First Night draws 1 million

About a million revelers poured into Boston's streets yesterday for an unseasonably warm First Night celebration, donning flashing jester hats, lacing up ice skates, blowing horns, and throwing snowballs as they bid adieu to a year of mixed fortunes.

The weather reversal from last week's snowstorm to yesterday's 45-degree temperatures made for unusual juxtapositions on Boston Common, where children made forts in the snow, even as others laughed at the thawing ice sculptures, including a glowing dragon that was rapidly losing its edges.

Families filled the Hynes Convention Center all afternoon for the First Night Family Festival, where children made tiny dolls at the Greater Boston Chinese Cultural Association workshop and stuck their heads into the mouth of an inflatable triceratops at the Dinosaur Exploratorium.

Thousands of people stopped in their tracks, virtually in unison, to watch the 7 p.m. fireworks light up the sky. People crowded the sidewalks for the Grand Procession, an annual parade down Boylston Street and onto Boston Common, which featured a Chinese dragon and a menagerie of colorful giant puppets. Mayor Thomas M. Menino led the procession and posed for pictures with numerous young children beforehand. He pronounced 2004 ''a good year."

Later, as the clock struck midnight, the crowd went from busily moving around to smiling and embracing, happily ringing in 2005. Beneath the midnight fireworks, revelers embraced, couples kissed, and taxi horns blared. As dozens in the crowd reached reached for cell phones, trying to reach relatives, many were met with busy signals. Many simply resorted to yelling ''Happy New Year" at strangers and smiling.

For many, it was a year of epic happiness, when the Red Sox forged a credibility-defying comeback to win its first World Series in 86 years. Boston also held a spotlight on the national political stage.

Still, there was a somber tinge to the day, even as people celebrated New Year's Eve with family and friends. Many were thinking of the tsunami that hit Indian Ocean nations, with a death toll that approached 150,000 yesterday. Some had heard the gruesome news about a nightclub fire in Buenos Aires that left 175 people dead Thursday night.

Many also were wishing for a better year in Iraq, where the war is approaching its second anniversary. Nearly 150,000 US troops are stationed there, and more than 1,300 American servicemen and women have died.

''We're looking for a better year, that's the main thing," said Bob Ross, 41, of Melrose, who was waiting in the face-painting line at the Hynes Convention Center with his wife, Maureen, and their children: Alicia, 5, and Brett, 4. ''A year where there's less killing."

The year 2005 will also be an important one for organizers of Boston's First Night, the oldest and largest in the country, in its 29th year. First Night officials announced in September that financial troubles meant they would have to cancel last night's midnight's fireworks and that 2004 might be Boston's last First Night.

Frank M. Ward, a retired Canton businessman, came forward soon after with a $50,000 donation to pay for last night's fireworks. Ward, former chairman and chief executive of SLI Inc., was out of town for New Year's and thus unable to enjoy the fruits of his gift, according to organizers.

Amid the festivities, some trouble was reported. Police arrested two men after spotting an apparent robbery in progress.

Officers were driving on Tremont Street near St. Paul's Cathedral when they saw a 16-year-old male being dragged by two men after he had been robbed of his cellphone and money, said Officer John Boyle. Both suspects were taken to Area A. The victim was taken to Boston Medical Center with minor injuries.

City Hall Plaza was also used as a First Night venue for the first time, with a concert by Aaron Carter, the younger brother of Nick Carter of Backstreet Boys.

Laura and Prescott Powers drove with their two daughters from Woodstock, Conn. They used to spend New Year's Eve in Providence, but a lack of funding closed that city's celebration. ''Check out all these people. What would they do" without First Night, Prescott Powers asked.

Their daughter Meghan, 7, talked excitedly about seeing a 100-million-year-old fossil in the dinosaur exhibit. Meghan's little sister, Emma, 4, was dressed like a princess with a sequined skirt.

Their parents, both art teachers, said the tsunami was on their minds. They planned to make a donation through their church and hoped President Bush increased US aid.

They felt grateful for what they had as they looked forward to 2005. ''We feel very blessed," Laura Powers said. ''We're very happy to be spending the day with our kids, all happy and healthy."

Bombardieri can be reached at bombardieri@globe.com. Globe correspondent Michael Levenson contributed to this report.