his head, as in the photo below, Kevin Obregon can be identified by his shoes as the carrier.

At some point, Julien’s head and body were reunited. Thanks to quick thinking and last minute repairs from his team, Julien made it to the bridge and crossed with the other giants. He is seen with the others in this video by BannerCoProductions.

While the team were unable to fit his flower hands back into their sleeves, his head was stabilized on its shoulders securely enough to finish the parade. He made appearances in the albums of other photographers on the bridge, thankfully still equally appreciated with the other giants.

Julien was spotted in another video taken further up the bridge, better revealing the initial damage and quick repairs done by the Friends of Reverchon Park. Here, he is the last in line and the last Giant to make it to the end of the bridge.

No bridge is too far to cross.

In the end, Julien made it in one piece, a triumph for Kevin Obregon and the Friends of Reverchon Park. After circling back around with the other giants, Julien was likely taken back to the warehouse for further repairs and storage. The Parade of Giants was a success.

Clips of the Parade and an interview with Kevin Obregon was featured in the documentary Bridging Utopia made by Les Blank films. The highlight can be seen here:

While Julien and the other giants remained in storage, a special event for the Giants was announced by the same parties that put together the parade:

The giants were showcased once again three months later at Dallas City Hall, as a special event held for those who wanted to see the Giants again. Julien himself was the face of the event, making it to the cover of the posters and being one of the first Giants people would see when walking through the city hall doors.

Between the parade and city hall, Julien underwent small design changes. He was given white pupils, his brows were slimmed down, and his hat was further adjusted.

Though the exact timeline is unknown, at some point, three of the Giants were moved Valley View Center, a popular shopping mall in Dallas. Julien was one of these giants. Judging by the images on hand, it seemed to be a continuation of the “We’re Back!” event.

The Giants that went with him were Hattie Rankin and Rhoda Dragoo. The two church leaders would remain for an unknown length of time before eventually being removed.

the Julien Reverchon Giant would not be removed. He would remain in Valley View Center until his undoing.

Continue Reading: The Giant of the Mall

(wip)