Who's in, who's next in the Coliseum Hall of Plaques
(John Lazar/Daily News)
OK, the official name for it is the Court of Honor, and they're up to 55 at the moment, with more to come, says Coliseum general manager Pat Lynch (above).
We covered the painstaking restoration process of the plaques in today's column (linked here), and this "before" John Kennedy bronze that faces the field, on the facade under neath the torch opposite the game play clock, shows how black, murky, and hard to read they had become. (Even weird stuff dripping off his nose). Pretty nasty, with that daily sun and smog beating down on it. Below is an example of what the same plaque looks like now. And no paint was used on the bronze to get that rich background.
Here's a link to the site of Gonzalo Algarate Design, which was contracted to refurbish all the older plaques (linked here). Algarate had been familiar with the plaques at the Coliseum, having worked in the past with Venice-based Robert Graham (link to his site here) as an assistant fabricator to work on the two Olympic male and female statues that went up outside the facility for the 1984 Olympics.
Lynch said that a change in Commission policy over the last few years has emphasized more living honorees, so they could share in the induction celebration, rather than limiting it to those already deceased. That change in heart began in 2000, when the Commission wanted to honor former USC football player and L.A. City Councilman John Ferraro, who at the time was already stricken with cancer. He was able to attend his ceremony.
Celebrations recently with John Wooden and Vin Scully reflect the new attitude, and Lynch said there is a list of many who are up to have plaques installed in the near future -- including one for all the UCLA football All-Americans who played there, mirroring one done for the USC football All-Americans (installed in 2007) during the school's 125th anniversary.
So what did Wooden do at the Coliseum that was so special? Lynch said that today's honorees won't be limited to contributions made to the Coliseum but also the nearby Sports Arena -- which means more basketball and indoor track stars will be honored. One plaque that will salute Jerry West and Elgin Baylor is in the planning stages (honoring their play with the Lakers at the Sports Arena). Lynch also hinted that plaques to honor musicians as Bruce Springsteen (who did concerts at both facilities and still favors the Sports Arena over any L.A. venue) and the Rolling Stones would be logical as well.
You can't find the names of all current t5 honorees on the Coliseum official site (linked here), or at the Wikipedia entry (linked here), where only about a dozen are named.
So as for the list, for those curious, here is is, in order of induction (with designation):
= 1932: Community Development Association (Founders)
= 1949: William May Garland (Contributor, the civic leader who got the 1932 Olympics to come to the facility)
= 1955: Howard Harding Jones (Coach, USC football)
= 1955: Knute Rockne (Coach, Notre Dame football)
= 1955: Charles Paddock (Athlete, track star at USC)
= 1955: Judge William M. Bowen (Contributor, known as "The Father of Exposition Park")
= 1956: Glenn Scobey "Pop" Warner (Coach, Stanford football)
= 1956: Andrew Latham "Andy" Smith (Coach, Cal football)
The inscription on his plaque: "It is far better to play the game squarely and lose than to win at the sacrifice of an idea."
= 1958: Paul Roy Helms (Contributor)
= 1958: Baron Pierre de Coubertin (Contributor, former head of the IOC)
= 1959: Henry Russel "Red" Sanders (Coach, UCLA football)
= 1960: Newel "Jeff" Cravath (Coach, USC football)
= 1961: Mildred "Babe" Didrickson (Athlete, Olympic track star in '32 Games)
= 1961: Dodgers 1959 World Series (Event)
= 1961: Mercy Bowl (Event, fundraiser to help athletes who died in the 1960 Cal Poly San Luis Obispo plane crash)
Of all the plaques in the peristyle end, this one above really made us stop to reflect most. Those dedicated to popes and evangelists and future presidents were great, and to city councilmen and civic leaders were enlightning, but this struck us as one from the heart. You may not remember much about this incident (here's a Wikipedia item on it linked) but on Oct. 29, 1960, a plane carrying the CPSLO team back from a game at Bowling Green crashed, killing 17 players. But many survived -- including future USC coach Ted Tollner, whose name is on this plaque. This is one of four plaques inside the main center arch below the torch.
= 1963: Dean Bartlett Cromwell (Coach, USC football)
= 1963: Jesse P. Mortensen (Athlete, USC track star and later coach)
= 1964: Count de Baillet-Latour (Contributor, IOC president)
= 1964: President John F. Kennedy (Contributor/Event, 1960 Democratic convention nomination)
= 1965: Amos Alonzo Stagg (Coach, football)
= 1965: Billy Graham Crusade (Event)
If you have any art appreciation, check this one out. The detail work is phenomenal. It appears as if everyone of the 100,000-plus who attended is included in this "Crusade for Christ" plaque that commemorates his Aug. 15-Sept. 8, 1963 appearance.
= 1966: Cardinal McIntyre & Mary's Hour (Contributor/Event)
= 1969: 50th Anniversary of Armistice (Event)
= 1970: Coliseum Commission (1933-1944) (Contributors)
= 1970: Coliseum Commission (1945-1970) (Contributors)
= 1971: William Henry Spaulding (Coach, UCLA football)
= 1971: Elmer "Gus" Henderson (Coach, USC football)
= 1972: John Jewett Garland (Contributor)
= 1972: Daniel Reeves (Contributor, owner of the L.A. Rams)
= 1972: Kenneth Washington (Athlete, UCLA track and football star)
= 1974: Francis "Frank" Leahy (Coach, Notre Dame football)
= 1975: Brice Union Taylor (Athlete, first USC All-American football player)
= 1984: J.D. Morgan (Contributor, UCLA athletic director)
= 1984: James Cleveland "Jesse" Owens (Athlete, American track star)
= 1984: Israeli Olympic Athletes (Athletes, killed at 1972 Games)
= 1984: Coliseum Commission - 1984 Olympics (Contributors)
= 1987: Pope John Paul II (Event)
= 1990: William H. Nicholas (Contributor)
= 1990: W.R. "Bill" Schroeder (Contributor)
= 1993: Kenneth Hahn (Contributor)
= 1998: Pete Rozelle (Contributor, NFL Commissioner brought first Super Bowl)
= 1998: Coliseum Commission (1971-1998) (Contributors/Event on 75th Anniversary of Coliseum)
= 1999: Earthquake Restoration (Event)
= 1999: Jim Murray (Journalist)
= 2000: John Ferraro (Athlete/Contributor)
= 2001: John McKay (Coach, USC football)
The L.A. Times' T.J. Simers did a nice column at the time (linked here) wondering why McKay's plaque wasn't in a better spot -- it currently faces out toward Figueroa, instead of pointing in and looking down at the field. Howard Jones is next to him, facing the same way. Meanwhile, Kennedy is facing in -- and he was only there once. "Let's be honest here, the only thing this building still has going for it is its history," Simers wrote. "And the Court honors 'those outstanding persons or events that have had a definite impact upon the history, glory and growth of the Coliseum.' With that in mind, who is more deserving of top billing than McKay?"
= 2002: Coliseum Track & Field Records (Events)
= 2004: John Argue (Contributor)
= 2005: Jackie Robinson (Athlete, UCLA football, basketball, track and baseball)
= 2005: Elroy "Crazy Legs" Hirsch (Athlete, L.A. Rams)
= 2007: USC All-Americans, 1880-2005 (Event)
This one lists every All-American first-team player at USC in its first 125 years, starting with Brice Taylor (who has his own plaque, listed above) and ending with the 2005 class that includes perhaps the greatest collection of Trojans, from Matt Leinart, Reggie Bush and Sam Baker. Lynch said this plaque in particular has drawn attention during USC games, when players who are on this bring their families up to it to see it and get photos taken.
= 2007: L.A. Rams 70th Reunion (Event, with plaque of the Fearsome Foursome)
Merlin Olsen, says Lynch, was especially moved by the installation of this plaque, which really is one of the few that honor the Rams. There is no plaque that recognizes the L.A> Raiders' run at the Coliseum -- nor, for that matter, the AFL's L.A. Chargers, the All-American Football Conference's L.A. Dons, the USFL's L.A. Express or XFL's L.A. WhateverTheyWereCalled.
= 2008: Vin Scully (Sportscaster, Dodgers)
= 2008: John Wooden (Coach, UCLA basketball)
= 2008: Walter O'Malley (Contributor, Dodgers owner)
It was only a couple of weeks before the Baseball Hall of Fame inducted him this past July that the Coliseum Commission held a big shindig to honor O'Malley with his giant plaque (a link here to O'Malley's website). Irionically, Scully made an appearance for the last three inductees -- himself, which was unveiled in pregame ceremonies before the Dodgers-Red Sox exhibition game in March, and then for his friend Wooden and for his former boss O'Malley.
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