Staples Center
220px
Location	1111 S. Figueroa Street, Los Angeles, California, 90015
Coordinates	34°02′35″N 118°16′02″W / 34.04306°N 118.26722°W / 34.04306; -118.26722Coordinates: 34°02′35″N 118°16′02″W / 34.04306°N 118.26722°W / 34.04306; -118.26722
Broke ground	March 31, 1998
Opened	October 17, 1999
Owner	L.A. Arena Company Anschutz Entertainment Group
Operator	L.A. Arena Company Anschutz Entertainment Group
Construction cost	$375 Million ($523 million in 2012 dollars[1])
Architect	NBBJ
Structural engineer	John A Martin & Associates[2]
Services engineer	M*E Engineers Inc.
General Contractor	PCL Construction Services, Inc.[3]
Capacity	Basketball: 19,060 (Clippers Games) 18,997 (Lakers Games)[4] Ice hockey: 18,118 (at least 18,743 with standing room) Arena football: 16,096 Concerts: 20,000 Boxing/Wrestling: 21,000
Tenants
Los Angeles Clippers (NBA) (1999–present) Los Angeles Lakers (NBA) (1999–present) Los Angeles Kings (NHL) (1999–present) Los Angeles Sparks (WNBA) (2001–present) Los Angeles Avengers (AFL) (2000–2008) Los Angeles D-Fenders (D-League) (2006–2010) Pacific-12 Conference Men's Basketball Tournament (2002-2012)

Staples Center is a multi-purpose sports arena in Downtown Los Angeles. Adjacent to the L.A. Live development, it is located next to the Los Angeles Convention Center complex along Figueroa Street. Opening on October 17, 1999, it is one of the major sporting facilities in the Greater Los Angeles Area.

It is owned and operated by the L.A. Arena Company and Anschutz Entertainment Group. The arena is home to the Los Angeles Lakers and the Los Angeles Clippers of the National Basketball Association (NBA), the Los Angeles Kings of the National Hockey League (NHL), and the Los Angeles Sparks of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The Los Angeles Avengers of the Arena Football League (AFL) and the Los Angeles D-Fenders of the NBA D-League were also tenants until both franchises were discontinued; the D-Fenders moved to the Lakers' practice facility at the Toyota Sports Center in El Segundo, California for the 2011–12 season.^[5] Staples Center is also host to over 250 events and nearly 4,000,000 guests a year.^[6]

Description[link]

Structure and architecture[link]

Staples Center measures 950,000 square feet (88,257.9 m²) of total space, with a 94-foot (28.7 m) by 200-foot (61.0 m) arena floor. It stands 150 feet (45.7 m) tall.^[5] The arena seats up to 19,079 for basketball, 18,118 for ice hockey and arena football, and around 20,000 for concerts or other sporting events.^[4][6] Two-thirds of the arena's seating, including 2,500 club seats, are in the lower bowl. There are also 160 luxury suites, including 15 event suites, on three levels between the lower and upper bowls.^[5] The arena's attendance record is held by the fight between World WBA Welterweight Champion, Antonio Margarito and Shane Mosley with a crowd of 20,820 set on January 25, 2009.^[7]

Star Plaza

Outside the arena at the Star Plaza are statues of Wayne Gretzky and Magic Johnson, although both sports legends played at The Forum, where the Kings, Lakers and Sparks previously played. A third statue of boxer Oscar De La Hoya was unveiled outside Staples Center on December 1, 2008.^[8] On April 20, 2010 a fourth statue of the late long time Lakers broadcaster Chick Hearn, behind a Laker desk with a chair for fans to sit down for a picture, was unveiled. A fifth statue of the Laker legend Jerry West dribbling was unveiled on February 17, 2011.

History[link]

Staples Center in Los Angeles (photo prior to the new scoreboard installation) hosts the Los Angeles Lakers (NBA), Los Angeles Clippers (NBA), Los Angeles Kings (NHL), and Los Angeles Sparks (WNBA).

Construction broke ground in 1998 and the Staples Center was opened a year later. It was financed privately at a cost of $375 million and is named for the office-supply company Staples, Inc., which was one of the center's corporate sponsors that paid for naming rights.^[5]

The venue opened as the home of the NBA's Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Clippers, as well as the NHL's Los Angeles Kings in 1999. The WNBA's Los Angeles Sparks joined in 2001, while the NBA D-League's Los Angeles D-Fenders joined in 2006. It became home to the AFL's Los Angeles Avengers in 2000 until the team's discontinuation in 2008.^[9] Staples Center was named New Major Concert Venue in 2000 and Arena of the Year in 2000 and 2001 by Pollstar Magazine and has been nominated each year since its 1999 opening.^[6]

The arena opened on October 17, 1999, with a Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band concert as its inaugural event. Since its opening day, it has hosted seven NBA Finals series with the Lakers, three WNBA Finals, the 2000 Democratic National Convention, the 2002 U.S. Figure Skating Championships, the 52nd NHL All-Star game, two NBA All-Star Games (in 2004 and 2011), the Pacific-10 Conference Men's Basketball Tournament, since 2002, the WTA Tour Championships, from 2002–2005, UFC 60 in 2006, UFC 104 in 2009, the inaugural Latin Grammy Awards in 2000, the annual Grammy Awards, since 2000, with the exception of 2003, the 2009 World Figure Skating Championships, the Summer X Games indoor competitions, since 2003, as well as numerous concerts and HBO Championship Boxing matches.^[6] WWE also has many experience in the center: in addition to hosting WrestleMania 21, which held the venue's attendance record of 20,193 until it was surpassed in January 2009 by the 20,820 draw for the Shane Mosley vs Antonio Margarito Welterweight fight, it has also hosted Unforgiven 2002, Judgment Day 2004, No Way Out 2007, and SummerSlam for three consecutive years since 2009 (soon to host the event for the fourth year), as well as other WWE events.^[9] The Los Angeles Kings, of the NHL hosted the 2010 NHL Entry Draft at the arena in June 2010. The Stanley Cup Finals will be held in the arena for the first time in 2012, as the Kings host the New Jersey Devils in games 3, 4, and if necessary, 6 of the seven-game series.

Night view of Staples Center and L.A. Live

The arena has hosted concerts by many famous artists, spanning many different genres. Mariah Carey kicked off the US leg of her Rainbow World Tour at the arena on March 16, 2000, this marked her first performance in the US, since 1993. Beyoncé performed at the Center during The Beyoncé Experience Tour on September 2, 2007, which was filmed and released as, The Beyoncé Experience Live. Taylor Swift performed at the arena during her Fearless Tour on May 22, 2009 and April 15–16, 2010. John Mayer was a special guest at the May 22 show, together they performed "Your Body Is a Wonderland" and "White Horse".^[10] Michael Jackson rehearsed for his This Is It concerts at the arena, before his death. On July 7, 2009, a public memorial for Michael Jackson was held at Staples Center. The arena was also the site of K-pop talent agency SM Entertainment's first concert held outside of Asia. The September 4, 2010 sold out show was a part of the company's SMTown Live '10 World Tour. Performers for the sold out show included BoA, Kangta, TVXQ, TRAX, Dana & Sunday: The Grace, Super Junior, Girls' Generation, SHINee, and f(x). The event also marked the first time a Korean performer performed at the arena.

Staples Center during a Clippers game

On January 22, 2006, Los Angeles Lakers player Kobe Bryant scored a career-high 81 points in the Staples Center against the Toronto Raptors, the second-highest number of points scored in a single game in NBA history,^[11] second only to Wilt Chamberlain's 100-point performance. Of the team's five NBA championships since moving to the venue, the Lakers have celebrated their 2000 and 2010 victories at Staples Center with series-winning victories at home.

Prior to the 2006-07 NBA season, the lighting inside Staples Center was modified for Lakers games. The lights were focused only on the court itself (hence the promotional Lights Out campaign), reminiscent of the Lakers' early years at The Forum. Initial fan reaction was positive, and has been a fixture on home games since. The Daktronics see-through shot-clock was first installed prior to the 2008-09 NBA season. The Clippers adopted the new see through shot clock prior to the 2010-11 NBA season. For Sparks games, the court used is named after Sparks legend Lisa Leslie, and was officially named prior to the 2009 home opener against the Shock on June 6, 2009.

On October 21, 2009, Staples Center celebrated its 10th anniversary.^[12] To commemorate the occasion, the venue's official website nominated 25 of the arena's greatest moments from its first ten years with fans voting on the top ten.^[13]

During the late summer of 2010, modifications were made to the arena, including refurbished locker rooms for the Clippers, Kings, and Lakers and the installation of a new high-definition center-hung video scoreboard, replacing the original one that had been in place since the building opened in 1999.^[14] The Panasonic Live 4HD scoreboard was officially unveiled on September 22, as AEG and Staples Center executives, as well as player representatives from the Clippers (Craig Smith), Kings (Matt Greene), and Lakers (Sasha Vujacic) were on hand for the presentation.

During the Spring of 2012, NHL's Kings, along with NBA's Lakers and Clippers reached the postseason making it the first time the arena would host three playoff teams.^[15]

L.A. Live[link]

Staples Center is only a part of a much larger 4,000,000-square-foot (371,612.2 m²) development by Anschutz Entertainment Group (AEG) adjoining Staples Center and the Los Angeles Convention Center. The development, known as L.A. Live, broke ground on September 15, 2005. L.A. Live is designed to offer entertainment, retail and residential programming in the downtown Los Angeles area.^[16][17]

Image gallery[link]

See also[link]

Los Angeles portal

• Joel Wachs, Los Angeles City Council member who forged a deal to bring the sports arena to L.A.

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Staples Center

• Staples Center official website
• AEG Worldwide
• Time lapse video switching between sports

Links to related articles v t e Los Angeles Lakers Formerly the Detroit Gems and the Minneapolis Lakers Founded in 1946 Based in Los Angeles, California The Franchise Franchise Team History All-Time roster Draft history Seasons Records Head coaches Current season Arenas Minneapolis Auditorium Minneapolis Armory Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena The Forum Staples Center D-League Affiliate Los Angeles D-Fenders Administration Dr. Jerry Buss (Majority Owner) Anschutz Entertainment Group (Minority Owner) Patrick Soon-Shiong (Minority Owner) Mitch Kupchak (Vice President & GM of Basketball Ops.) 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Murray • Torchetti • Crawford • T. Murray • Stevens • D. Sutter General managers Regan • Milford • Maguire • Vachon • Beverley • McMaster • Taylor • Lombardi Retired numbers 16 • 18 • 20 • 30 • 99 Media TV: Broadcasters • FSN West • Radio: KTLK (1150 AM) Stanley Cup Finals 1993 • 2012 v t e Current arenas in the National Basketball Association Eastern Conference Atlantic Air Canada Centre Barclays Center Madison Square Garden TD Garden Wells Fargo Center Central Bankers Life Fieldhouse BMO Harris Bradley Center The Palace of Auburn Hills Quicken Loans Arena United Center Southeast American Airlines Arena Amway Center Philips Arena Time Warner Cable Arena Verizon Center Western Conference Northwest Chesapeake Energy Arena EnergySolutions Arena Pepsi Center Rose Garden Target Center Pacific Oracle Arena Power Balance Pavilion Staples Center US Airways Center Southwest American Airlines Center AT&T Center FedExForum New Orleans Arena Toyota Center v t e Current arenas in the National Hockey League Eastern Conference Atlantic Consol Energy Center · Madison Square Garden · Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum · Prudential Center · Wells Fargo Center Northeast Air Canada Centre · Bell Centre · First Niagara Center · Scotiabank Place · TD Garden Southeast BankAtlantic Center · MTS Centre · PNC Arena · Tampa Bay Times Forum · Verizon Center Western Conference Central Bridgestone Arena · Joe Louis Arena · Nationwide Arena · Scottrade Center · United Center Northwest Pepsi Center · Rexall Place · Rogers Arena · Scotiabank Saddledome · Xcel Energy Center Pacific American Airlines Center · HP Pavilion · Honda Center · Jobing.com Arena · Staples Center v t e Current arenas in the Women's National Basketball Association Eastern Conference Allstate Arena · Bankers Life Fieldhouse · Mohegan Sun Arena · Philips Arena · Prudential Center · Verizon Center Western Conference AT&T Center · BOK Center · KeyArena · Staples Center · Target Center · US Airways Center v t e WrestleMania venues Madison Square Garden I X XX XXX Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena 2 VII Rosemont Horizon 2 13 22 Nassau Coliseum 2 Pontiac Silverdome III Trump Plaza IV V Skydome VI X8 Hoosier Dome VIII Caesars Palace IX Hartford Civic Center XI Arrowhead Pond XII 2000 FleetCenter XIV First Union Center XV Reliant Astrodome X-Seven Safeco Field XIX Staples Center 21 Ford Field 23 Citrus Bowl XXIV Reliant Stadium XXV University of Phoenix Stadium XXVI Georgia Dome XXVII Sun Life Stadium XXVIII MetLife Stadium XXIX v t e Downtown area, Los Angeles Districts and neighborhoods Arts District Bunker Hill Chinatown Civic Center Fashion District Financial District Gallery Row Historic Core Jewelry District Little Tokyo Skid Row South Park Old Bank District Toy District Wholesale District Points of interest Angels Flight Broadway City Hall Convention Center L.A. 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Taylor Swift
Swift performing during the Australian leg of her Speak Now Tour in 2012
Background information
Birth name	Taylor Alison Swift
Born	(1989-12-13) December 13, 1989 (age 22) Reading, Pennsylvania, United States
Genres	Country-pop, pop, country, alternative rock
Occupations	Singer-songwriter, actress
Instruments	Vocals, guitar, banjo, ukulele, piano
Years active	2006–present
Labels	Big Machine
Website	TaylorSwift.com

Taylor Alison Swift (born December 13, 1989) is an American singer-songwriter and occasional actress. Raised in Wyomissing, Pennsylvania, Swift moved to Nashville, Tennessee at the age of fourteen to pursue a career in country music. She signed to the independent label Big Machine Records and became the youngest songwriter ever hired by the Sony/ATV Music publishing house. The release of Swift's self-titled debut album in 2006 established her as a country music star. "Our Song", her third single, made her the youngest sole writer and singer of a number one song on the country chart. She received a Best New Artist nomination at the 50th Grammy Awards.

Swift's second album, Fearless, was released in late 2008. Buoyed by the chart success of the singles "Love Story" and "You Belong with Me", Fearless attracted a crossover audience and became the top-selling album of 2009. The record won four Grammy Awards, with Swift becoming the youngest ever Album of the Year winner. Fearless also received Album of the Year plaudits at the American Music Awards, Academy of Country Music Awards and Country Music Association Awards, making it the most awarded album in country music history. In 2010, Swift released her third album, Speak Now, which sold over one million copies in its first week. She then embarked on the 111-date Speak Now World Tour, which was attended by over 1.6 million fans and has become one of the highest-grossing concert tours of all time. The album's third single, "Mean", won two Grammy Awards for Best Country Song and Best Country Solo Performance. Swift is currently recording her fourth studio album, due for release in the fall of 2012.

Swift's work has earned her numerous accolades, including six Grammy Awards, ten AMAs, seven CMAs, six ACMs and 13 BMI Awards. She has sold over 22 million albums and 50 million song downloads worldwide, making her one of the best-selling music artists of all time. Swift has endorsement deals with Target, CoverGirl, Sony, Elizabeth Arden, Walmart and American Greetings. As a philanthropist, Swift has placed particular emphasis on arts education, children's literacy and natural disaster relief funds. In addition to her music career, Swift has appeared as an actress in the crime drama CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (2009), the romantic comedy Valentine's Day (2010) and the animated film The Lorax (2012).

Early life[link]

Taylor Alison Swift was born on December 13, 1989 in Reading, Pennsylvania.^[1] She is the daughter of Scott Swift, a Merrill Lynch financial adviser,^[2][3] and Andrea (née Gardner), a homemaker who previously worked as a mutual fund marketing executive.^[1][4] Swift was named after singer James Taylor; her mother believed a gender-neutral name would help her forge a successful business career.^[5][6] She has a younger brother, Austin, who attends Vanderbilt University.^[7] She spent the early years of her life on an eleven-acre Christmas tree farm in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania and was educated at the fee-paying Wyndcroft School.^[8] When Swift was nine years old, the family moved to Wyomissing, Pennsylvania,^[9][10] where she attended Wyomissing Area Junior/Senior High School.^[11] Swift spent her summers at her parent's vacation home in Stone Harbor, New Jersey^[12] and has described it as the place "where most of my childhood memories were formed".^[10]

Swift's first hobby was English horse riding. Her mother Andrea put her in a saddle when Swift was nine months old and she later competed in horse shows.^[13][14] Her family owned several Quarter horses and a Shetland pony.^[14] At the age of nine, Swift turned her attention to musical theatre and performed in Berks Youth Theatre Academy productions of Grease, Annie, Bye Bye Birdie and The Sound of Music.^[15][8] She travelled regularly to Broadway, New York for vocal and acting lessons. However, "after a few years of auditioning in New York and not getting anything”, Swift became interested in country music.^[16] She was inspired by LeAnn Rimes's Blue^[17] and her maternal grandmother, Marjorie Finlay, an opera singer.^[8] When she was in fourth grade, Swift won a national poetry contest with a three-page poem, "Monster in My Closet".^[18] At the age of eleven, after many attempts,^[19] Swift won a local talent competition by singing a rendition of LeAnn Rimes’s “Big Deal”, and was given the opportunity to appear as the opening act for Charlie Daniels at a Strausstown amphitheater.^[15] She spent her weekends performing at local festivals, fairs, coffeehouses, karaoke contests, garden clubs and Boy Scout meetings.^[20][4] This interest in country music isolated Swift from her middle school peers.^[21][22]

After watching a Behind the Music episode about Faith Hill,^[23] Swift recorded a demo of karaoke covers, and travelled with her mother to Nashville, Tennessee for spring break to leave a copy of the demo with record labels along Music Row. She received label rejections and realized that "everyone in that town wanted to do what I wanted to do. So, I kept thinking to myself, I need to figure out a way to be different".^[23] Swift began performing the "The Star Spangled Banner" at many sporting events, hoping she would be offered a recording contract. On one occasion, an eleven-year-old Swift high-fived Jay-Z after singing the national anthem at a 76ers game in Philadelphia.^[24] At the age of twelve, Swift was shown by a computer repairman how to play three chords on a guitar, inspiring her to write her first song, "Lucky You".^[25][26] She then recorded a second demo of original songs.^[15] In 2003, Swift and her parents began working with music manager Dan Dymtrow, after he spotted her singing at the US Open.^[27] Swift's second demo then caught the attention of RCA Records, who offered the eight-grader an artist development deal. In 2004, Swift modelled for Abercrombie and Fitch as part of their "Rising Stars" campaign and had an original song included in a Maybelline Cosmetics compilation CD.^[28]

When Swift was fourteen, her father transferred to the Nashville office of Merrill Lynch and the family relocated to a lake-shore house in Hendersonville, Tennessee.^[1] Swift has said her parents "presented it as a move to a nice community" rather than as her chance to become a star.^[29] Her mother has said, "We've always told her that this is not about putting food on our table or making our dreams come true."^[30] In Tennessee, Swift attended Hendersonville High School for her freshman and sophomore years.^[31] Later, to accommodate her touring schedule, Swift transferred to the Aaron Academy, a private Christian school which offered homeschooling services, and earned her high school diploma in 2008.^[32]

Music career[link]

[edit] 2004–08: Nashville songwriting sessions and Taylor Swift release

Swift moved to Nashville at the age of fourteen, having secured an artist development deal with RCA Records. Her musical influences included the Dixie Chicks, Shania Twain, LeAnn Rimes, Faith Hill,^[29] Tom Petty,^[33] Sheryl Crow,^[34] Melissa Etheridge, Pat Benatar,^[35] Reba McEntire, Garth Brooks,^[36] Patsy Cline, Loretta Lynn and Tammy Wynette.^[37] Swift had writing sessions with experienced songwriters such as Troy Verges, Brett Beavers, Brett James, Mac McAnally and the Warren Brothers,^[38][39] but eventually formed a lasting working relationship with Liz Rose.^[40] Swift saw Rose performing at an RCA songwriter event and suggested that they write together.^[41] They began meeting for two-hour writing sessions every Tuesday afternoon after school.^[42] Rose has said that the sessions were "some of the easiest I've ever done. Basically, I was just her editor. She'd write about what happened in school that day. She had such a clear vision of what she was trying to say. And she'd come in with the most incredible hooks".^[43][42] Swift also began recording demos with producer Nathan Chapman.^[41] After performing at a BMI Songwriter's Circle showcase at The Bitter End, New York,^[39] Swift became the youngest songwriter ever hired by the Sony/ATV Tree publishing house.^[44]