Municipal Auditorium
Long Beach, CA


Aerial view of both 1st and 2nd Municipal Auditoriums in Long Beach - ca.1932
Photo courtesy USC Digital Library

The Pike in Long Beach was a midway and amusement park along Seaside Way with a large roller coaster called the Jack Rabbit that opened in 1902. The municipal pier was located there at the end of Pine Avenue.


The original Long Beach Municipal Auditorium adjacent to Municipal Pier - 1929
Photo courtesy LA Public Library

The first Municipal Auditorium was built there in 1905 at Seaside Way along the east side of the pier. It was a wooden-frame structure extending onto the beach on pillars that sat 6000.

On May 24, 1913, during the "British Empire Day" celebration, 10,000 people on the upper floor of a double-deck pier in front of the Auditorium caused a section to collapse. 400 people fell when those on the top deck fell upon the hundreds crowded on the lower deck which fell to the beach forty feet below. A section of the auditorium came down and added to the wreckage that fell of top of the injured and the dead. Thirty-three,  mostly women, were killed.1
 


Northeast corner of the Municipal Auditorium - ca.1930s
Photo courtesy LA Public Library


Northeast side view of the Municipal Auditorium and Pike - ca.1930s
Photo courtesy web


East side view of the Municipal Auditorium across the lagoon - ca.1930s
Photo courtesy LA Public Library


South side view of the Municipal Auditorium across the lagoon - ca.1930s
Photo courtesy LA Public Library


view of the Municipal Auditorium from the Northwest corner - ca.1930s
Photo courtesy LA Public Library

The second Municipal Auditorium replaced the first one and was completed in 1932 from plans drawn by J. Harold McDowell. Located slightly east down Seaside Avenue from the original one past the Breakers Hotel, it was built on 20 acres of landfill that extended 500 feet into the Pacific Ocean at the south end of American Avenue (Long Beach Boulevard).


the Municipal Auditorium in Long Beach, ca.1932
Photo courtesy USC Digital Library


Rainbow Pier, the Municipal Auditorium, and the Signal Hill Oil Field - ca.1930s
Photo courtesy USC Digital Library

At the time the area was still open to the ocean and in order to protect the auditorium from storms and coastal erosion a half-circular shaped breakwater was constructed around it and named Rainbow Pier. It arched along side the municipal pier from Pine Avenue on the West end to Linden Avenue on the East surrounding the auditorium with a lagoon. The light poles on the pier were painted a variety of colors, making it a colorful area open to the public for walking or driving.  In 1934 the Municipal Pier at Pine Avenue suffered storm damage and closed. Suggestions that the auditorium later be renamed Rainbow Auditorium were refused.


Interior view of Municipal Auditorium's concert hall - ca.1932
Photo courtesy USC Digital Library


view thru stage of Municipal Auditorium as viewed from the concert hall - ca.1932
Photo courtesy LA Public Library


view thru stage of Municipal Auditorium looking to concert hall beyond - ca.1932
Photo courtesy USC Digital Library


Interior view of Municipal Auditorium from rear balcony - ca.1932
Photo courtesy LA Public Library


the Municipal Auditorium stage in Long Beach - ca.1932
Photo courtesy USC Digital Library

The Auditorium was actually constructed as two halls sharing a common stage, much like Ellis Auditorium in Memphis. The South side was a smaller semi circular concert hall with elevated seating and archways and bust statues encircling the walls, while the North side was the larger rectangular shaped auditorium. The larger auditorium with a large flat floor surround a multi-tired balcony was used for a multitude of functions; dances, recitals, stage shows, conventions, home and car shows etc...  Total, it was said to seat 8000.

LAPL00014878.jpg (53903 bytes) LAPL00014880.jpg (36694 bytes)
Workers lay tiles for the Mosaic Mural and views when finished - ca.1938
Photos courtesy LA Public Library


the Mosaic Mural on the North wall of the Municipal Auditorium - ca.1938
Photo courtesy LA Public Library

In 1937 forty artists working in Los Angeles under the direction of Stanton MacDonald-Wright and Albert Henry King from an original design by Henry Allen Nord cut and pieced together in sections one of the largest mosaics ever made depicting a beach scene of bathers, picnickers and horseshoe players.  It was funded by the Federal Art Project, a division of the Works Progress Administration (W.P.A.). Completed in 1938, the artists designed their signatures into the border and the mosaic was placed, a section at a time, into the façade of the North side of the Long Beach Municipal Auditorium, arguably, the gateway to historic U.S. Route 6 (Long Beach Boulevard).2


Beach and the Municipal Auditorium in Long Beach - ca.1940
Photo by Padilla Studios courtesy USC Digital Library


Line for the Battle of (Big) Bands at the Municipal Auditorium - Apr. 4, 1942
Photo courtesy LA Public Library


Rainbow Pier and the Long Beach Municipal Auditorium - 1946
Photo by Pacific Air Industries courtesy USC Digital Library


the Long Beach Municipal Auditorium and Rainbow Pier - 1947
Photo by courtesy USC Digital Library

At 26, Liberace started his first world tour with two concerts at the Memorial Auditorium, on February 17 and 18, 1947. Being so close in proximity to LA and Hollywood many stars attended, as they did for many performances by other entertainers.  He arrived in Long Beach a week before his engagement and made daily appearances at Humphrey's Music Store, 130 Pine Ave. from 1:00 to 4:00 to autograph records where his $25,000 Bluthner concert grand piano was also on display. On the 12th, he performed a special show for 500 wounded veterans at the Long Beach Navy hospital at the auditorium.3


Plaque from Memorial Auditorium marked end of US 6 - July 2010
Photo by Karners courtesy US Ends.com

In 1926 the American Association of State Highway Officials (AASHO) adopted the U.S. numbering system for marking the Nation's main Interstate highways. Initially, U.S. Route 6 was a short route running between Provincetown on Cape Cod, Massachusetts, to Brewster, New York, extending it in stages over the years to transcontinental length. In 1937 AASHO approved the extension of U.S. Route 6 to Long Beach, California, ending at the Long Beach Traffic Circle at the east end of town. With a distance of 3,652 miles it was the longest U.S. Route in the country. However, in 1953 a movement was started to extend it to the water front and a bronze plaque was placed on the outside of the wall of the Memorial Auditorium which identified this location as the westerly end of U.S. Route 6.4


Aerial view of Long Beach showing the Pike, Rainbow Pier and the Auditorium - 1955
Photo courtesy LA Public Library

In 1955 Rainbow Pier was closed for six months for excessive dredging and fill operations in the lagoon.  The pilings of the pier itself were deteriorating and only received minor repairs while closed.  In the years that followed much of that waterfront area there would be redesigned and filled in.


JUDY GARLAND, surrounded by dancers holding aloft cards bearing the letters of her name, is cheered at her touring stage show before a sellout crowd at Municipal Auditorium Monday night.- July 11, 1955

Independent Staff Photo by Don Webster courtesy Ancestry.com

On July 11, 1955, Judy Garland and her road show performed at the Municipal Auditorium in a benefit for the Long Beach Exceptional Children's Foundation. She had been nominated for an Academy Award for her starring role in 1954's remake of A Star is Born, her first film since leaving MGM in 1950 and it was considered her comeback. She was 33. Initially she had not planned on staging her show anywhere in the LA area but only did so when approached to do the benefit for the local foundation. It was a cause that she had always considered a pet project and was in the process of incorporating her own foundation for exceptional children.5


Crowds mob celebrity bus as it arrives at the Auditorium - July 11, 1955
Independent Staff Photo by Don Webster courtesy Ancestry.com

A star studded audience was in attendance and a platform was set up outside the auditorium for the stars as they arrived. Frank Sinatra had chartered a bus and loaded it with celebrities and stars arrived by the car load through a roped off section of American Avenue.  Nearly 100 seats were purchased by celebrities such as Jimmy Stewart, Jack Warner, Ronald Reagan, David Niven, Gary Cooper, Lana Turner, Betty Grable, Jerry Lewis, Harry James, Edgar Bergen, Donald O'Connor, Art Linkletter and many others.5


Dean Martin was one of the celebrities that rode the bus - July 11, 1955
Independent Staff Photo by Don Webster courtesy Ancestry.com

The show netted at least $15,000 for the children. Judy's finale was "Somewhere over the Rainbow" followed by a standing ovation and four encores.  She then asked the audience if they would like to meet some of her friends and brought up Frank Sinatra who then brought up Humphrey Bogart who brought up Lauren Bacall.  Soon after they were joined by Debbie Reynolds, Eddie Fischer, Betty Hutton, Dick Powell, June Allyson, Sammy Davis Jr. Dean Martin and several others.Dean and Sammy performed a Martin and Lewis song with Sammy imitating Jerry.  Frank had the show recorded and later gave copies to his friends that attended.


Judy Garland, Humphrey Bogart, Frank Sinatra and Lauren Bacall - July 11, 1955
Photo courtesy Youtube/BuzzStephens1

Judy played to a sold out, standing room only crowd, numbered at 4300 in the larger of the two halls which suggests that the said capacity of 8000 may be too high since the concert hall side sat less than 2000.


Ad in Long Beach Independent June 4 & 5, 1956
courtesy Long Beach Public Library

Less than a year later, on June 7, 1956, Elvis, Scotty, Bill and DJ made their only appearance together in Long Beach when they performed at the Municipal Auditorium. Coincidentally, Elvis would years later be approached for a starring role in the second remake of A Star is Born. Though they had performed in San Diego the previous April and the night before, both times following appearances on the Milton Berle show, this was their first live appearance in the Los Angeles area. The show was reviewed and advertised in both the Long Beach Independent, a morning paper, and the Press-Telegram and also covered by the the Los Angeles Examiner reporters and photographers.

560606.jpg (345849 bytes)Teenagers Will Hear Presley

Elvis Presley, youthful new singing sensation who has taken up where Johnny Ray left off, will bring his guitar and a stage show to Municipal Auditorium for one Long Beach appearance at 7:30 p.m. Thursday.
Hailed as the greatest current rhythm and blues singer, Presley just turned 21 and is a favorite of the bobby-sox set.
Now recording for RCA-Victor, he is one of the few singers who are played by disc jockeys specializing separately in country, popular and blues numbers.
Two years ago he was an unknown amateur guitar "picker." After making a demonstration record of his voice in his home town of Memphis, Tenn., he began to be noticed.
Today his frantic shouting, acrobatic instrument playing and uninhibited country - style singing have earned him the title of "America's Only Atomic - Powered Singer."

Long Beach Independent - June 6, 1956 courtesy Long Beach Public Library

The show was opened by the same troupe that had been touring regularly with them since their return from Las Vegas in May where they had first met Liberace. The show consisted of The Jordanaires, Irish tenor Frank Connors, the Flaim Brothers Orchestra, female singer Jackie Little and magician/comedian Phil Maraquin.  Backstage Elvis met with several fans.  Tickets sold for $1.50 for general seating and $2.00 for reserved and were available at Humphrey's Music Store on Pine Ave.


Ann Conway, obscured by Policeman backstage - June 7, 1956
Examiner Photo from USC's Morning Buzz courtesy FECC/Little Sister

Ann (Keller) Conway was in attendance that evening and recollected, Hearing Elvis Presley sing at the LB Municipal Auditorium in 1956 when I was a very innocent 16 marked the beginning of what would become a lifelong love affair with rock n' roll and its power to move me---physically, emotionally, spiritually.6


Elvis with fans backstage at Long Beach Municipal Auditorium - June 7, 1956
Examiner Photo from USC's Morning Buzz courtesy FECC/Little Sister

I'd received a call out of the blue from my best friend. One of the guys she knew who had a car had three tickets--printed up with the name ''Alvis'' Presley---to Elvis' concert at the Municipal Auditorium, an icon in those days that spoke of glamour, mystery and elegance. I can still smell the huge, beckoning hall-----it had a saltiness about it, being close to the sea, and its spaciousness, height and cushiness were a big cut above the movie theaters we enjoyed at the time.6


Elvis with fans called backstage at Long Beach Municipal Auditorium - June 7, 1956
Examiner Photo from USC's Morning Buzz courtesy FECC/Little Sister

I was called backstage at intermission to pose with Elvis for photographs. They sent scouts out to scour the audience; each picked several girls and we followed them backstage.6


Elvis with fans backstage at Long Beach Municipal Auditorium - June 7, 1956
Examiner Photo from USC's Morning Buzz courtesy FECC/Little Sister

He put his arm around me and picked up my hand and kissed it. My knees almost gave out. I didn’t wash my hand for days!!!! 6


Elvis with fans backstage at Long Beach Municipal Auditorium - June 7, 1956
Photo from TV & Movie Screen - Jan 1957 courtesy Cristi Dragomir

I looked closely at this slender singer with his sensuous mouth and greased-up hair and I saw-----how could this be?---a cream-colored face pocked with acne scars. Suddenly, the perfection I'd conjured up about him as he sang switched to a disheartening reality. It would become a theme in my life: fantasies about men would always have their earthly price----the inevitable imperfections.6


Elvis with fans backstage at Long Beach Municipal Auditorium - June 7, 1956
Photo from Movie Album No. 6 courtesy FECC/KempoDick

"Hold me close, hold me tight, make me thrill with delight, darling you're all that I'm living for........ I want you, I need you, I love you, more and more.......every time that you're near, all my cares disappear...........I want you, I need you, I love you, with all my heart......."

When Elvis sang those words, I was suddenly catapulted into a thrilling, aching, stratosphere of longing that was brand new. Oh, I'd mooned over actors in movie magazines, but I'd never felt any thing like this. I could barely move. Or speak.6


Scotty and Elvis onstage at Long Beach Municipal Auditorium - June 7, 1956
Photo from FTD Live in LA courtesy Cristi Dragomir

From that day forward, I would never be the same---for I had this secret buried within me. Love isn't only about the heart. It can be deep within the body. Let's face it, Elvis and his caramel voice and undulating hips turned us all on------and for me, it was the very first time.6


BOBBYSOXERS REACTION to rock and roll singer Elvis Presley is indicated by this picture made Thursday night in Municipal Auditorium where the young singing sensation panicked the teen-agers. Presley is doing to today's teen-agers what Frank Sinatra did 15 years ago. His sex appeal, however, is less subtle.

Staff Photo by Bob Shumway

Some of the girls called backstage at least, also appeared to have front row seats.  The review the following day in the Independent read:

Singing Sensation Causes Near Riot Here

SPECIAL POLICE OFFICERS head off rush of bobbysoxers toward stage in Municipal Auditorium where Elvis appeared Thursday night. The screaming audience threatened several times to surge the stage where the husky 21-year-old from Mississippi was shouting such rock and roll numbers as "Heartbreak Hotel" and "Blue Suede Shoes."

Independent Staff Photo courtesy Long Beach Public Library

Writhing Singer Has L.B. Soxers Wailing

by Paul Wallace

Leaning backwards like an intoxicated seamen with a gale at his heels, Mrs. Presley's boy Elvis swaggered onto the stage of Municipal Auditorium Thursday night and rocked 4,000 screaming teen-agers.


Elvis on stage at the Long Beach Municipal Auditorium - June 7, 1956
Photo courtesy Cristi Dragomir and FECC/denon3910

After a few mumbled words into the microphone, the tall, husky 21-year-old began shouting the lyrics of "Heartbreak Hotel" - one of the biggest numbers in the country right now.
The lyrics were virtually incomprehensible but the solid rhythm got through.
So did the bumps and grinds the handsome Tupelo, Miss., boy uses as punctuation for his rock and roll singing.


Police holding back the fans at the Municipal Auditorium - June 7, 1956
Examiner Photo from USC's Morning Buzz courtesy FECC/Little Sister

"Oh, rock me, Baby," screamed a bobbysoxer.
"Go, go, go, Honey," cried another.
"Love me, Baby. Sing for me," whimpered a third, jumping in her seat.


Police holding back the fans at the Municipal Auditorium - June 7, 1956
Examiner Photo from USC's Morning Buzz courtesy FECC/Little Sister

At intervals, usually coincident with Elvis' more violent torso gyrations, the whole crowd screached and sometimes surged toward the stage where a platoon of private policeman tried to keep the peace.
He went through half an hour of songs. The ones with a heavy beat sold better than the easy, ballad types.


Elvis onstage at the Long Beach Municipal Auditorium - June 7, 1956
Photo from TV & Movie Screen - Jan 1957 courtesy Cristi Dragomir

In between, the biggest sensation in the singing world today talked some.
He discussed singing the song "Get Out of the Barn, Grandmother, You're Too Old to Be Horsing Around."
His patter didn't panic them. His singing very definitely did.


Fans attending the show at the Municipal Auditorium - June 7, 1956
Examiner Photo from USC's Morning Buzz courtesy FECC/Little Sister

"Blue Suede Shoes" was almost drowned out by the screams.
"I've Got A Woman" inspired several assaults on the bandstand. The officers managed to hold the line and send the girls back to their seats. Nobody apparently swooned.


Elvis onstage at the Long Beach Municipal Auditorium - June 7, 1956
Photos courtesy Cristi Dragomir

Carrying his guitar, which he didn't use at all, strapped over his shoulders, Elvis worked with the mike stand about eight feet high.
He grabs the silver tube, violently pulls the microphone down to him and grimaces at it as he sings.


MANHANDLING THE MIKE, handsome Elvis Presley writhes as he belts out a rock and roll number for a delighted gang of shrieking teen-age girls in Municipal Auditorium. Although able to strum the guitar, according to his manager, the popular wailer didn't touch the instrument during his appearance here.

Independent Staff Photo courtesy Long Beach Public Library

Wearing a lavender checked sport coat, ruffled ivory shirt open at the neck and charcoal slacks that draped over his heels, Presley arrived in a new black Cadillac convertible, one of three he owns.
He was accompanied by a statuesque blonde with watchful eyes. Another blonde, this one pale and in a tight black dress, waited silently backstage for the side-burned singer to appear. He was more than an hour late and she was very patient.


Not everyone had to be sent back to their seats at Elvis'  show - June 7, 1956
Examiner Photo from USC's Morning Buzz courtesy FECC/Little Sister

After the show, the perspiring teenager idol flopped into a chair in his dressing room. A sideboy guarded the entrance. The blondes stood by sympathetically.
One young gal, who had eluded the guards, peeked through a crack in the door.
"aw, let me in, Baby," she implored. "I took a lot of trouble to sneak backstage."
The Mississippi boy favored her with his lopsided grin which looks almost like a sneer.
"Shut the door," he ordered.

The Independent - Long Beach, CA June 8, 1956 courtesy Ancestry.com

Unlike for Liberace and Judy Garland, no star studded audience was reported to have been there, though several would turn out for one of their last appearances in L.A. the following year at the Pan Pacific Auditorium.  The following night they performed in L.A. at the Shrine Auditorium.


Long Beach Arena attached to Auditorium - 1962
Photo courtesy LA Public Library


View of the Long Beach Arena attached to Auditorium looking North - 1968
Photo courtesy USC Digital Library

By 1962 the lagoon and vicinity had been land filled and the new round shaped Long Beach Arena was constructed and opened that year. The Arena which connected to the Auditorium essentially replaced it as the venue for large concerts and now also sporting events. Judy Garland died at 47, in 1969, the same year Elvis returned to performing live. Elvis would later perform in the Arena with the TCB band on November 14 & 15, 1972 and two shows on April 25th, 1976.


The Municipal Auditorium during demolition - 1975
Newspaper file photo courtesy New Deal/WPA Art Project

In 1974 the California Coastal Commission handed over the control of downtown and shoreline redevelopment to the City and much of the existing waterfront was reclaimed by landfill. The Municipal Auditorium was demolished in 1975 to make way for the Long Beach Convention & Entertainment Center which is made up of the Exhibition Hall, the Arena and the Performing Arts Center on the site of the Municipal Auditorium.


Long Beach Plaza, exterior parking structure, 3rd St. and Locust Ave. - Jan 14, 2011
Photos © James V. Roy

The bronze plaque that identified the end of U.S. Route 6 was moved to its current location at the Long Beach Performing Arts Center.4 The Pike operated until 1979. The mosaic that adorned the North wall of the Auditorium was saved from demolition in 1975 and moved to 3rd Street and the Promenade in 1982.2


Rainbow Harbor, LB Arena, Performing Arts and Convention Center in 2000
Photo © Hugh Ryono


Rainbow Harbor, LB Arena, Performing Arts and Convention Center - Jan 14, 2011
Photo © James V. Roy

In 1992 Marine Life Artist Wyland painted one of his murals along the exterior of the Arena, covering 116,000 square feet and depicting migratory gray whales and other aquatic life found in the waters off Long Beach. It was dedicated on July 9, 1992. In celebration of Earth Day in 2009, Wyland added a large mural of the earth on the roof.7


Performing Arts Center on the site of the Municipal Auditorium - Jan 14, 2011
Photo © James V. Roy

Today, like the Auditorium before it, the Performing Arts Center houses two halls, the Center and Terrace Theater, each facing the other front to back though they do not share a common stage.


Long Beach Convention & Entertainment Center - Jan 14, 2011
Photo © James V. Roy

Ann Conway would later become a society reporter for the Los Angeles Times (1986 - 2004) during which time she interviewed thousands of celebrities, some of which were Elizabeth Taylor, Bob Hope, Jennifer Jones, Kirk Douglas, Glenn Ford, Debbie Reynolds, Esther Williams, Sidney Poitier, and Robert Wagner. How could I have known when I read Modern Screen and Photoplay in the '50s that someday I would be interviewing and writing about the stars I'd worshipped from afar? Interviewing Lisa Marie Presley was a huge thrill, and yes, I told her about her dad and me at that concert in '56.6

page added February 13, 2011

1 according to Long Beach, CA Double Pier Collapses - May 1913
2
according to New Deal Art during The Great Depression
3 according to Long Beach Independent - February 12, 1947
4 according to  "U.S. Route 6 History" at U.S. Ends
5 according to Long Beach Independent - July 8, 11, & 12, 1955 and other sources
6 courtesy Ann Conway, February 5, 2011
7 according to BEFORE THE AQUARIUM—-A Quick Long Beach History Lesson by Hugh Ryono

Special thanks to Ann Conway and to Randy Lewis of the LA. Times for their assistance with this page.  Most of the information regarding the history of the Pike and Municipal Auditoriums in Long beach was obtained from the LA Public Library's and USC Digital Library's sites.
 


Paul Wallace, the Critic

Last month we received an email from Patrick Wallace in San Clemente, CA who's father was one of the critics that reviewed Elvis' appearance in Long Beach in 1956. As it turned out, his critique was a bit critiqued also. With his permission and assistance I've reprinted it and a follow up here on the site to share with everyone:

Hello James and Scotty,

I just wanted to shout out to both of you about how delighted I was to come across an article written by my late father, Paul Wallace, about Elvis’ appearance at the Long Beach Municipal Auditorium that found its way on to one of your website pages.


Paul Wallace at home with his Martin Classical guitar - 1964
Photo courtesy Patrick Wallace

My father listened to and played folk and classical on his guitars and a bit of jazz on his clarinet, but he drew the line at rock and roll. As you may or may not have discerned from my father’s article, he was not a big Elvis fan. He would always write his articles and stories pretty much matter-of-factly, but with a bit of passion about all subjects. My mother, on the other hand, adoooored Elvis; and she let my father know what a crappy job he did reporting on that early concert in Long Beach. He and I, and my mother, talked about that concert and this article many times over the years. I still have his original copy, and his two Martins and his Oscar Teller which now play rock and roll.


Paul Wallace at home with his Martin Classical guitar - 1967
Photo courtesy Patrick Wallace

The guitar in all the photos was one of his two Martins, a 1964 21-New York. I believe he had it strung with steel strings back then as it still is today. He was pretty clean cut back then. By the mid ‘70s he had long hair and a long beard. 

Thanks for making his work live a little while longer.

Patrick Wallace
San Clemente, CA
January 7, 2013


Hi Jim,

What a strange world this is. Right after I sent you the photos of my dad playing his guitar I visited your page about Long Beach again and realized that I am in one of your photos that you have already posted. Not that you can see me, but I am there.

The fourth photo from the bottom of this page is an aerial photo of the Long Beach Convention Center titled, “Rainbow Harbor, LB Arena, Performing Arts and Convention Center in 2000 Photo © Hugh Ryono.” This photo was taken during the annual Long Beach Grand Prix. You can tell by the presence of grandstands along Shoreline Drive, and the Pit Lane setup at the lower-left portion of the photo where the temporary bridge crosses the road.


Rainbow Harbor, LB Arena, Performing Arts and Convention Center in 2000
Photo © Hugh Ryono

For the past thirty-two years I have been a broadcast sports television cameraman, and the Long Beach grand Prix was one of the events that I used to shoot… including in 2000. My camera platform was at the end of the pit lane on the center divider right where Shoreline Drive begins to turn right. That’s where I stood from 8:00 in the morning until 5:00 in the evening every day of the event… not that anyone will ever notice me in that picture.

The Long Beach Grand Prix was originally held as a test race in October of 1975 featuring Formula 5000 cars. The following April was the First US Grand Prix West which was a Formula 1 race. In 1996, Formula 1 proved to be too expensive for the City of Long Beach to host, and so the Long Beach grand Prix became an Indy car race. In 2000 when this photo was taken, the race was an Indy car race.

Anyway, just another bit of weird coincidence.

Patrick Wallace
San Clemente, CA
February 24, 2013

added February 27, 2013

 

All photos on this site (that we didn't borrow) unless otherwise indicated are the property of either Scotty Moore or James V. Roy and unauthorized use or reproduction is prohibited.

 
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This site created and managed by James V. Roy for Scotty Moore with the sole intent to help promote the arts and history of American popular music and Scotty's major role in it. Every attempt was made to give credit for any images or text borrowed from the World Wide Web and we greatly appreciate the use of it. Technical difficulties or questions dealing with this Server should be addressed to the Webmaster. Copyright © 2002, 2014