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| Location | 4530 Market Street Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 39°57′29″N75°12′42″W / 39.957959°N 75.211726°W /39.957959; -75.211726 |
| Capacity | 5,526 6,500 (76ers 1966) |
| Construction | |
| Opened | February 14, 1920 |
| Closed | August 24, 1983 (fire) |
| Demolished | August 24, 1983 |
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ThePhiladelphia Arena was an auditorium used mainly for sporting events located at 46th and Market Streets in WestPhiladelphia.
The address of the building, originally named thePhiladelphia Ice Palace and Auditorium, was 4530 Market Street. The building stood next to what would become theWFIL TV studio that broadcastAmerican Bandstand. It was built byGeorge F. Pawling, of George F. Pawling & Co., Engineers and Contractors, and opened on Saturday, February 14, 1920, with a college hockey game betweenYale andPrinceton Tigers; the Bulldogs won, 4–0, before a crowd of over 4,000[1] despite the fact that the arena had only one small entrance at the time.
One of the first teams to make the Arena home was the Yale University men's ice hockey team. Yale did not have a suitable on-campus venue in 1920 and played home games in Philadelphia.[2] During the 1920–1921 season, Yale, Princeton, and Penn made the Arena their home ice.[3]
Jules Mastbaum, owner of a movie theater chain (The Stanley Company of America), acquired the building in 1925 and renamed it the Arena. In 1927 the Arena was purchased by Rudy Fried and Maurice Fishman who operated the facility until 1934, when their partnership was placed in receivership. In 1929,Peter A. Tyrrell (1896–1973) joined the Arena as boxing matchmaker and subsequently became the facility's publicist. In 1934 Tyrrell was named a friendly receiver-in-equity by George Welsh, a federal judge. Tyrrell became general manager of the Arena and served in that capacity until 1958, returning the corporation to profitability and enriching the variety of public entertainment.[4]
The arena was the site of several historic sporting events, including the professional debut ofSonja Henie, fresh from her triumph in the 1936Winter Olympics. Roy Rogers, cowboy movie star, performed in his first rodeo at the Philadelphia arena in 1943. TheRoy RogersRodeo played the Arena every season for more than 20 years, and in 1946, when a young cowgirl died after riding a bucking bronco, her funeral was held there. Rogers and the Sons of Pioneers sang "Roundup in the Sky", and after the closing prayer, everybody rode out to the cemetery. It was also the home of the Philadelphia Sports Writers Association Banquet. Professionally, the arena was the home of thePhiladelphia Quakers of theNHL in their only season, 1930–1931, as well as home ice for several minor league hockey teams such as thePhiladelphia Arrows,Philadelphia Ramblers, the Philadelphia Comets, the Philadelphia Falcons/Philadelphia Rockets and thePhiladelphia Ramblers (EHL), as well as thePhiladelphia Warriors and part-time home of thePhiladelphia 76ers of theNBA when the Philadelphia Convention Center was unavailable.
The arena was also a major venue forboxing andwrestling before the opening of theSpectrum. Throughout the history of the Arena, such legends asSugar Ray Robinson,Lew Tendler,Gene Tunney,Joe Frazier,Jack Delaney, andPrimo Carnera fought there. Several championship wrestling matches occurred there, both for theNWA and theWWWF (includingStan Stasiak winning the WWWF championship belt in 1973, the only time until 1977 the belt ever changed hands outside ofMadison Square Garden).Roller Derby also was held there, through the team named the Philadelphia Warriors, not connected with the basketball team, owned by Bill Griffiths, the owner of theLos Angeles Thunderbirds andRoller Games.
"Didja Get Any Onya?" on the albumWeasels Ripped My Flesh byFrank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention was recorded at this venue on March 2, 1969.
The Arena was not used as much for political and other events, as those events tended to be held atConvention Hall. However, many of the city's mayoral inauguration parties were held there. EvangelistBilly Sunday spoke there, and before the United States entered World War II,Charles A. Lindbergh gave a speech before anAmerica First Committee Meeting.
In 1947 the Arena was sold toTriangle Publications, along with the NBA franchise and the Philadelphia Warriors Basketball team. This transaction made TV stationWFIL-TV (Channel 6), owned by Triangle Publications, the first joint ownership of a major professional sports team and TV station. In 1958, a group headed by Tyrrell purchased the Arena from the Walter Annenberg Foundation, to which ownership had been transferred by Triangle Publications. At the time of Tyrrell's retirement in 1965, the Arena building was sold at auction to James Toppi Enterprises, a sports promotion concern.
The building fell out of popular use in the 1970s, due to the building of theSpectrum in 1967. From 1967 to 1974, the arena was home to the Eastern Warriors, a Roller Derby team, skating every Friday and Sunday, usually to capacity. In 1977, the deteriorating building was auctioned off. It was renovated and renamed in honor ofMartin Luther King Jr.
In 1980, theContinental Basketball Association'sLancaster Red Roses relocated to the newly named Martin Luther King Jr. Arena and became the Philadelphia Kings. The Kings were coached by longtime 76er and Basketball Hall of FamerHal Greer and led on the court by former NBA superstarCazzie Russell. The franchise lasted just one season at the legendary arena before returning to Lancaster.
The arena was finally destroyed by arson on August 24, 1983.[5] As of 2007, the former site of the arena now contains a housing complex, adjacent to the former TV studio which has become the Ron Brown Commerce Center.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)| Preceded by first arena | Home of the Philadelphia Warriors 1946–1962 | Succeeded by Cow Palace as San Francisco Warriors |
| Preceded by | Home of the Philadelphia 76ers 1963–1966 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Home of the Philadelphia Quakers 1930–1931 | Succeeded by last arena |
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