Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

City of Dreams: Dodger Stadium and the Birth of Modern Los Angeles
City of Dreams: Dodger Stadium and the Birth of Modern Los Angeles
City of Dreams: Dodger Stadium and the Birth of Modern Los Angeles
Ebook505 pages9 hours

City of Dreams: Dodger Stadium and the Birth of Modern Los Angeles

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

4/5

()

Read preview

About this ebook

On the sixtieth anniversary of the Dodgers' move to Los Angeles, the full story of the controversial building of Dodger Stadium and how it helped transform the city.

When Walter O'Malley moved his Brooklyn Dodgers to Los Angeles in 1957 with plans to construct a new ballpark next to downtown, he ignited a bitter argument over the future of a rapidly changing city. For the first time, City of Dreams tells the full story of the controversial building of Dodger Stadium—and how it helped create modern Los Angeles by transforming its downtown into a vibrant cultural and entertainment center.

In a vivid narrative, Jerald Podair tells how Los Angeles was convulsed between 1957 and 1962 over whether, where, and how to build Dodger Stadium. Competing civic visions clashed. Would Los Angeles be a decentralized, low-tax city of neighborhoods, as demanded by middle-class whites on its peripheries? Or would the baseball park be the first contribution to a revitalized downtown that would brand Los Angeles as a national and global city, as advocated by leaders in business, media, and entertainment?

O'Malley's vision triumphed when he opened his privately constructed stadium on April 10, 1962—and over the past half century it has contributed substantially to the city's civic and financial well-being. But in order to build the stadium, O'Malley negotiated with the city to acquire publicly owned land (from which the city had uprooted a Mexican American community), raising sharply contested questions about the relationship between private profit and "public purpose." Indeed, the battle over Dodger Stadium crystallized issues with profound implications for all American cities, and for arguments over the meaning of equality itself.

Filled with colorful stories, City of Dreams will fascinate anyone who is interested in the history of the Dodgers, baseball, Los Angeles, and the modern American city.

LanguageEnglish
Release dateMar 27, 2017
ISBN9781400884704
City of Dreams: Dodger Stadium and the Birth of Modern Los Angeles

Related to City of Dreams

Related ebooks

United States History For You

View More

Related articles

Reviews for City of Dreams

Rating: 3.8333333333333335 out of 5 stars
4/5

3 ratings1 review

What did you think?

Tap to rate

Review must be at least 10 words

  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Joy's review: I read this book while on a trip to LA during the World Series and it was the perfect book for the occasion. Great fun to watch the games and see the great pictures of the stadium and downtown LA just after reading a few chapters about how the Dodgers came to be in LA. O'Malley was an owner with great vision regarding making baseball in LA a family and multi-ethnic activity. He also showed incredible attention to detail in building the stadium to maximize the location. Poder also presents the background politics of LA at the time. He gets a bit repetitive at times justifying his sub -title "Birth of Modern Los Angeles", but really fun thing to read during the World Series.

Book preview

City of Dreams - Jerald Podair

~2^book_preview_excerpt.html}MF_dkYVMs8fR[d"23XH *;{]sًfw+ =gD?xͷճw_]V_^>jWqv7Ϟ_.?~OǯUx;՛g^W/\w/^^ۯ~/oŻ/Uo<{'z߼ŏ.1..?}'ޛwn\կwXCCVjõc𡏱M[_ՃOiUC._T^~՝?<|p'E[ [ BUo>Ώ8t}2Tw߿Kjw8ߧzoiw+?Ta}pö^OVm|~Xu*\bXMS ꝏ7Npu8s苻gw=s˰];>?dy[XG_<|x'}dnpM)> u sLBܵ [6>V>]vUuĪ(#mue%`尔[l-kTo^f98:ex.K|QqN?<(Ee {c0M"y ˯z}`2~|߽ YnӻXS׽hkF2Ox槗Ϟ vZ 2P!VNc]X;C'c#bRbBDEV_>GX°vǪ}2O":]?sD! C։aW[ja#ϫC[PNn%tJDiծ߻گ \KC~pPdM(ύ5+4(5nGB񘾓9I;` &ztWwi]r]s\v%F{H]עZL6DKЍM]X( {?s"Փﻃ<vK`aLQAn )a;)A+O4v4 0٧^WNERTիu\T>s&_yd<DyG`=EOt؆2s]G(z]s042gݦOsGG'O\jj۰cs 2Wzn[=z%wumksQ,}E_H4lZ#:D#&+2."AI_H}FXEO "f"˻_ $vAxX2g22G=; y߻+!o25˷jW=ثES׶nŇJW>\ jx3n\c'/N<I2:,tC+e6_3uCOs'햋+7"GaQ#ChJ !(s.:WZ,mEa~&ӗ)2\(;]4r{M}sL#m! _)J fdp/UgbYX~9P3^<ᮗ#{To}QGH_)7Y@48Y ^!+VN4 RQbʿ:N!V5 涶_FOЃ1/2 ]V?~mùKS㗴qZTqG! :sM1ŀ=ꝃyAD l" :O/"%,6u=o%xCKE]fZ0UkA|hm$+_Њ'+];}2% PN fḁ\uJRcbm\`eذNB`:$1^]?_ԳN -W;mYK"Hԧl"%ju"ΫKQ5:4¥5 *ui9BW{gZbw **a SA5D3= DOqT&qqʐ #dI>aF/zUlK]ՂIP ,ӫ!%*iC ^)?aݧi+0T+4?OD%ș _b\aQFG]xb+v>)UQ4x}0KHCl$#P~B v_ngƍj$Fd$28ׂng~!:?[?qJ VBvn%iTO]qkƕS<ՇЁZAl|ꢝm"s~i}eNky!؄CᰩOQ+MDd#?~fv3U횆n'T :"à@C.` OEʃA N ^vL ?Y3{oӗ&-b6oo`cb^&5V@oo\J3S,B:bc@ | 9ɈT5z.D)(JuRKBTe|1WDhoDwo>b(hwˮQ[Bb=CٶQ#tLc_bI%5+ cXm[c~|B4J.ƵHs)0EPEߞX 23 <ȴަP\HmڅlQֽ(~ӠNd(݂=Tݩ!nwV_"6 ߲+ۓaZەH]`Hz>a 8"GEWbX[B!ciP:xWp^-̴06OUШJP3DN=zY1(By62J.LjEj#^Fw9~UK{.5HR $oԓg<0/Hvmm/e Ӏ-r~ }_.1ĝ#W}hz8g+v򨕾ǡTrt̍*J'Yr_2[r&J3#k,Ha {fRQIIYSO="uQmRŴ aavn5s!cfbeh*VI8CFz+IF7wk fgF`5NjL^F+Px'zb\NR˒0ky` NN@j$)(xzQP j+2VP݊A 7/i=$l/I{6 JP3䘓wKW3m%<M0f3k=8Ȉ8d*# Z>EWƿr%R!#䚻 ToZѲ?HzæڣoE|@daB\2fhoN)m@ĉw!NQ 3@Mnʘ[!Oz4Yh3,b̋5M'C7Z홼8_4}.E,H4H(I=@pشa 7s#m"gG3z zh𢡊LrB.uyԻr?yvK҈6^ILſ_eջX!iJ-S`얌}{SzY#sfGLXquO?SųNר)M,J5(h=ʇ1G_;F<3_=nݔJ'8X,QFl }q"'y ׿^ɔ}tGG$ =.)*Ȁ4O& n?/Ġ6$Y $CW2:)?w:Oi&# O$1)xVM"qbZp^<GvK)2קx7GPЇ(d>.ɥ>f&AS"u)T6B[UB\u7By(=r2`D0GEB%$ݖk8;B?L0?۪BeeϿ\JJV'Á瑅OuY0x3V+N)^ Q3|F 9\2poe-AV]ܥaw#kr$B kxbWW1L9K/v?GnJA/}gV 1-+mߠ+#ɓmG,:D~utA )*t2psSy 4@ B }ubAs &(0";c <ܒ͝hd[/DȺfؑCUxͩ2$ i@nbtIm:|jY dc ghwEsxhE5/Hk>\ ao nRnM?˻t\9q` SDϏ;MAx3g-r*|ضY+Aiq,\mq"0=NgNCX$E߁,%*Y[pW:qhk*jq*M28t\{H0*n^5"[q& !W\1RZ:!'s Pf, .ԕ>[S51Pg}JH~04:;JquV906HVZEٛƳQ0ak~?jE6RH¤شʪr#[Zf XtXiQl)ʞEy18%t1m$**N9ݙ>"pkβ`S^Q"9SfaOs/S3w :y )6yQm"Qz9xAlgw)(RoU'Z$^D84GQs38g(P7G2Ά:xh$i̒mJ44]_;1Gv[jUAO+P[ޘHUы$wZmQd`+Wп\.ebXVG] Y``>Q`T0țɒhg9 ^4FԲ+f$GHʉeB; %#F>o}6a3%ՀUXej(L~eV^J/QWw rg1Fb \BSٔ?b\"8T}H)to?F}{ 0<F6%>n,4=ז1 t@fΧG1jɰfa8X$a>d96Ȭ|oQ9Y17#Q7>Kmj^̉+_B@v0nX5=nGO‘&o8ޒhHu$&83]<]{評cY)E.Z0tV&F- gܚh* /أL[Rɸ玚CyKP_zJŲęK7P)7dP75M˛5Iktv/.L9fS-S_$ (0a~ʀ@SBS"bTV6~sr#S~,7#r0+ pqxLI WaFLGK AH}O}wRAzHDAb0%J bnS'ZvV뫙FBO9 >"I|sP'oczS]%'|jTo(Mpj2SMO} ڄ1%`S8EAN6Ly՚!A ш᮷O1,9@Ǔ s:Kg=Sg͕$(r߅"Na%u]NSXQr[r?W qJXGFPӌ!Qn깕߽y}:1z7Ƶjqo네DA1yIP/X w=HrЭ?@mx`ym0];O6PNC%.?YM⨮>2i~ʌhBB+Q4pNj aǏUA+ 끃\O9[W+¬(t]VN"y0!Dkg[- W?UP&F|-#i&XnEC>C?Yn8ZN~zN [$^b7Aː 5:_1A]Q/̲兑8TˣwHqHbH*:g(`5*5COcdN3Ҏ۽ Lp`GeMдSԜ"x֯)x6/ACmja? uA XzriM>?ȊIJRQ`> DR <-OZ&s X=jOlGrO?x2\ibRi(JH:̠mZHzh~XmZݶ^bJ}00/#"?E;Jh/9Uʾ/UO 7cںN}mC"͈&T Qĸ` r'k76V _11̛䶦LF\HZ#*t_ߔ`BcFyf,)v)?aU}m\R1a IYo Eb֖ - {jS+3Ylw`z$_[޿sWN Fj:6HC"A*2}܋?^]jhG=AXa4$Eb^,1Kb^^2OZ@fM|4ӪRn82p BTO N#j&a< t[HdHkqPvێ T<.nl[(SYG֢jI{ᒬ-hf4V__+c;V B`jP#CYV0X_KBb &7N2r涀ƜRH 7@4e8i%0)2\w0ًaO1[צ:tֹK0 0yTLSDuZ(*\()lr_1d6"څ @=30Ak;ʳ1o " ^Bq;zTKݥL$ MO"a4y7X.',i٭LH>-_B dϳu1")얻O6VŜ"eDЧPGRKȣN,Z8pt"8nԒwHVIm zp*5>o!"K\l FBAvieD$AL:'vܗ}_UT\|2~K1Ta@CHZAsD}vP FPqj*L d:I`L~jQNW"Kv{}҇ 9鲍VK*ct퐁$T@oBdJEMЦV !tA8Ujq͒3aV2ɕ;%`e2^NV됋oqFCs[Ã,^2Cqh6j|g^yg0_s^ .C]GiT<حqLɯq)w %2bsrɮ+ү3N]'M=3;4rb^;F!PSꗯ}۰khT;e!^-AÔ E#hp{!4"~# )b 7ޞjQ{#ZBb)ă5ӼgMJj8$䆥4 2۲Z~/[A]8}zݪs =~KP ؓDW \XY݀ (hK`ƭBn5i7Xco3G=[˗msWEwhgTAƤ? rǽ},zjD%|6M+_ĂF +zu7Rf@B <m ָ{]Fa>k<(]γ1A -}5SV!FjxT,s}ì7OZ265/K-r5hQ49N DP٠xEI MlP < ʚcD Ɯrqd I͚Φ+,6[< Hn H3 T3F~2Ouˇޭ׿[QAQ^G/iqѸ`|ABݑo9"ϢnW:m-,m"Y8R^p8^ǵ r1<% .\Nzg$A;XpSvc cG~$8i|l$nANMЛ687F;h4IU*-0$eVq$W`1c\Kʿ$fibOU!Q rERS;=@J ӎ9*7K}rdljy=0Q~Kh"Fq*TD:$S _/{H.qb{WS~e}1p&էɤ[zf,{ZI) zN*X^.*ux ,[+j"egY'8[Խ;mL$p"~j[8 ] )Wӫ Z!(/C~X A*DfӤjS̓d`tQ $ؓ.C\'u/w{&L(n(vvw"6+\ڒF7w`unt?_)9 bH*_r~dl@W-ۡ<,Ob'pe0_($0S \W&N "Mur0 6Мԡ% ? ":rc8)0ŶBrKa#kօ}j|2W+˼Z=QcVFVCg=䲦;dF?Xi$k!+3Ԋº!!ʁ8V,bN|+?59!雤ءWZ'qw>]5m5v8{'aËꕸo!Tߍ% piwWQ'Zm-˚|SwJR aRp0=:2vu5>dU yW jAPdeO 9FZO*M6Vkg$倡 q^̔~xE`MD?hn[U!0榱N⿜1N2ŁRLۥpR)Z#2NvFogXaӎu-2A&dq[N]9Xԣ/]2ݱ&$O1['ȓ476[.'v&f )fo.w15)/(K zUg^|QLlEb)Rsxg fд<[uuʱ+dīҖ!pVbUǞ!h/ <.&.g ARbFDy!\(7J#wVoJaE8]! Ereg4V԰f&UW9R<lجNM4 yWaڻ`9׿mnycG#x6']w[?7 !Pp֪\(h vw8.wHE jL0`btty'ɸ}MEWJ04 :xc0%*q,z^ f$ dxBiP|(+r&Bݞ3ґepי9Sq%;hATV#NlrƃJ#NGNѹ)3k0GfԸn]>y( zҭJk̊Xsx V{@~LN9ђc'e v9ߜ,[g]pR3%*rZHzF!R@Zh`WMۢѴ^v4??XʬI#~m PD g3ʺ=%Έ%NIb;)34撎-VxЛ' u)Pafɢ]m0oncQT@Kyd m']6tgl72j^~,SQhٹ^m[YIG9C OšC8?5p~fiD`Yѵ݀P'dKUTr+DxښwnQo.'`?0)]
Enjoying the preview?
Page 1 of 1