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Madison Square Garden is the conglomerate
of concert halls, theaters, restaurants, apartments and a
roof garden. When Madison Square garden was first built, it
was the second largest building in New York. Today Madison
Square hosts the most important games and events of New York
City, like the seasonal games of New York Knicks, New York
Liberty, the Rangers, Wolf Pack and many other musical and
theatrical concerts.
Madison Square Garden is located directly above Penn Station
on the 34th Street.
This was the fourth venue for Madison Square Garden in New
York. The original Garden was disclosed in 1874 as Barnum's
Monster Classical and Geological Hippodrome. On 26th Street
and Madison Ave., it hosted events like fire-eaters and chariot
races. The lease for the Garden changed hands a couple of
times, changing it's name to Gilmore's Garden and eventually
to Madison Square Garden in 1879. This arena was demolished
and rebuilt on the same spot and was in operation here until
1925.
The New York Life Insurance Company was the landowner of this
latest Garden and thought of making their head-office at this
same spot. The Garden was demolished again, moving to a location
on 8th Avenue. Till 1968 this was the home of the Garden,
when construction of the new Madison Square Garden was completed.
In 1968 the new Garden came out of the curtains and was opened
by Bob Hope and Bing Crosby. Since then, the Garden has seen
the Knicks win two championships (1970 & 1973), the Rangers
win a Stanley Cup (1994) and historic sporting events like
the boxing bout between Muhammad Ali & Joe Frazier in
1971.
The Garden also has become one of the premier concert venues
in the world. It attracts some of the biggest names in entertainment.
The Deads (Grateful Dead) have played more than 50 times at
the Madison Square Garden, more than any other group.
Madison Square Garden occupies 820,000 square feet of land
and is comprised of a 20,000-seat main arena, The Theater
(formerly known as the Felt Forum and the Paramount), the
40,000-square-foot Expo Center, two restaurants, and 89 club
suites.
Some of the Garden's legends are enshrined in the Garden Walk
of Fame, a tribute to 45 stars who helped make this arena
great. The memorial can be seen in the Mall as visitors enter
the building from 7th Avenue.
Today more than five million fans every year passing through
its doors. The arena is the site for numerous other events,
such as the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show, Ringling Bros.
and Barnum & Bailey Circus, World Championship Boxing,
numerous concerts, and much more.
Madison Square Garden is the hub to:
NHL Rangers: The National Hockey League granted Madison Square
Garden a franchise to operate its own team for the 1926-27
season, following the initial success of the New York Americans,
who began play in the Garden for the 1925-26 season and would
become the Rangers first arch-rivals. Garden president G.L.
"Tex" Rickard chose University of Toronto's Conn
Smythe to build his team, and Smythe assembled a talented
roster, formed hockey's top line; playing 508 consecutive
games. Sportswriters dubbed the team "Tex's Rangers"
and that was the origin of the club's name. With hard, clean
play and innovative tactics, the Rangers became known as "the
classiest team in hockey," going to the finals four times
in six years.
New York Liberty: On October 30, 1996, New York was selected
as one of eight charter members of the Women's National Basketball
Association (WNBA). Within four months, Carol Blazejowski,
a member of the Basketball Hall of Fame, was named Vice President
and General Manager for the New York franchise.
The first WNBA game was played on June 21, 1997 in Los Angeles.
Liberty defeated the Los Angeles Sparks, 67-57, before a crowd
of 14,284 at The Forum. The contest against LA began a three
game road trip, where the Liberty went undefeated. They came
back to New York with a 3-0 record, for the first game in
their new home, Madison Square Garden. On June 29, 1997, in
front of a crowd of 17,780, the Liberty scored their first
win at home, defeating Phoenix, 65-57. Not only did the Liberty
make their WNBA debut in 1997, but also did the Liberty's
mascot, Maddie -- appropriately named after Madison Square
Garden, the world's most famous arena and new home of the
Liberty.
New York Knicks: They need no introduction. They are
the winners of two NBA competitions. In 1946 NY Knicks and
10 other franchises formed the Basketball Association of America.
The Knicks were introduced as NY Knickerbockers. The first
game they played against Toronto Huskies was won by 68-66
and that saw the origin of one of the best team in the NBA
history.
In 1950-51, Knicks reached their first NBA final, where they
lost to Rochester Royal in the deciding 7th game. But the
Knicks open to new dwarf. They won two NBA championships and
are a force to reckon today.
Wolf Pack: The New York ice hockey team.
Cablevision Systems Corporation (NYSE: CVC) is one of the
nation's leading telecommunications and entertainment companies.
Its portfolio of operations ranges from high-speed Internet
access and robust digital cable television offerings to professional
sports teams, world-renowned entertainment venues and national
television program networks.
Radio City Music Hall: Here they play all the good music for
many years.
MSG Network: Offers coverage of all the major games of the
New York team especially in the Madison Square Garden arena.
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