The iconic STAPLES Center in Los Angeles is celebrating its 20-year anniversary this week.
Founded in 1999, the arena has grown into a world-class facility — on par with New York’s Madison Square Garden and London’s O2 Arena — and is now home to four professional sports teams, including the NBA’s Lakers and Clippers.
Yet opening STAPLES two decades ago in the less-than-thriving downtown City of Angels was a risky bet.
“The success of STAPLES Center was never guaranteed,” said Lee Zeidman, the president of STAPLES Center and L.A. Live, an adjacent entertainment center. “Nobody went downtown. It rolled up its carpet and closed at 5 p.m.”
Today, STAPLES draws enormous crowds to its events, which range from basketball to hockey to the Grammy Awards. In total, the arena has held 5,000 events, welcomed 75 million fans, and sold over 20 million beers.
The arena is also gearing up for a major event in the sports world next week: the NBA’s October 22 opening night matchup between the teams that call it home: the Lakers and the Clippers.
“We will be the center of the NBA universe,” said Zeidman, who was the arena's first full-time employee 20 years ago. “It is one of the most anticipated opening night games in the history of the NBA."
According to an American Christmas Tree Association poll, about 77% of people say they will display an artificial Christmas tree rather than a real one.
A new study shows that people reduce their calorie intake at restaurants when they're given nutritional information on the menu.
British actor Charlie Hunnam is opening up about almost landing a big role in the Star Wars franchise.
New York State will create a commission tasked with considering reparations to address the persistent, harmful effects of slavery in the state under a bill signed into law by Gov. Kathy Hochul on Tuesday.
Beyonce fans were convinced the long-awaited Renaissance visuals were going to be dropped Tuesday but on Monday, the singer's website crashed when a rumor of a surprise announcement flooded social media.
George Clooney is closing the door when it comes to potentially donning the bat suit again.
Amazon Prime Video shared the trailer for an upcoming series called 'Expats.'
Netflix released the first look of the movie 'Spaceman,' starring Adam Sandler.
Netflix is looking to expand the mysterious and spooky world of the Addams family. Deadline has confirmed that the streamer is in the early development stages of a 'Wednesday' spinoff.
Christmas is days away and those shipping deadlines are approaching fast. The last day to mail a card or envelope via USPS is Wednesday.
