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Bill Graham Civic Auditorium

Coordinates: 37°46′42″N 122°25′03″W / 37.778457°N 122.417369°W / 37.778457; -122.417369
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Bill Graham Civic Auditorium
Exterior of venue viewed from the City Hall (c.2008)
Bill Graham Civic Auditorium is located in San Francisco
Bill Graham Civic Auditorium
Bill Graham Civic Auditorium
Location within San Francisco
Bill Graham Civic Auditorium is located in California
Bill Graham Civic Auditorium
Bill Graham Civic Auditorium
Bill Graham Civic Auditorium (California)
Former namesSan Francisco Exposition Auditorium (1915)
San Francisco Civic Auditorium (1916–1992)
Address99 Grove St
San Francisco, CA 94102-4720
LocationCivic Center
Coordinates37°46′42″N 122°25′03″W / 37.778457°N 122.417369°W / 37.778457; -122.417369
Public transit Bay Area Rapid Transit Civic Center
OwnerCity and County of San Francisco
OperatorAnother Planet Entertainment
Capacity8,500
Construction
Broke groundDecember 1913
OpenedMarch 2, 1915
Renovated1962–1964, 1989–1990, 1994–1996, 2005, 2010
Construction cost$1.7 million
($52.4 million in 2023 dollars[1])
ArchitectJohn Galen Howard, Frederick Meyer, John W. Reid Jr.
Tenants
San Francisco Warriors (NBA) (1964–1967)

The Bill Graham Civic Auditorium (formerly San Francisco Civic Auditorium and San Francisco Exposition Auditorium) is a multi-purpose arena in San Francisco, California, named after promoter Bill Graham. The arena holds 8,500 people.

About the venue

[edit]
1920 Democratic National Convention

The auditorium was designed by renowned Bay Area architects John Galen Howard, Frederick Herman Meyer and John W. Reid Jr. and built in 1915 as part of the Panama–Pacific International Exposition. The auditorium hosted the 1920 Democratic National Convention, the San Francisco Opera from 1923 to 1932 and again for the 1996 season,[2] and the National AAU boxing trials in 1948. It was the home of the San Francisco Warriors of the National Basketball Association from 1964 to 1967.[3][4] An underground expansion, named Brooks Hall, was completed in 1958 under the Civic Center Plaza, immediately north of the Civic Auditorium. The famous Mother of All Demos was presented here during the 1968 Fall Joint Computer Conference,[5] and the World Cyber Games 2004 were also held here.

In 1992, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors voted to rename the auditorium after the rock concert impresario Bill Graham, who had died the previous year in a helicopter crash.[6]

Long before Bill Graham came along, James T. Graham (no relation) managed the Civic Auditorium from 1954 to 1970 and booked some of the biggest names in show business there. During Jim Graham's tenure, the Civic Auditorium hosted Elvis Presley (October 26, 1957), Judy Garland (September 13, 1961), Ray Charles, the Tijuana Brass, Donovan, the Jefferson Airplane (June 4, 1966), the Mamas and the Papas (October 10, 1966), The Temptations and Gladys Knight & the Pips (January 26, 1968), Jose Feliciano, Bobby Darin and more, which prompted San Francisco Chronicle columnist Herb Caen to opine that the Board of Supervisors had named the Civic Auditorium after the wrong Graham (January 12, 1993).

Jim Graham signed the Warriors to a contract at the Civic in 1962 when they first moved from Philadelphia to San Francisco. The Warriors would play their first few seasons at the Civic before they moved to the Cow Palace, a larger venue. Jim Graham was manager of the Auditorium when Brooks Hall was built as an adjacent, underground convention center. He also managed Brooks Hall after its dedication on April 11, 1958, and booked American Medical Association conventions, the Harvest Festival, the San Francisco Gift Show and more.

Under Jim Graham's management, the Civic Auditorium also hosted Barnum & Bailey circuses, the San Francisco Roller Derby, Golden Gloves Boxing matches, professional wrestling, Holiday on Ice, the Ice Capades, car shows, the International Dog Show, the Black and White Ball and the Folderol. In addition, President Dwight D. Eisenhower spoke there on August 23, 1956, on the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Republican Party, and a fundraising gala was held there on June 1, 1968, for Democratic presidential hopeful Senator Robert F. Kennedy, four days before he was assassinated in Los Angeles. At the time, the Civic Auditorium was ground zero in San Francisco for conventions and entertainment events. There were no other major venues for large gatherings outside of the Cow Palace, which was considered ill-equipped for such events (despite the fact that it was larger).

Later, the Civic Auditorium arena would continue to host concerts by many other famous artists, spanning many different genres. It is owned by the City and County of San Francisco and since 2010 has been operated by Another Planet Entertainment.[7][8]

Concerts

[edit]
Date Artist Opening act(s) Tour / Concert name Attendance Revenue Notes
May 14, 1965 The Rolling Stones 1965 1st American Tour [9]
February 14, 1982 Prince Zapp and Roger, The Time Controversy Tour [10]
February 15, 1982
March 29, 1982 J. Geils Band U2 October Tour [11][12]
March 30, 1982
June 17, 1982 Elton John Jump Up Tour 6,713 / 6,713 [13]
April 3, 1983 Kiss Mötley Crüe Creatures of the Night Tour/10th Anniversary Tour [14]
June 1, 1983 U2 War Tour [15]
December 15, 1984 U2 The Unforgettable Fire Tour [16]
April 23, 1985 Madonna Beastie Boys, Run DMC The Virgin Tour 8,500 / 8,500 $127,500 [17]
September 25, 1985 Y&T Down For The Count Tour
March 30, 1988 Kiss Anthrax Crazy Nights World Tour [18]
October 2, 1993 Luis Miguel Aries Tour
April 13, 1996 Oasis Third Eye Blind (What's the Story) Morning Glory? Tour [19]
January 26, 1998 Oasis Cornershop Be Here Now Tour [20]
November 4, 1999 Blink-182 Loserkids Tour [21]
November 25, 1999 Kid Rock Devil Without a Cause Tour
October 13, 2001 Bob Dylan Never Ending Tour 2001 [22]
September 16, 2004 Beastie Boys Talib Kweli Pageant Tour [23]
September 17, 2004
November 24, 2004 Green Day New Found Glory, Sugarcult American Idiot World Tour [24]
July 15, 2006 Pearl Jam Pearl Jam 2006 World Tour [23]
July 16, 2006
July 18, 2006
October 16, 2006 Bob Dylan Kings of Leon Never Ending Tour 2006 [25]
October 17, 2006
October 29, 2006 Snoop Dogg [23]
November 7, 2006 Pet Shop Boys Fundamental Tour [23]
November 20, 2006 Tenacious D Neil Hamburger The Pick of Destiny Tour [26][27]
March 1, 2007 Snow Patrol Eyes Open Tour [28]
April 9, 2007 Muse Black Holes and Revelations Tour [29]
September 27, 2007 Arctic Monkeys Favourite Worst Nightmare Tour
December 13, 2009 Lady Gaga Kid Cudi,

Semi Precious Weapons

The Monster Ball Tour 17,000 / 17,000 $840,960 [30]
December 14, 2009
April 9, 2011 Rise Against Endgame Tour
June 8, 2011 Bruno Mars Mayer Hawthorne & the County Hooligans in Wondaland Tour [31]
December 10, 2011 Sara Bareilles Kaleidoscope Heart Tour [32]
October 17, 2012 Bob Dylan/Mark Knopfler Bob Dylan Tour with Mark Knopfler 2012 [33]
October 18, 2012
February 13, 2013 Swedish House Mafia One Last Tour [34]
February 14, 2013
February 15, 2013
February 16, 2013
February 17, 2013
April 27, 2013 The Killers The Felice Brothers Battle Born World Tour [35]
April 28, 2013
December 7, 2013 Macklemore & Ryan Lewis Talib Kweli, Big K.R.I.T. The Heist World Tour [36]
March 29, 2014 Robin Thicke Blurred Lines Tour
April 18, 2014 Lana Del Rey Paradise Tour
April 19, 2014 Ellie Goulding St. Lucia The Halcyon Days Tour
October 10, 2014 The Weeknd ScHoolboy QJhené Aiko King of the Fall Tour
October 11, 2014
September 16, 2015 Zedd True Colors Tour 17,016 / 17,016 $765,720
September 17, 2015
October 13, 2015 Janet Jackson Unbreakable World Tour 10,172 / 10,172 $1,131,847
October 14, 2015
December 27, 2015 Dead & Company Dead & Company 2015 Tour 17,032 / 17,032 $1,277,400
December 28, 2015
March 27, 2016 Fall Out Boy Finish Ticket,

Awolnation

Wintour is Coming 7,300 / 7,300 $385,995
May 28, 2016 Macklemore & Ryan Lewis An Evening with Macklemore & Ryan Lewis
October 21, 2016 Chance the Rapper Magnificent Coloring World Tour
April 15, 2017 The xx I See You Tour
April 16, 2017
April 17, 2017
May 5, 2017 The Chainsmokers Kiiara

Grandtheft

Memories Do Not Open Tour 17,000 / 17,000 $1,445,000
May 6, 2017 Kiiara

Kyle

June 17, 2017 Kehlani SweetSexySavage World Tour
October 4, 2017 Gorillaz Vince StaplesDanny Brown Humanz Tour
January 22, 2018 St. Vincent Fear the Future Tour
February 1, 2018 Queens of the Stone Age Eagles of Death Metal Villains World Tour
May 5, 2018 Khalid PrettyMuch Roxy Tour
May 6, 2018
September 7, 2018 Shakira El Dorado World Tour
October 20, 2018 Arctic Monkeys Mini Mansions Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino Tour
October 21, 2018
November 8, 2018 Brockhampton I'll Be There Tour
April 22, 2019 The 1975 Pale Waves Music for Cars
May 29, 2019 Billie Eilish Denzel Curry When We All Fall Asleep Tour
June 28, 2019 Carly Rae Jepsen Mansionair The Dedicated Tour
July 25, 2019 Robyn Troye Sivan Honey Tour 5,620 / 5,620 $446,811
October 27, 2019 Lizzo Empress Of Cuz I Love You Too Tour
October 28, 2019
November 11, 2021 Playboi Carti King Vamp Tour
May 3, 2022 Lorde Remi Wolf Solar Power Tour
May 27, 2022 Olivia Rodrigo Chappell Roan Sour Tour
October 4, 2022 Rosalía Motomami World Tour
October 23, 2022 Lil Nas X Long Live Montero Tour
August 4, 2023 (G)I-dle I Am Free-ty World Tour
June 6, 2023 Melanie Martinez PORTALS Tour
October 29, 2023 Kim Petras Feed the Beast World Tour

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bill Graham Civic Auditorium.
  1. ^ 1634–1699: McCusker, J. J. (1997). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States: Addenda et Corrigenda (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1700–1799: McCusker, J. J. (1992). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1800–present: Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Retrieved February 29, 2024.
  2. ^ "Civic Auditorium Comes Up in the World / S.F. Opera opening moves to 'the Bill'". Opera Reference. September 7, 1996. Retrieved February 28, 2018.
  3. ^ "1964-65 San Francisco Warriors Schedule and Results". Basketball Reference. Archived from the original on March 15, 2013. Retrieved March 1, 2013.
  4. ^ "1965-66 San Francisco Warriors Schedule and Results". Basketball Reference. Archived from the original on March 14, 2013. Retrieved March 1, 2013.
  5. ^ "About the Mother of All Demos". Archived from the original on October 6, 2018. Retrieved March 9, 2018.
  6. ^ "Today in Music: a look back at pop music". United Press International. October 13, 2002. Archived from the original on October 20, 2012. Retrieved March 1, 2013.
  7. ^ Wildermuth, John (July 1, 2010). "Let's make a deal". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved July 31, 2017.
  8. ^ Knight, Heather (August 25, 2015). "Heavy secrecy surrounds upcoming event at Civic Auditorium". San Francisco Chronicle. Archived from the original on August 28, 2015. Retrieved August 26, 2015. John Gavin, project manager for the city administrator's office, said the city makes roughly $100,000 from Another Planet Entertainment annually on the deal.
  9. ^ "ROLLING STONES TOUR / The Stones Around the Bay". Archived from the original on July 3, 2023. Retrieved July 3, 2023.
  10. ^ "When Prince Rocked the Bay Area". Archived from the original on July 3, 2023. Retrieved July 3, 2023.
  11. ^ "U2 October Tour". Archived from the original on July 3, 2023. Retrieved July 3, 2023.
  12. ^ "U2 October Tour".
  13. ^ "Elton John 1982 Concerts". Archived from the original on July 3, 2023. Retrieved July 3, 2023.
  14. ^ "On this date in 1983:".
  15. ^ "1983-06-01 - San Francisco, California - Civic Auditorium". Archived from the original on July 3, 2023. Retrieved July 3, 2023.
  16. ^ "U2 Unforgettable Fire Tour". Archived from the original on July 3, 2023. Retrieved July 3, 2023.
  17. ^ "Virgin Tour Poster SF". Archived from the original on July 3, 2023. Retrieved July 3, 2023.
  18. ^ "March 30, 1988". Archived from the original on July 3, 2023. Retrieved July 3, 2023.
  19. ^ "Oasis at Bill Graham Civic Auditorium, San Francisco (04/13/1996)". Archived from the original on July 3, 2023. Retrieved July 3, 2023.
  20. ^ "Oasis Gets Help From San Francisco Audience". Archived from the original on July 3, 2023.
  21. ^ "Blink 182 - 11/4/99 Bill Graham Civic Auditorium, San Francisco, CA". Archived from the original on July 3, 2023. Retrieved July 3, 2023.
  22. ^ "OCT 13, 2001 San Francisco, CA Bill Graham Civic Auditorium". Archived from the original on July 3, 2023. Retrieved July 3, 2023.
  23. ^ a b c d "Bill Graham Civic Auditorium". Archived from the original on July 3, 2023. Retrieved July 3, 2023.
  24. ^ "Green Day in San Francisco, USA - Nov 24, 2004". Archived from the original on July 3, 2023. Retrieved July 3, 2023.
  25. ^ "Bob Dylan 2006 SF Poster". Archived from the original on July 3, 2023. Retrieved July 3, 2023.
  26. ^ "Tenacious D with Neil Hamburger". Archived from the original on July 3, 2023. Retrieved July 3, 2023.
  27. ^ "USA - Tenacious D Perform in San Francisco". Archived from the original on July 3, 2023. Retrieved July 3, 2023.
  28. ^ "Snow Patrol in Concert - San Francisco CA". Archived from the original on July 3, 2023. Retrieved July 3, 2023.
  29. ^ "Apr 9 2007 #MuseHistory".
  30. ^ "Photos: Lady Gaga at Bill Graham Civic Auditorium, SF, 12/14". Archived from the original on July 3, 2023. Retrieved July 3, 2023.
  31. ^ "Bruno Mars And Janelle Monae In Concert, San Francisco, California". Archived from the original on July 3, 2023. Retrieved July 3, 2023.
  32. ^ "SARA BAREILLES - SAN FRANCISCO".
  33. ^ "Bob Dylan Croaks the Blues at Bill Graham Civic Auditorium, 10/18/12". Archived from the original on July 3, 2023. Retrieved July 3, 2023.
  34. ^ "EVENT RECAP: SWEDISH HOUSE MAFIA "ONE LAST TOUR" AT BILL GRAHAM CIVIC AUDITORIUM".
  35. ^ "Bill Graham Civic Auditorium 28.04.2013". Archived from the original on July 3, 2023. Retrieved July 3, 2023.
  36. ^ "Macklemore & Ryan Lewis | San Francisco Bill Graham Civic Auditorium". Archived from the original on July 3, 2023. Retrieved July 3, 2023.
Events and tenants
Preceded by Home of the
San Francisco Warriors (with War Memorial Gymnasium)
1964–1966 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Davis Cup
Final Venue
1979 		Succeeded by
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