july2017

28 29 Olympic Stadium. In addition to serving as the home field for the USC Trojans since 1923, countless historic events have taken place inside the Coliseum, which was declared a State and Federal His- torical Landmark in 1984. They include two Olympiads (X and XXIII), two Super Bowls (I and VII), one World Series (Dodgers vs.White Sox in 1959), a Papal Mass (Pope John Paul II in 1987), and visits by three U.S. Presidents: John F. Kennedy, Richard M. Nixon, and Ronald Reagan. On March 29, 2008, the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Boston Red Sox set a Guinness World Record for the largest attendance ever at a baseball game with a crowd of 115,300. Other historic events include Billy Graham’s appear- ance in 1963 in front of 134,254 (still an all- time Coliseum record), and Nelson Mandela’s 1990 triumphant return to the United States. Last year, the venue became the temporary home of the Los Angeles Rams of the National Football League. “So we’ve got one full NFL sea- LOS ANGELES MEMORIAL COLISEUM son with the Rams under our belt and we ex- pect them here for at least another two years,” says Brian Grant, the Coliseum’s Senior Facility Manager and Director of Operations. “In addi- tion, we’re a very popular site for the film and television industry in Los Angeles; they shoot commercials, TV shows, and full-length feature films in our venue. And we do pride ourselves in engaging the community in other private events – anything from a 150-person dinner to a 75,000-person soccer match.We’re here for everything. Those of us working here think this is the greatest stadium in the world.” Grant adds that the venue has a booking and marketing staff that actively advertises the sta- dium. “They’re involved in making cold calls out to clients and networking and building custom events,” he states. “So, not only are we putting on events, we’re actively trying to self-promote to create unique and valuable event content. We also field calls for other events that come in, and keep an active list of the repeat busi-