Wishing I could remember the Forum

I remember my first Lakers game at the Forum. True it was an old building, however you could see all the history in the building. That preseason game should be fun to attend for those going. I wonder why it is still standing though. I mean who still uses that building.

can’t put a finger on the best moment. being a ten year old watching this rookie that everyone called Magic. the almost back to back number one picks in the draft(Magic and Worthy). Dancing Barry. Who remembers dancing Barry? Celebrities galore. Cracked concrete ceilings in the halls. i could go on and on. weazel, concerts are still held there. yes big pullers like Miley Cirus and Madonna.
Parking lot is a treat for anyone with remote controlled toys. Still a dangerous area, hey, its Inglewood. The Westsides Compton. lol

At the time when I first became a fan of the Lakers I was too young which means I wasn’t working and couldn’t afford to pay for tickets. But, my favorite moment at the forum without a doubt is Magic’s first game back from retirment. First off his introduction to the game was amazing. I get goose-bumps just remembering it. During one of the plays, Magic fakes a pass to the right and Sprewell totally bit on it. both his dreads and his head turned right and Magic layed it up.

But my description will never give it justice so here is the clip…. http://www.casttv.com/video/2d79df1/magic-johnson-ball-fake-on-latrell-sprewell-and-layup-vs-warriors-video

I have a ton of memories of the Forum, but almost all of them were at Kings games. I loved the Lakers (born in ‘75) from about ’81-’82 on, but we had Kings season tickets in the 80’s. My best two memories were of the Kings playing in the Stanley Cup finals (finally), and being at the game when Gretzky broke the all time goal scoring record (802). They drove a rolls royce on the ice as a gift.

Unfortunately the Forum was also the site of one of my worst memories. It was one of those few times that change your life, set you in a new direction, and you look back on when wondering “what might have been”. My dad and I went to a Kings game around Christmas of ’89. We left late (stayed to watch a Pee-Wee hockey game) and it was raining. The parking lot was almost empty. About halfway to our car another car approached us at high speed, stopped and a guy got out of the passenger seat with a gun. He pointed it at my dads head and demanded money. Luckily he had a couple of hundred dollars in small bills on him. My dad dropped the money on the ground and we slowly backed away while the guy picked it up. Luckily he just picked it up and got back in the car because he could have shot us and no one would have ever caught him/them. Forum security and the Inglewood police could care less, they probably hear the same story after every game.

So we mutually decided we were about done with the LA experience and decided to move down to Palm Springs (Palm Desert actually). Of course this is where I went to HS, met my wife, had my daughter, etc., so I don’t regret any of it. I am just glad the guy decided not to shoot.

We went back a few times for Kings playoff games or the occasional Laker game, but we always left with a big crowd.

Anyway those are my Forum memories. Well plus the basement urinal experiences of course.

Jerry West Blocking Walt Frazers shot in NBA all star game and Elton John concert.

I remember as a REAL little kid it seemed so majestic to me with those columns all lit up. Although after getting used to Staples I am sure it would never live up to how I remember it.

To me it’ll always be about the Showtime – and the Lakers vs. Celtics battles in The Finals. Here’s a great clip to illustrate. (Check 2:20 – I think that is dancing Barry for just a second.)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bPWShLCuDuI#t=0m35s

Ironically, I think the best seats I ever had there were for a Laker-Celtics Finals game and I think it was that epic massacre game where they lost by 30+ points but came back to win the championship. I think my mom got them comp’ed from her work but now I wonder if she was stuping her boss (probably not) or bought them but didn’t want my dad to know how much she spent (more likely).