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25th Anniv Of La 1984


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So...as promised, herewith are some reflections and photos of the 25th anniversary bash of the ueber-successful 1984 Los Angeles Olympics held last night at the LA Memorial Coliseum. Some highlights

- The evening was actually quite nice and pleasant. The event had attracted some 1,100 guests...so there were 110 tables of 10 guests each.

- Caterng was by Wolfgang Puck; superb food and wines! :)

- A lot of interminable speeches...including keynote speaker, Peter Ueberroth of course, who, understandably, 25 years later (at I think 70) is a bit slower, stutters more, and is not as sharp a tack as once was. He read parts of a letter the old IOC poobah Juan Antonio sent congratulating the LA Games for rescuing the Olympic movement 25 years later, etc., etc. (I can see why they never invited him to be an IOC member. He suffers no fools gladly and tells it like it is, leaving out the charm. Later, Peter signed my book (his bio).

- The show opened with a new Rocketman! (I got that on my video -- which I still have to learn how to convert digitally so I can load on YouTube. (Can somebody here teach me?) Man, what a racket for, like, the 20 secs he flew!!

- Pacing of the show was terrible. David Wolper could not be there; doctor's advice was to stay home.

- 60 Olympians were featured...ranging from Mr. & Mrs. Bart Connor, Mary Lou Retton, Mark Sptiz (looking good and quite bronzed), Dr. Sammy Lee, folowed by Greg Louganis who, at a distance, looked surprisingly good; to Pat McCormick, Janet Summers (very pregnant), to Edwin Moses...and another 51 too numerous to mention.

- I actually schmoozed briefly with Anita de Frantz; saw the new USOC interim president Natalie Streeter (really, a very nice lady).

- A lot of clips and recreations fromthe LA Games; re-singing of "Reach Out and Touch," of course, John Williams's theme...

- Of course, they lit the Torch!! (I was in the loo when the damned thing happened.) :angry:

- The fireworks, even though like 5 minutes only (and which I captured on my camcorder) were spectacular, c/o the Disney company. (But fireworks captured on electronic images aren't as good as the real thing.)

Anyway, here are some photos I took, including...drum roll please...the first photo of yours truly I have posted on the internet!!

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The peristyle end decked out for the occasion.

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The tables laid out in the field, facing the peristyle!

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Plaque of great-grandpappi ;) amongst plaques of other LA sporting legends in those pillars of the peristyle end.

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Finally, an internet debut...moi on the outside of the peristyle. In the background on the right, that's gran-granpappi's plaque.

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One of the two time capsules commemorating the 1984 Games. A smaller one beside it houses the Official Film of Bud Greenspan. These 2 time capsules are to be opened in another 25 years, in 2034, the 50th anniversary of those glorious 1984 Games.

All in all, a wonderful, memorable evening.

Of course, you can read the fuller acount of this and of Olympic Ceremonies on the whole in my forthcoming book, "SECRETS OF THE OLYMPIC CEREMONIES," due out in November or December of this year. (Don't worry, I'll give you, my GB friends, an intorductory promotional discount.) The first draft went in for editing this weekend.

Kind comments are welcome.

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How does a quarter of a century pass by so quickly? The summer of 1984 seems like just yesterday (cliche,yes, but oh so true). I'll have to dig out 16 Days of Glory and watch it sometime between July 28 and August 12 and have my own 25th anniversary celebration.

I can't wait to read that book Baron, it sounds fascinating.

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Baron Pierre, you remind me a little of Roy Orbison crossed with Odd-job from James Bond! Great photos by the way! I love the Olympic branding that was used for 84 games. The colours were so 80's!

Is the LA colosseum under going renovation? it's just that under the arches the seating area looks bare and grassy?

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Baron Pierre, you remind me a little of Roy Orbison crossed with Odd-job from James Bond! Great photos by the way! I love the Olympic branding that was used for 84 games. The colours were so 80's!

Is the LA colosseum under going renovation? it's just that under the arches the seating area looks bare and grassy?

Well, that's not my best shot (that was not taken yesterday.) It was taken on a much hotter day a few weeks ago; so the hair was really damp and lumpy. (But then again maybe that's a toupee, etc., so I can stay incognito...) :lol:

Anyway...

The section underneath the peristyle...where the choir stood in the '84 games, is concrete...and they're always fixing it...for whatever reason. There were sections with seats, some parts w/ sod. You just knew it was in a state of flux.

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Well, that's not my best shot (that was not taken yesterday.) It was taken on a much hotter day a few weeks ago; so the hair was really damp and lumpy. (But then again maybe that's a toupee, etc., so I can stay incognito...) :lol:

Anyway...

The section underneath the peristyle...where the choir stood in the '84 games, is concrete...and they're always fixing it...for whatever reason. There were sections with seats, some parts w/ sod. You just knew it was in a state of flux.

The Colosseum is a beautiful stadium. It's got that very 'American' look to it which I like.

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Sigh! I'm sure Todd would have been thrilled by it. I hope he was watching down on it!

Aye. I tried not to dwell on what-could-ve-beens; but yes, I am sure our Illinois boy's cup would've been overflowing.

Todd, I think you were at least looking out for me. ;) (I sat beside two key Ceremonies people, really about the only ones there that we could reconnoiter, and they willingly shared a few more stories with me. So, Rol, I kinda had my own little cathartic closure too. )

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God, I feel old thinking we're a quarter century past my first full Olympics (vague memories of Sarjevo) and what was then my home town.

Still remember collecting the daily Olympic sections of the LA Times and now wondering whatever happened to them and cursing the luck for taping over the Opening and Closing Ceremonies.

What's amazing to think is really how successful LA 84 really was in a time where the future of the Olympics was anything but certain, especially with the Soviet boycotts. Who would have thought we'd be here now based largely of the success of those Games. Wonder how many Olympic fans were born from those Games and watch them the way I do now.

Thanks, LA for a really good Games. Maybe we'll be back in the Coliseum someday in the future.

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Thanks Barron. Nice to see the Memorial Stadium 25 years later.

Those 1984 games are my first souvenir of the Games... and may be the first stone of my olympic passion !!!!

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/\ Thanks, Fab, for findiing that. I still don't know how to download a VCR copy onto YouTube.

Anyway, this guy/gal had a better vantage point. S/he was closer to the stage. I was way, fartther back.

That band BTW, folks, is the USC Trojans Marching band. It was conducted by the same man who conducted the 826-piece band in 1984, Dr. Art Gartner.

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