Thursday, March 31, 2022

Allen Theatre: Ali vs Foster

 Before cable telly was in viewers homes, major events would be broadcast to select venues via closed-circuit television. The major downtown venues all had permanent television installations in the 1950's, but the one in the Allen was long gone by 1972. A temporary set up was used instead, a sheet of plywood was placed on a couple rows of seats house center, and the projector would be set up on a stand on top. The main picture sheet wasn't used, it was huge, way too big. Instead, a smaller television screen, about 20' x 20', was dropped, and pulled back a bit to prevent keystoning. This like the larger screen, dated back to the Warner years and an earlier television installation. These events usually drew a decent sized crowd, and this was no different, probably around 1,800 - 2,000 of the 2,860 seats were filled. I worked the main floor concession stand and we sold a lot of soda and corn before the fight, and not much once the fight began. This one went 15 rounds with Ali winning by unanimous decision.

From the Plain Dealer, March 31, 1972.

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