Posted on 07/13/2022 4:08:14 PM PDT by nickcarraway
Promotional nights have been a part of baseball games for years, but there will never be anything like what happened at Comiskey Park on July 12, 1979.
On that night, a radio promotion led to an on-field storming, a forfeit for the White Sox and a longtime debate on what the night really represented.
This is Disco Demolition Night: A promotion featuring popular WLUP disc jockey Steve Dahl and his quest to destroy records featuring disco music — a genre he despised and made fun of on the air during his shows.
Josh Harrison stops by after the White Sox double header with the Guardians to talk about how he prepared for the second game after losing the first.
Disco Demolition Night was held during a double-header against the Tigers with the White Sox trying to build momentum in what had been a disappointing 1979 up to that point. Two years removed from a 90-win season, the club had won just nine games in April and June but entered Disco Demolition Night with seven wins in their last eight games.
As part of the promotion with WLUP, fans could get a 98 cent ticket to the doubleheader if they brought a disco record with them to sell. It was expected to draw a few thousand extra fans but instead, the contest officially drew 47,795 — the largest crowd of the year.
It’s estimated that over 50,000 eventually made their way into the ballpark.
The turnout, naturally, featured a mostly anti-disco crowd who had plenty of signs and often changed “disco sucks” during the evening.
After a 4-1 White Sox loss to the Tigers in Game 1, the albums were blown up in center field, much to the delight of the fans. After things settled down for a bit, people started to trickle onto the field as the White Sox began to warm up for Game 2.
Then a sea of people invaded the playing surface and eventually it was covered with fans.
Owner Bill Veeck and announcer Harry Caray pleaded with the fans to return to their seats, a alert was put on the scoreboard with the same message, and even the lights were dimmed in hopes of restoring order.
None of it worked as a bonfire was set in the center field and a batting cage was destroyed right around it while the grass was damaged around the field. The bases were taken as well during the little under 40 minutes that the fans had their run of the field.
With an estimated 7,000 fans on the field, Chicago police were called in and eventually were able to get the crowd under control. Cheers came down from the crowd as the fans were finally led off with 39 people arrested for disorderly conduct.
With the field torn up and Tigers manager Sparky Anderson refusing to let his team play out of safety concerns, the decision was made initially to postpone the second game of the doubleheader to a later date. It was later determined that the White Sox would forfeit the game since they couldn’t provide an adequate playing field for the contest.
Some have blamed it for the downfall of disco music, which had found popularity in the late 1970s. In a documentary from HBO in 2020, the Bee Gees said they shifted away from the genre after Disco Demolition Night and began to produce for other artists.
Some have even credited the birth of house music to the event, as detailed in this 2019 report by VOX.
On the 40th anniversary of the event, WGN’s Mike Lowe did a story about the complicated legacy of the event. See by some as a radio promotion gone wrong, others now view Disco Demolition Night as “racist and homophobic.”
In a 2019 interview with the Chicago Tribune, Dahl responded to the criticism of the event.
“We blew up disco records, made fun of the Bee Gees and ‘Saturday Night Fever.’ It goes no deeper than that,” Dahl said in that interview. “Perception is not always reality. Especially when that perception uses the prism of today to look at events 40 years ago. Sometimes a stupid radio promotion is just a stupid radio promotion.”
No matter what the thoughts of the event, it remains a significant sports and cultural moment in the history of Chicago.
Best night ever for destroying disco which nearly destroyed rock and roll, they had it coming.
Quesadillas make great frisbees.
The Angels only sold quesadillas at a game once.
They’ll never admit to it, but I’d bet the farm that this ‘promo’ was originally thought up by the gang at ‘WKRP in Cincinnati.’ ;)
“With God as my witness; I thought turkeys could fly!”
I LOVED Disco. I loved everything about the songs and the artists. I STILL listen to Disco music to this day. I saw ‘Saturday Night Fever’ SIX times! I was in the Army then but on off-duty hours I LOVED sparkly tops and spandex and high heels. My gang at the time NEVER missed an opportunity to go dancing. Good clean fun. :)
GMTA! See my Post #44, LOL!
(I didn’t see your post until I scrolled back through.)
“…fat ass Steve Dahl.”
That makes two of us.
Yikes.
“That sounds as incongruous as a hip-hop club in Martha’s Vineyard.”
Well, it wasn’t George Jones ‘Possum Holler’.
Use to buy it in Cleveland Heights 30+ years ago. Heaven.
Really enjoyed living in Cleveland.
One day in Cleveland I was at a 4 way stop light. (kinda strange)
My light changed to green but I had to left turn into a lot immediately after the light.
The lane going the opposite direction was stopped and long but some old man got out of his car and motioned to the cars behind him to back up and they all did so I could make the turn!
Great people.
“Ring My Bell” was the song.
Yes. Cleveland Indians.
Column: Throwing tortillas isn't a racist act — until it is?
Police identified the adult who distributed tortillas. The CUSD trustees acknowledged the acts to be egregious, demeaning, disrespectful and fully condemned the racism, classism, and colorism. .. Lots more at article. .
Lol, except for you and me, we're all nuts!
https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2021-06-24/tortilla-tossing-san-diego
I listen to practically anything. Disco had its moments, it could hot, cool, comical, sexy, it was a party. And it thankfully kicked bass playing up a notch overall. Lit some fires and bass continues its upward track.
Hey, Mantovani even has a place in my musical heart.
When he did the Disco Demolition Night, it was well promoted on the Loop, but none of my far north suburb buddies ever considered going to Comiskey Park for a night game! I did watch it on TV, though, and it seemed like Jimmy Piersall was about to have another nervous breakdown!
I'm the same. I saw Chic mentioned upthread, so I just listened to "I Want Your Love" by them - great bassline, great song.
I don't think there's any genres I reject completely as they all have some music I like.
I remember the sign at Comiskey when the White Sox were actually having a good season: “Die, Yuppie Scum! Go Back to Wrigley!”
They were supposed to play a doubleheader, but they did this between games and had to postpone the second game.
Apparently, this one wasn’t Bill Veeck’s idea, but the brainstorm of his son Mike.
**Wonder what Barry White thought of DDN? IIRC much of his work showed disco influence, especially “My First, My Last, My Everything”.**
About the time I turned 20, I realized that this small town farm boy was going to need to go to where there was a greater number of pretty young ladies to meet. That was summer 75. So it seemed logical driving 30-40 miles to the Quad Cities (a metro area staddling the Miss river in IL and IA, with a population of over 300k).
As disco got more popular I began visiting a couple; however, not knowing how to dance, I didn’t go to those places very often. But every time I did, I saw that attractive girls were often there without a date. It wasn’t until mid 76 I decided to learn how to dance. And after I did, I was noticed, and was rarely turned down for a dance. It wasn’t uncommon to be asked to dance by a pretty gal.
But one night I took a buddy along, and after he got bored at standing around being unoticed, he begged to go to his favorite bar. I reluctantly agreed to leave the disco and go there. Once there, he promptly bumped into one of his motorcross friends. I just stood along a wall in this crowed bar, waiting to go home.....
Then I saw her.
Beautiful, she looked like my idea of a dream girl (similar to Jennifer O’Neil)
Walked up to her and struck up a conversation.
Wonderful voice and personality.
First date: next night, she had me in the palm of her hand.
And still does, ever since that marvelous evening, the last friday night of Sept, 77.
That song by Barry White became a personal favorite, even though I left the dance floor behind.
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