U.S. Bank Arena
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 U.S. Bank Arena in Cincinnati, Ohio |
|
| Location | 100 Broadway Street, Cincinnati, Ohio 45202-3514 |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 39°5′52″N 84°30′16″W / 39.09778°N 84.50444°WCoordinates: 39°5′52″N 84°30′16″W / 39.09778°N 84.50444°W |
| Opened | 1975 |
| Owner | Nederlander Cincinnati |
| Operator | Nederlander Cincinnati |
| Capacity | Basketball: 17,000 Ice hockey / Arena Football: 12,823 |
| Tenants | |
| Cincinnati Bearcats basketball (NCAA) (1976–1987) Cincinnati Cyclones (ECHL) (1997-2004, 2006-present) Cincinnati Jungle Kats (af2) (2007) Cincinnati Swarm (af2) (2003) Cincinnati Stingers (WHA) (1975-1979) Cincinnati Kids (MISL) (1978-1979) Cincinnati Rockers (AFL) (1992-1993) Cincinnati Marshals (NIFL) (2004-2006) |
|
U.S. Bank Arena (known originally as the Riverfront Coliseum, and known later as The Crown and the Firstar Center), is an indoor arena located in downtown Cincinnati, Ohio near the Ohio River next to the Great American Ball Park. Completed in 1975, the arena seats 12,823 for ice hockey. It was the home of the Cincinnati Stingers of the WHA from 1975–1979. Since then, the arena has hosted another minor-league hockey team and various concerts, political rallies, tennis tournaments, figure skating, a Billy Graham Crusade, and other events. The facility's longest-serving tenant was the men's basketball program of the University of Cincinnati, which used the arena from its completion until 1987, when U.C. played its games at Cincinnati Gardens (1987–89) until an on-campus facility (Shoemaker Center), now known as Fifth Third Arena, was completed. The arena building was heavily renovated in 1997, and is still in use. The current main tenant is the Cincinnati Cyclones franchise of the East Coast Hockey League. The Cincinnati Jungle Kats of the arenafootball2 league played their one and only season at the U.S. Bank Arena in 2007, posting a record of 1–15. On occasion, there are local pushes for the attraction of another major sports franchise to occupy the somewhat underused arena, possibly an NBA franchise either relocated or expanded, though little has ever come to fruition.[1] The NBA was last played in Cincinnati in 1972, and never at this facility, aside from exhibition games.
Contents |
[edit] Notable events
[edit] 1979 The Who concert incident
On December 3, 1979, eleven fans were killed by compressive asphyxia and several dozen others injured in the rush for seating at the opening of a sold-out concert of 18,348 people by English rock band The Who. The concert was using "festival seating", (also known as "general seating"), where the best seats are available on a first-come, first-served basis, enticing the fans to throw cherry bombs, M-80s and shoot off bottle rockets into the crowd. Festival seating concerts were also accompanied by cigarette and marijuana smoke that was so thick that it burned a concertgoers eyes, didn't have to be smoked to get high, and partially obscured the performing stage. Due to the festival seating, many fans arrived early. When the crowds waiting outside heard the band performing a late sound check, they thought that the concert was beginning and tried to rush into the still-closed doors. Some at the front of the crowd were trampled as those pushing from behind were unaware that the doors were still closed. Only a few doors were in operation that night, and there are reports that management did not open more doors due to union restrictions and the concern of people sneaking past the ticket turnstiles[2].
As a result the remaining concerts of 1979, Blue Oyster Cult on December 14 and Aerosmith on December 21, were cancelled and concert venues across North America switched to assigned seating or changed their rules about festival seating. Cincinnati immediately outlawed festival seating at concerts, although it overturned the ban on August 4, 2004. The ban was making it difficult for Cincinnati to book concerts since many music acts prefer festival seating because it could allow the most enthusiastic fans to get near the stage and generate excitement for the rest of the crowd. Some performers and bands insist on a festival seating area near the stage. The city had made a one-time exception to the ban before August 4, 2004, allowing festival seating for a Bruce Springsteen concert on November 12, 2002. Cincinnati was, at one time, the only city in the United States to outlaw festival seating altogether.
===Other events===
The first event to be staged at the facility was a rock concert by the Allman Brothers Band and opening act Muddy Waters on Tuesday, September 9, 1975 attended by 16,721 people. It had to be clear to Riverfront Coliseum management that rock music was going to be the obvious moneymaker for the building as rock concerts consistently outsold the building's primary tenant, the Cincinnati Stingers, and that here was the money that paid off the huge mortgage payments for the building. The remaining concerts for 1975 included:
October 3 - The World Series Of Jazz: Weather Report, Esther Phillips,
Herbie Mann and The Family Of Mann, Grover Washington, Jr.
October 4 - Hammersmith, Jethro Tull
October 11 - Marlena Shaw, Freddie Prinze, Sammy Davis, Jr.
October 12 - Chicago
October 18 - Gentle Giant, Rick Wakeman
October 24 - The Outlaws, Peter Frampton, The Doobie Brothers
October 26 - The Dynamic Superiors, The Commodores, The Spinners
November 20 - Wet Willie, ZZ Top
November 23 - The Eric Carmen Band, Dave Mason, The Beach Boys
November 30 - Kansas, The Edgar Winter Group, The J. Geils Band
December 8 - Law, Toots and The Maytalls, The Who
December 31 - The Outlaws, The Charlie Daniels Band,
The Marshall Tucker Band
1976 concerts included:
February 8 - Blue Magic, The Commodores, The O'Jays
February 13 - The Cate Brothers, Foghat, Queen
February 23 - David Bowie
February 27 - Soul Train Gang, Kool and The Gang, Rufus w/Chaka Khan
March 5 - Elvin Bishop, Journey, Electric Light Orchestra (ELO)
March 19 - Starcastle, Roxy Music, Peter Frampton
March 21 - Elvis Presley (2 Shows)
April 3 - Head East, Montrose, Robin Trower
April 24 - Tony Orlando and Dawn
April 26 - Starland Vocal Band, John Denver
May 9 - New Riders Of The Purple Sage, The Charlie Daniels Band,
Leon Russell
May 14 - Bootsy's Rubber Band, Buddy Miles, Brass Construction,
Parliament-Funkadelic
May 15 - Ted Nugent, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Santana
May 27 - Paul McCartney and Wings
June 8 - The Pousette Dart Band, Yes
June 30 - Jeff Beck w/The Jan Hammer Group, Fleetwood Mac
July 14 - Poco, The Neil Young/Stephan Stills Band
July 22 - J.D. Souther, Eagles
August 1 - The Bellamy Brothers, Loggins and Messina
August 3 - Elton John
August 4 - John Miles, Jethro Tull
August 12 - Andrew Gold, Linda Ronstadt
August 25 - Silver, John Sebastian, America
August 29 - Sam Butera and The Witnesses, Frank Sinatra
September 1 - Sea Level, Jefferson Starship
September 2 - Tavares, Graham Central Station
September 10 - Artful Dodger, Bob Seger and The Silver Bullet Band, Kiss
September 26 - Buck Owens
October 2 - The Grateful Dead
October 8 - Mark Radice, Brass Construction, KC and The Sunshine Band,
The Ohio Players
October 9 - Jay Ferguson, Montrose, Blue Oyster Cult
October 10 - Chicago
October 31 - Firefall, The Doobie Brothers
November 22 - The Beach Boys
November 26 - Wiggy Bits, Montrose, Robin Trower
November 28 - The Emotions, Earth,Wind and Fire
December 9 - REO Speedwagon, Aerosmith
December 16 - Ted Nugent, Foghat
December 26 - The James Gang, Lynyrd Skynyrd
1977 concerts included:
February 4 - Target, Bob Seger and The Silver Bullet Band, Black Sabbath February 18 - Steve Hillage, Gentle Giant, Electric Light Orchestra (ELO) February 27 - Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band March 4 - Starcastle, Rush, Boston March 11 - Jethro Tull March 19 - Manfred Mann, Robert Palmer, Gary Wright April 5 - Brick, Santana, Rufus w/Chaka Khan April 15 - Leon Redbone, Jesse Colin Young April 19 & 20 - Led Zeppelin April 25 - Neil Diamond May 29 - Emerson, Lake and Palmer (ELP) June 23 - Pink Floyd June 25 - Elvis Presley (Next-To-Last Live Performance) July 1 - The Micheal Stanley Band, Foreigner, Ted Nugent July 10 - Southside Johnny and The Asbury Jukes, Boz Scaggs July 21 - The Climax Blues Band, Bad Company July 28 - The Norton Buffalo Stampede, The Steve Miller Band August 7 - Rick Derringer, Peter Frampton August 20 - Truth, Carrie Lucas, The Whispers, The O'Jays August 29 - Donovan, Yes September 4 - Bootsy's Rubber Band, Parliament-Funkadelic September 25 - Mylon, The Outlaws, The J. Geils Band September 29 - Henry Gross, Aerosmith October 2 - The Emotions, The Commodores October 8 - Chicago October 13 - Crawler, Styx, Robin Trower October 14 - Tom Jones November 2 - Pockets, Deniece Williams, Earth, Wind and Fire November 4 - Crosby, Stills and Nash November 8 - Air Supply, Rod Stewart November 13 - Crawler, Kansas December 2 - Wet Willie, Pure Prairie League, The Charlie Daniels Band December 16 - Detective, The Edgar Winter Group, Blue Oyster Cult December 30 - Missouri, Golden Earring, Ted Nugent
1978 concerts included:
January 12 - The Rockets, Kiss March 8 - Emerson, Lake and Palmer (ELP) March 24 - Karla Bonoff, Jackson Browne April 3 - Virgin, Shaun Cassidy April 8 - John Denver April 15 - Sweet, Bob Seger and The Silver Bullet Band May 12 - Judas Priest, Uriah Heep, Rush May 26 - Cheap Trick, Foghat May 27 - Emmylou Harris, Willie Nelson June 9 - The Climax Blues Band, The Marshall Tucker Band June 17 - Jackie Gayle, Frank Sinatra July 21 - Genesis July 29 - Con Funk Shun, The Commodores August 3 - Neil Diamond August 10 - Crosby, Stills and Nash August 19 - Wilbert Longmire, Linda Clifford, Maze, Teddy Pendergrass September 10 - Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band September 20 - Yes September 22 - Barry Manilow October 5 - Starcastle, Aerosmith October 15 - Bob Dylan October 25 - Uriah Heep, Jethro Tull October 27 - Sammy Hagar, Boston November 7 - The Moody Blues November 11 - Van Halen, Black Sabbath November 16 - Ambrosia, Foreigner November 23 - Exile, The Doobie Brothers November 26 - Queen December 8 - Starz, Ted Nugent December 10 - Billy Joel December 17 - Angel, Styx December 19 - Molly Hatchet, Bob Seger and The Silver Bullet Band
1979 concerts included:
January 19 - Southside Johnny and The Asbury Jukes, The J. Geils Band January 26 - Starz, Rush February 16 - Exile, Heart March 2 - The Babys, Alice Cooper March 9 - Sad Cafe, Eddie Money, Santana April 8 - Parliament-Funkadelic April 20 - Leon Russell, Willie Nelson April 21 - Ian Matthews, The Beach Boys April 28 - Roger and Roger, Diana Ross April 29 - Rod Stewart May 3 - The New Barbarians May 5 - The Granati Brothers, Van Halen May 13 - Carillo, Bad Company June 7 - Muddy Waters, Eric Clapton June 14 - Cris DeBurgh, Bob Welch, Peter Frampton June 23 - Destiny, Maze, Teddy Pendergrass July 7 - Molly Hatchet, The Charlie Daniels Band July 17 - Larry Coryell, James Taylor August 2 - Scorpions, AC/DC, Ted Nugent August 13 - Blackfoot, Kansas August 16 - The Rockets, REO Speedwagon August 31 - Night, The Doobie Brothers September 14 - Judas Priest, Kiss September 15 & 16 - The Bee Gees September 23 - The Ian Hunter Band, Cheap Trick October 12 - Sniff 'N' The Tears, Kenny Loggins October 27 - U.K., Jethro Tull November 1 - The Oak Ridge Boys, Dottie West, Kenny Rogers November 2 - April Wine, Styx November 7 - Danny Douma, Fleetwood Mac November 11 - Point Blank, Molly Hatchet, The Outlaws November 15 - Blue Steel, Eagles November 18 - Billy Joel December 3 - The Who
The arena was the site of the Regional of the 1979 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament and 1987 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament, as well as a first and second round site for the 1988 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament and the 1992 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament. The arena was also host to the 1997 NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Final Four, as well as the 1996 men's Division I hockey Frozen Four, which was won by Michigan.
The venue hosted part of the 1981 and all of the 1992 Horizon League men's basketball conference tournament as well as the 1978, 1983, 2002, and 2004 Conference USA men's basketball tournaments; the Atlantic Ten Conference also held its tourney there in 2005 and did so again in 2006. The 1996 NCAA Frozen Four also was staged at the facility. The arena was the site of the last World Championship Wrestling (WCW)/nWo Souled Out event in 2000. It also hosted the first World Wrestling Entertainment Cyber Sunday pay-per-view in 2006. The US Bank Arena has also held many other WWE events, including WWE Raw, WWE Friday Night SmackDown, WWE Superstars, and ECW. It hosted Ultimate Fighting Championship's UFC 77 pay-per-view on October 20, 2007. On May 19, 2009 for the first time ever it hosted ECW, WWE Superstars, and Friday Night Smackdown all in one night.
On July 25th 2009 they are letting Demi Lovato perform at the US Bank Arena as for the: "Demi Lovato Summer Tour 2009"
[edit] References
- ^ "CityBeat Letters: Any Hope for NBA in Cincinnati?", CityBeat website. 06/06/2007. Accessed 2008-11-27.
- ^ Chertkoff, JM; RH Kushigian (1999). Don't Panic: The psychology of emergency egress and ingress. Praeger. pp. 79–83. ISBN 0275962687.
[edit] Bibliography
Johnson, Norris R. "Panic at 'The Who Concert Stampede': An Empirical Assessment." Social Problems. Vol. 34, No. 4 (October 1987):362-73
[edit] External links
| Preceded by Malá Sportovní Hala Prague |
Davis Cup Final Venue 1981 |
Succeeded by Palais des Sports Grenoble |
| Preceded by Providence Civic Center Providence, Rhode Island |
Host of the Frozen Four 1996 |
Succeeded by Bradley Center Milwaukee, Wisconsin |
|
||||||||
