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New Doc: How 2 DJs & A Baseball Game Helped Temporarily Derail Disco
Most here probably know the story of the infamous Disco Demolition Night at Comiskey Field in Chicago back in 1979, in which two disc jockeys blew up stacks of disco records in the middle of the field, causing so much damage and triggering such a riot, that the game was cancelled and forfeited.
But now a new Netflix documentary approaches the historic moment from a different perspective - namely Bill & Mike Veeck, the owners of the White Sox, who also had to wear the infamy. It was an incident from which they never recovered.
"The Veecks were disgraced. Bill sold the team the following year. "That event was so traumatic it broke his heart," author Neal Karlen says in the documentary. Mike became persona non grata in the world of baseball. Jimmy Piersall, the White Sox's own broadcaster, called Disco Demolition Night "the worst promotion in the history of the world".
"The Saint Of Second Chances," which also deals with the bigotry and discrimination of the time, is airing on Netflix.
The 1979 riot that 'killed' disco
- mace
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Re: New Doc: How 2 DJs & A Baseball Game Helped Temporarily Derail Disco
Other promotions that went horribly wrong. June 4, 1974. The Cleveland Indians had a 10 cent beer night. Regular price 65 cents. Maximum six 12 oz. cups per purchase. No limit on number of purchases. Aug 10, 1995. The LA Dodgers handed out Souvenir baseballs to all fans before the start of the game against the St. Louis Cardinals. When a ninth inning umpire call went against the Dodgers, many of the 53,000+ balls were hurled back on to the playing surface damaging parts of the field. This was the last game forfeiture to date in MLB.
- tvguy
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Re: New Doc: How 2 DJs & A Baseball Game Helped Temporarily Derail Disco
OK, before the political correct police cancel me, segments of the Veeck documentary made me laugh so hard I could hardly breathe. Disco night was crazy. But in his first game as promo manager, The son, Mike Veeck shot off fireworks in the Tampa Rays Tropicana Field (dome) not realizing that the ventillation system in a closed dome couldn’t handle the smoke. The Tampa team lost the ball in the smoke haze and lost the game. You have to see it to believe it. Mike Veeck also “invented” the exploding score board. The doc is worth watching, particularly if the Blue Jays don’t make post-season.
- mic'em
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Re: New Doc: How 2 DJs & A Baseball Game Helped Temporarily Derail Disco
During the 80's, Steve Dahl and Garry Meier's daily broadcast was replayed during the overnight period. I was driving an overnight route for a major auto parts supplier then, and the signal from AM1000 boomed into the cab of the truck after getting out of the GTA. They were an entertaining duo and they helped me pass the long nights through those years. The station eventually became an ESPN outlet and then Art Bell became the overnight go to.
Last edited by mic'em (September 23, 2023 8:09 am)