| Henry J. Kaiser Center for the Arts | |
|---|---|
 Kaiser Convention Center in April 2021 | |
 | |
| Former names | Oakland Civic Auditorium(1914-84), Kaiser Convention Center(1984–2023) |
| General information | |
| Architectural style | Beaux Arts[1] |
| Location | 10 10th Street,Oakland, California |
| Coordinates | 37°47′51″N122°15′42″W / 37.79750°N 122.26167°W /37.79750; -122.26167 |
| Completed | 1914 |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect(s) | John J. Donovan |
| Designated | 1979 |
| Reference no. | 27 |
TheHenry J. Kaiser Center for the Arts is a historic, publicly owned multi-purpose building located inOakland, California. The facility includes a 5,492-seat arena, a large theater, and a large ballroom.[2] The building is #27 on the list of Oakland Historic Landmarks.,[3] and was listed on theNational Register of Historic Places in 2021.[4]
The building is located at 10 10th Street, in theCivic Center district of the city. It is next to theOakland Museum,Laney College,Lake Merritt, and near theLake MerrittBARTstation.
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TheBeaux-Arts style landmark was built in 1914; the architect was John J. Donovan.[3] The structural engineer was Maurice Couchot.[5] Originally known as theOakland Civic Auditorium, it was renamed in honor ofHenry J. Kaiser after a 1984 renovation.
The city closed the facility in 2006 and its future was uncertain for a decade.[1] In 2006, Oakland voters defeated a ballot proposition advocating a library space in the building.
The facility was owned by the City of Oakland until 2011, when it was sold to the local redevelopment agency for $28 million.[6] However, the redevelopment agency was dissolved by the State of California in 2012,[7] so ownership reverted to the city of Oakland.
In 2015 the city chose a local developer, Orton Development, Inc. to renovate the facility. Heller Manus Architects was selected to lead the building seismic retrofit and renovation. The Calvin Simmons Theatre will return as a performing arts center, hosting live performances and providing event and practice spaces big and small for local arts organizations. The building’s basement will house music studios, makers’ spaces, and storage space for the Theatre and local arts organizations.[8]
The arena space was originally planned to be office space, but in 2023 it reopened with its original function as event space.[9] The Calvin Simmons Theatre was reopened in 2024.[10]
The building was renamed as theHenry J. Kaiser Center for the Arts in 2023.[11]
During the1918 flu pandemic the auditorium was used as a makeshift infirmary.[12]
Until 1941, Kaiser Arena hosted theRingling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus. In 1942, the Circus moved across the bay to theSan Francisco Civic Auditorium and then in the mid-1960s to theCow Palace.
In the 1950s and 1960s theRoller Derby played there hundreds of times. The auditorium hosted theOakland Symphony Orchestra until 1972, and the arena was home to theOakland Skatesroller hockey team in 1996.
For almost 70 years, from 1919 until 1987, the arena was home to the annual Christmas Pageant (later the Oakland Children's Holiday Pageant) involving at least 1,700 youngsters from 70 city schools. The organizer, professional ballerina and dance teacher Louise Jorgensen,[13] went to each school to train the children for their role as elves, toys, poinsettias or fairies.[14]
Elvis Presley performed at the convention center on June 3, 1956, and again on October 27, 1957.
On December 28, 1962,Martin Luther King Jr. spoke to an audience of 7,000 at the auditorium to mark the 100th anniversary of theEmancipation Proclamation.[15]
Ike & Tina Turner performed at the Oakland Auditorium on January 13, 1967.
From 1967 through 1989, theGrateful Dead, an American rock band, performed at the convention center 57 times. Their first 23 concerts at the convention center were billed at "Oakland Auditorium", and later, starting in 1985, the venue changed to "Henry J. Kaiser Convention Center". In the 80's the band started performing "runs" of shows over the course of three to seven days.[16][17]
On November 23, 1969,Western swing pioneer and TV personalitySpade Cooley received a 72-hour furlough from Vacaville prison to play a benefit concert for the Deputy Sheriffs Association of Alameda County. During the intermission, after a standing ovation, he died of a heart attack. He was to be paroled on February 22, 1970.
On November 30, 1979, Bob Marley and the Wailers played at the Oakland Auditorium on theSurvival Tour.
On August 6, 1988, the arena hosted a stop of NWA wrestling'sGreat American Bash tour. The Main Event featured aWarGames match betweenThe Four Horsemen and the team ofDusty Rhodes,Lex Luger, andThe Road Warriors andPaul Ellering.
Megadeth played an ill-fated show on October 3, 1988, in which frontmanDave Mustaine was severely intoxicated and began ranting against his former bandMetallica (who were present at the show), and began verbally assaulting several audience members. He would also go on to denounce Metallica bassistJason Newsted, and replacement guitaristKirk Hammett.
On the evening of October 20, 1991 as the bandsAnthrax,Public Enemy andPrimus performed inside while acrossLake Merritt the flames of theOakland firestorm of 1991 were clearly visible from the hall's entrance asBill Graham stood and greeted patrons at the top of the entry a mere five days before his untimely death.
From 1997 through 1999 the arena played host to theUniversity of California, Berkeley'swomen's basketball team while the team's on-campus venue,Haas Pavilion, was being renovated.
In January 2012Occupy Oakland marched on the facility, stating their intent to reclaim this abandoned space for the people, but were kept away by police.[18] The action and subsequent incidents that day resulted in over 400 arrests by the Oakland Police Department and in an undetermined cost to the city due to damage and vandalism.[19]
In March 2022, the unidentified,mummified body of a man was found within a wall of the building during renovations,[20] which was later identified as that of a 44-year-old homeless man who had been missing since August 2020.[21]
On March 26, 2024,Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. held a rally to announce hisVice Presidential running mateNicole Shanahan in front of an audience of several hundred.[22]
Media related toKaiser Convention Center at Wikimedia CommonsAuthority control databases: Geographic |
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