Every year since 1931 the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree has been an American tradition for New Yorkers and Tourists alike. The first tree erected in 1931 stood just 20 feet tall and was decorated with "strings of cranberries, garlands of paper, and even a few tin cans". In 1933 the tree was lit for the first time which made the lighting ceremony a yearly tradition. Specials showed the lighting of the tree both locally in New York and nationwide, but NBC began to televise the lighting ceremony live nationwide for the first time in 1997. The lighting ceremony occurs typically on the first Wednesday following Thanksgiving and runs for two hours in Prime time. The cemermony includes a few celebrity performances followed by the countdown to lighting right before the top of the hour. Since 2011 a performance of "Joy to the World" has ended the ceremony.