| As December kicks off, several stars were getting in the spirit of things Stateside with the switching-on of the Christmas lights at New York’s Rockefeller Center.
Among those on hand to see the Norwegian spruce and thousands of other decorative lights being illuminated were singer Jessica Simpson and her husband, Bewitched actor Nick Lachey, plus the US singer and actress Hilary Duff.
This year is the 72nd time the holiday season will be marked by a Christmas tree in the world-famous plaza.
The custom started in 1931, when Depression-era workmen constructing the Rockefeller Center erected a small, unadorned tree to help lift their spirits. Two years later, the traditional Christmas symbol was again in place, this time adorned with 700 lights.
In 2004, the 71-foot-high spruce bears over 25,000 lights scattered over five miles of cable.
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Hilary was just one of a host of stars on hand for the switching on of the illuminations, which is televised throughout the US
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Singer Jessica Simpson and her husband Nick Lachey also stopped by to enjoy a little seasonal cheer
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The tree and lights in the Rockefeller Center plaza have made the Big Apple America's unofficial Christmas capital
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