RIP Philly Spectrum!

R.I.P. Spectrum - Beloved stadium and old friend, 1967-2010

It may be difficult for many people in the Philadelphia/New Jersey/Delaware Valley area to truly and fully connect with what the Spectrum has meant to the area over the last 43 years. When it opened in the Fall of 1967, it was a 17,000-seat, state-of-the-art marvel. It was palace and it was a fortress. It was not only the new home of the NHL expansion team, the Philadelphia Flyers; the Spectrum hosted concerts, NBA basketball for the 76ers, the circus, Icecapades, professional boxing and wrestling and more. It saw six Stanley Cup Finals, including the Flyers hoisting their first Cup, as well as four NBA finals. It saw greats like Elvis Presley, Frank Sinatra and repeated visits from local favorites Billy Joel and Bruce Springsteen.

"When I was just 10 yrs. old I went to the Elvis concert in May of 1977 at the Philadelphia Spectrum with a friend also 10 at the time. Acting our age, we snuck very close to the stage and when Elvis was speaking to the audiance we yelled out together, and we made Elvis laugh. I remember a business called King features syndicate actually passed out flyers outside on the steps of the Spectrum that then enabled one to buy that concert on tape for like $25...but back then I didn't have the money." said Will.

Two weeks ago, the Spectrum opened their doors and charged $25 a head for the general public to do a good old fashioned loot-and-pillage, letting fans and collectors literally keep whatever they could haul out on their shoulders. She’s now dispersed far and wide across hundreds of square miles in every direction, living on in garages, living rooms, bedrooms, mantowns. You can almost see her smile in the face of the wrecking ball. You can almost hear her say, “Go for it. Gimme your best shot. You can’t kill me.” And she’s right. Concrete is easy to break down and take away. Memories…not so much.