They will blow the roof off the Spectrum tonight.
It won’t be the first time. But for basketball, it will be the last.
The Spectrum opened in 1968. It lost part of its roof a few months later. Then it happened again a few weeks after that. The place was shut down while repairs were made.
The slow passing of the legendary South Philly sports palace will mark another milestone tonight. The Sixers will return to the place where they won a world championship as part of the year-long farewell to the cozy building that now sits in the shadow of the cavernous Wachovia Center across the parking lot.
They will bring back a lot of the Sixers greats, including “Dr. J” Julius Erving, the man who resurrected the franchise when he arrived from the ABA, and Moses Malone, the stalwart in the center who proved the difference as the Sixers defeated the Lost Angeles Lakers in “fo” straight to win a world title, just as he had predicted.
The Flyers made their final visit to their old home – the place where they won back-to-back Stanley Cups, in the pre-season.
There is a year-long series of special concerts booked into the site, including two shows by The Boss, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, in April. Just for old times, they should have Foghat open the show. It seems like they opened every show in the countless number of concerts I saw there.
Oddly enough, it’s the concerts I likely will remember most about the building. Everyone from Bruce to Blue Oyster Cult.
But it’s not the concert I will remember most. That honor remains with the show my wife and I attended some 25 years after the first time I walked into that building.
At our wedding, we danced to “All the Way,” by Frank Sinatra. A couple of decades later, we attended his silver jubilee show at the Spectrum. I had bought the tickets for Valentine’s Day.
I can describe the show in one word: Electric. The place was packed. When the lights went down and Sinatra, clad in his traditional black tux, strode out onto the stage, you could feel his presence in every corner of the building.
Was he at his best that night, touring on his 75th birthday. Maybe not. But he was still mesmerizing. This was a living legend. He knew it, the fans knew it. He didn’t disappoint.
That’s the thing about the building. It always seemed to provide one thing.
Goosebumps.
There will be more of those tonight.
The building will soon be gone. The goosebumps – and the memories that created them – will stay with us forever.
It won’t be the first time. But for basketball, it will be the last.
The Spectrum opened in 1968. It lost part of its roof a few months later. Then it happened again a few weeks after that. The place was shut down while repairs were made.
The slow passing of the legendary South Philly sports palace will mark another milestone tonight. The Sixers will return to the place where they won a world championship as part of the year-long farewell to the cozy building that now sits in the shadow of the cavernous Wachovia Center across the parking lot.
They will bring back a lot of the Sixers greats, including “Dr. J” Julius Erving, the man who resurrected the franchise when he arrived from the ABA, and Moses Malone, the stalwart in the center who proved the difference as the Sixers defeated the Lost Angeles Lakers in “fo” straight to win a world title, just as he had predicted.
The Flyers made their final visit to their old home – the place where they won back-to-back Stanley Cups, in the pre-season.
There is a year-long series of special concerts booked into the site, including two shows by The Boss, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, in April. Just for old times, they should have Foghat open the show. It seems like they opened every show in the countless number of concerts I saw there.
Oddly enough, it’s the concerts I likely will remember most about the building. Everyone from Bruce to Blue Oyster Cult.
But it’s not the concert I will remember most. That honor remains with the show my wife and I attended some 25 years after the first time I walked into that building.
At our wedding, we danced to “All the Way,” by Frank Sinatra. A couple of decades later, we attended his silver jubilee show at the Spectrum. I had bought the tickets for Valentine’s Day.
I can describe the show in one word: Electric. The place was packed. When the lights went down and Sinatra, clad in his traditional black tux, strode out onto the stage, you could feel his presence in every corner of the building.
Was he at his best that night, touring on his 75th birthday. Maybe not. But he was still mesmerizing. This was a living legend. He knew it, the fans knew it. He didn’t disappoint.
That’s the thing about the building. It always seemed to provide one thing.
Goosebumps.
There will be more of those tonight.
The building will soon be gone. The goosebumps – and the memories that created them – will stay with us forever.
Comments
At the same time, I had the opportunity to attend a Phantoms game a few weeks ago with my child's school group. No accessible restrooms, horrible food, crammed, creaky seats. Did it revive a few cool memories? Yes. Does this place need to be blown up? Yes. Will the memories be lost when it's replaced with a retail complex? Heck no!! DNE