Which New Year's Eve ball drop was canceled in Times Square during World War II blackouts?

The Times Square Ball drops canceled during World War II blackouts were the 1942 and 1943 drops.

New York City's public ball drop was suspended for New Year's Eve in 1942 and 1943 because wartime blackout rules restricted bright displays. The restrictions were intended to reduce the chance that enemy aircraft or ships could use city lights for navigation or targeting. Instead of a lighted ball descending in Times Square, crowds observed the moment with a minute of silence and church bells.

The ball had already become an annual tradition after its first descent in 1907. Its temporary absence illustrates how a civic celebration could be altered by national emergency. The event resumed after the wartime blackout period, and the ball drop eventually became an even more prominent international broadcast tradition.

The cancellation is sometimes misdated to the entire World War II period. The notable suspended drops were specifically at the ends of 1941 and 1942, marking the starts of 1942 and 1943; the standard shorthand is the 1942 and 1943 New Year's celebrations.