Omni Coliseum
Omni Coliseum (often called The Omni) was an indoor arena in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. Completed in 1972, the arena seated 16,378 for basketball and 15,278 for hockey. It was part of the Omni Complex, now known as the CNN Center. It was mainly used as the home arena for the Atlanta
Atlanta Hawks (NBA) and the Atlanta
Atlanta Flames (NHL). It also hosted the 1977 NCAA
NCAA Men's Division I Basketball
Basketball Tournament and the 1996 Summer Olympics
1996 Summer Olympics indoor volleyball.

Contents

1 History

1.1 Scoreboard

2 Events

2.1 Professional wrestling 2.2 Basketball
Basketball and hockey 2.3 Indoor soccer 2.4 Concerts 2.5 Other events

3 Problems 4 References

History[edit] The arena was considered an architectural marvel that combined innovative roof, seating, and structural designs. The logo is based on the unique seating arrangement. The exterior cladding was composed of Cor-Ten weathering steel, which is covered in rust; the idea was that the steel would continue to rust to the point where the rusted exterior would form a protective seal, making a solid steel structure that would last for decades. The Omni was noted for its distinctive space frame roof, often joked about as looking like an egg crate or a rusty waffle iron. Designed by the firm of tvsdesign with structural engineering work by the firm of Prybylowski and Gravino, the roof was technically described as an ortho-quad truss system. Scoreboard[edit] The only remaining part of the Omni is the scoreboard that hangs in the pavilion of the Philips Arena. American Sign and Indicator built the basketball-specific scoreboard in the early 1990s to replace the original hockey-specific scoreboard that Daktronics
Daktronics maintained during the 1980s. The arena also had four message boards on each end zone, two of which were animation boards. Events[edit] Professional wrestling[edit] The Omni was a hotbed for professional wrestling. It was considered the home base for the NWA's Georgia Championship Wrestling
Georgia Championship Wrestling since its opening, Jim Crockett Promotions
Jim Crockett Promotions in the late 1980s, and WCW. Many major and historic wrestling events took place at the Omni, including Starrcade 85, Starrcade 86, Starrcade 89, the first Wargames match during the Great American Bash in 1987, and many other pay-per-view shows. The WWE
WWE also held many shows at the Omni when they were known as the WWF. Basketball
Basketball and hockey[edit] The Omni was home to the NBA Atlanta
Atlanta Hawks from 1972 to 1997; their final game at the Omni was during the 1997 NBA Playoffs
1997 NBA Playoffs Eastern Conference Semifinals against the Chicago Bulls
Chicago Bulls (Game 4) on May 11, 1997; they lost 89-80. The Omni was also home of the NHL Atlanta Flames from 1972 to 1980 (now the Calgary Flames), and the IHL Atlanta Knights (1992–1996). In 1994, the Knights became the only pro team to win a championship in the building when they won the Turner Cup. The arena also hosted the 1977 NCAA
NCAA Final Four, won by Marquette University over North Carolina in what was Warriors' (their nickname at the time, now known as the Golden Eagles) coach Al McGuire's last game, one SEC and three ACC men's basketball tournaments, the 1978 NBA All-Star Game, the 1993 NCAA
NCAA Women's Basketball
Basketball Final Four, and the indoor volleyball matches for the 1996 Summer Olympics. Indoor soccer[edit] The Omni was the indoor home of the Atlanta
Atlanta Chiefs of the North American Soccer League as well as the Atlanta
Atlanta Attack of the American Indoor Soccer Association. Concerts[edit] The Omni was Atlanta's primary concert venue from 1972-1997. Among the many acts that performed there were:

Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley performed 12 times between 1973 and 1976. Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin performed at the Omni on April 23, 1977, on their critically and commercially successful final tour of the United States. Deep Purple
Deep Purple played twice at the Omni, on June 18, 1973 and on March 11, 1974. In 1987 concert was canceled due to Ritchie Blackmore's hand injury. Gary Painter and the Northwest Jazz Band performed at a couple of Hawks games in the 1980s. Frank Sinatra
Frank Sinatra performed at the Omni in 1974, 1988, and 1994. The Rolling Stones
Rolling Stones played to a sold out crowd at the Omni on July 30, 1975 as part of their Tour of the Americas '75 tour. Van Halen
Van Halen The band first performed at the Omni on November 13, 1978. Scalped tickets for the band's later shows often sold for up to 100 dollars. The Police
The Police performed two consecutive shows during their Synchronicity Tour on November 2–3, 1983, with The Fixx
The Fixx as their opening act. Excerpts from these shows appeared on the 1984 Synchronicity Concert VHS, the 2005 DVD release and on disc 2 of their live album, entitled Live!. Def Leppard
Def Leppard performed four shows during their Hysteria World Tour on December 18, 1987, with Tesla as their opening act and October 7–9, 1988, with Queensrÿche
Queensrÿche as their opening act. Their 1988 shows were filmed and recorded, with portions included on their live home video, entitled Live: In the Round, in Your Face. Journey performed as part of their Raised on Radio Tour on November 18–19, 1986, with Glass Tiger
Glass Tiger as their opening act. They filmed the live music video for their song "I'll Be Alright Without You" during these shows. Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson performed three consecutive sold–out shows during his Bad World Tour on April 13–15, 1988. The Grateful Dead
Grateful Dead performed three consecutive shows during their Built to Last Tour on April 1–3, 1990. The shows were recorded and three songs from their April Fool's Day show "China Cat Sunflower/I Know You Rider" and "Dear Mr. Fantasy" were included on their live album, entitled Without a Net. Nirvana performed one show during their In Utero Tour on November 29, 1993, with The Breeders
The Breeders as their opening act. R.E.M.
R.E.M. concluded their Monster World Tour with three shows on November 18–19 and 21, 1995, with Luscious Jackson
Luscious Jackson as their opening act. The shows were filmed and recorded, with the final show released as a documentary-style film titled Road Movie Bon Jovi
Bon Jovi performed two consecutive sold-out shows at the Omni during the Slippery When Wet Tour on March 23–24, 1987. They also performed to a sold-out, standing room only crowd on February 15, 1989 as part of the New Jersey Syndicate Tour. Lines of people wanting tickets were turned away at the door. Phish
Phish covered the Talking Heads' album Remain In Light
Remain In Light in its entirety at the Omni on October 31st, 1996 as part of their Halloween tradition. Smashing Pumpkins
Smashing Pumpkins performed one show on November 19, 1996 during their Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness
Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness tour with Garbage (band)
Garbage (band) as their opening act. Metallica
Metallica performed the final concert in the Omni on April 23, 1997.

Many other concerts were held at the arena, including Madonna, Bruce Springsteen, U2, Garth Brooks, Rod Stewart, Guns & Roses, Huey Lewis & The News, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Whitney Houston, Prince, and The Commodores
The Commodores among many, many others. Other events[edit] Among the major non-sports events at the Omni was the 1988 Democratic National Convention where delegates nominated Michael Dukakis
Michael Dukakis and Lloyd Bentsen
Lloyd Bentsen for President and Vice President of the United States, respectively. Problems[edit]

Bird's-eye view of the Omni Coliseum

The Omni did not last nearly as long as many other arenas built during the same time period, in part because a number of its innovations did not work as intended. The most serious problem was the weathered steel exterior. The steel was not designed to withstand Atlanta's climate and corroded much faster than was anticipated, which eventually resulted in gaping holes forming in the walls that fans could climb through. Chain link fences were installed to keep people from crawling through the wall to see events. Despite fairly good sight lines, the structure had begun to look dated by the early 1990s (although the arena was only 20 years old). Built on a former railroad yard, it settled more than its designers expected after construction. There were unanticipated stresses in the space frame roof, which often leaked water. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, a growing number of NBA and NHL teams began to construct arenas with better amenities for their high-end customers, such as luxury boxes, club-level seating, and massive club concourses, to increase revenue. Some of these new arenas had as many as 200 luxury boxes. By comparison, the Omni had only 16 luxury boxes and no club level. It also became a disadvantage to the city of Atlanta; until the Georgia Dome
Georgia Dome was finished in 1992, the Omni served as its largest indoor facility in terms of seating capacity. Although the Omni hosted many events, it lost more than its share due to the smaller capacity and lack of amenities compared to newer buildings in other cities. By the start of the 1990s, an effort began to build a replacement. A new arena would have likely been needed in any event due to the Omni's structural problems. This also stemmed from Ted Turner's desire to own an NHL franchise; the Flames had been sold to Canadian businessmen and relocated to Calgary, Alberta
Calgary, Alberta a decade earlier. The NHL determined the Omni was not suitable even as a temporary facility, and would only grant Atlanta
Atlanta an expansion team if Turner guaranteed a brand-new arena would be in place by the time the new team took the ice. On July 26, 1997, the Omni was demolished, and Philips Arena, which was constructed on the site, opened on September 18, 1999. The demolition of the Omni forced the Hawks to split the 1997-98 and 1999 seasons between Alexander Memorial Coliseum
Alexander Memorial Coliseum at Georgia Tech, their first home in Atlanta, and the Georgia Dome. References[edit]

^ "Georgia News Briefs". Rome News-Tribune. March 30, 1971. Retrieved March 28, 2012.  ^ Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis Community Development Project. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. Retrieved January 2, 2018.  ^ a b http://www.modernsteel.com/archives/PDFs_61-90/1975A9_15-1.pdf ^ "A Great Space". Engineering News-Record. McGraw-Hill Companies. 189 (2): 12.  access-date= requires url= (help)

1996 Summer Olympics
1996 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. p. 543. 1996 Summer Olympics
1996 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 3. p. 465.

Events and tenants

Preceded by Alexander Memorial Coliseum Home of the Atlanta
Atlanta Hawks 1972 – 1997 Succeeded by Georgia Dome
Georgia Dome & Alexander Memorial Coliseum

Preceded by none Home of the Atlanta
Atlanta Flames 1972 – 1980 Succeeded by Stampede Corral

Preceded by The Spectrum NCAA
NCAA Men's Division I Basketball
Basketball Tournament Finals Venue 1977 Succeeded by The Checkerdome

Preceded by MECCA Arena Host of the NBA All-Star Game 1978 Succeeded by Pontiac Silverdome

v t e

Venues of the Democratic National Convention

The Athenaeum and Warfield's Church (1832) Fourth Presbyterian Church (Baltimore) (1835) The Assembly Rooms (1840) Odd Fellows Hall (1844) Universalist Church (Baltimore) (1848) Maryland Institute (1852) Smith and Nixon's Hall (1856) South Carolina Institute Hall / Front Street Theater (1860) The Amphitheatre (Chicago) (1864) Tammany Hall
Tammany Hall (1868) Ford's Grand Opera House (1872) Merchants Exchange Building (1876) Cincinnati Music Hall (1880) Interstate Exposition Building (1884) Exposition Building (1888) Wigwam (1892) Chicago Coliseum
Chicago Coliseum (1896) Convention Hall
Convention Hall (1900) St. Louis Coliseum
St. Louis Coliseum (1904) Denver Auditorium Arena
Denver Auditorium Arena (1908) Fifth Regiment Armory
Fifth Regiment Armory (1912) Convention Hall
Convention Hall (1916) San Francisco Civic Auditorium (1920) Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden (II) (1924) Sam Houston Hall (1928) Chicago Stadium
Chicago Stadium (1932) Philadelphia Convention Hall/ Franklin Field
Franklin Field (1936) Chicago Stadium
Chicago Stadium (1940) Chicago Stadium
Chicago Stadium (1944) Philadelphia Convention Hall
Convention Hall (1948) International Amphitheatre
International Amphitheatre (1952) International Amphitheatre
International Amphitheatre (1956) Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena
Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena / Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum (1960) Atlantic City Convention Hall
Convention Hall (1964) International Amphitheatre
International Amphitheatre (1968) Miami Beach Convention Center
Miami Beach Convention Center (1972) Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden (IV) (1976) Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden (IV) (1980) Moscone Center
Moscone Center (1984) Omni Coliseum
Omni Coliseum (1988) Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden (IV) (1992) United Center (1996) Staples Center
Staples Center (2000) FleetCenter (2004) Pepsi Center
Pepsi Center / Invesco Field (2008) Time Warner Cable Arena (2012) Wells Fargo Center (2016)

v t e

Venues of the 1996 Summer Olympics

Olympic Ring

Alexander Memorial Coliseum Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium Clark Atlanta
Atlanta University Stadium Cycling road course Georgia Dome Georgia State University Gymnasium Georgia Tech Aquatic Center Georgia World Congress Center Marathon course Morehouse College Gymnasium Morris Brown College Stadium Centennial Olympic Stadium Omni Coliseum Walking course

Metro Atlanta

Atlanta
Atlanta Beach Georgia International Horse Park Lake Lanier Stone Mountain
Stone Mountain Park Archery Center and Velodrome Stone Mountain
Stone Mountain Tennis Center Wolf Creek Shooting Complex

Other venues

Florida Citrus Bowl (Orlando, Florida) Golden Park
Golden Park (Columbus, Georgia) Legion Field
Legion Field (Birmingham, Alabama) Ocoee Whitewater Center
Ocoee Whitewater Center (Polk County, Tennessee) Orange Bowl (Miami, Florida) RFK Memorial Stadium (Washington, D.C.) Sanford Stadium
Sanford Stadium (Athens, Georgia) University of Georgia Coliseum (Athens, Georgia) Wassaw Sound
Wassaw Sound (Savannah, Georgia)

v t e

Olympic venues in volleyball

1964 Komazawa Volleyball Courts, Yokohama Cultural Gymnasium
Yokohama Cultural Gymnasium (final) 1968 Juan de la Barrera Olympic Gymnasium (final), Juan Escutia Sports Palace, Revolution Ice Rink 1972 Volleyballhalle 1976 Montreal Forum
Montreal Forum (final), Paul Sauvé Centre 1980 Druzhba Multipurpose Arena, Minor Arena of the Central Lenin Stadium (final) 1984 Long Beach Arena 1988 Hanyang University Gymnasium, Jamsil Gymnasium (final), Saemaul Sports Hall 1992 Palau dels Esports de Barcelona, Palau Sant Jordi
Palau Sant Jordi (final), Pavelló de la Vall d'Hebron 1996 Clayton County International Park (2-man), Omni Coliseum
Omni Coliseum (indoor final), Stegeman Coliseum 2000 Bondi Beach, Sydney Entertainment Centre
Sydney Entertainment Centre (indoor final), Sydney Showground Pavilion 4 2004 Faliro Olympic Beach Volleyball Centre, Peace and Friendship Stadium 2008 Beijing Institute of Technology Gymnasium, Capital Indoor Stadium (indoor final), Chaoyang Park Beach Volleyball Ground 2012 Earls Court Exhibition Centre, Horse Guards Parade 2016 Beach Volleyball Arena, Maracanãzinho 2020 Ariake Arena, Shiokaze Park 2024 Le Bourget, Champ de Mars 2028 Honda Center, Anaheim Convention Center, Santa Monica State Beach

v t e

Atlanta
Atlanta Flames

Founded in 1972 Based in Atlanta
Atlanta Georgia Relocated as the Calgary Flames
Calgary Flames in 1980

Franchise

Calgary Flames Coaches Players Draft picks (Expansion draft) Seasons

Arena

Omni Coliseum

v t e

Atlanta
Atlanta Hawks

Founded in 1946 Formerly the Buffalo Bisons (1946) and the Tri-Cities Blackhawks (1946–1951); played in Milwaukee (1951–1955) and St. Louis (1955–1968) Based in Atlanta, Georgia

Franchise

Franchise All-time roster Draft history Seasons Head coaches Current season

Arenas

Buffalo Memorial Auditorium Wharton Field House Milwaukee Arena Kiel Auditorium St. Louis Arena Alexander Memorial Coliseum Omni Coliseum Lakefront Arena Georgia Dome Philips Arena

G League affiliate

Erie BayHawks

NBA Championships (1)

1958

Conference Championships (4)

1957 1958 1960 1961

Retired numbers

9 21 23 44 55 59 Ted Turner
Ted Turner (Hawks Logo)

Lore

The Human Highlight Film Pistol Pete Phantom Buzzer Game

Media

TV Peachtree TV FS South Fox Sports Southeast Radio 790 The Zone Announcers Bob Rathbun Dominique Wilkins Steve Holman

Personnel

Owner(s) Tony Ressler Grant Hill Sara Blakely Jesse Itzler Steven Price Rick Schnall

v t e

Atlanta
Atlanta Chiefs

Founded 1966 Based in Atlanta, Georgia

Club history

Atlanta
Atlanta Chiefs (1966–1972) Atlanta
Atlanta Apollos (1973) Caribous of Colorado (1978) Atlanta
Atlanta Chiefs (1979–1981) Atlanta
Atlanta Chiefs (1979–1981) (indoor)

Sports facilities

Atlanta
Atlanta Fulton County Stadium Tara Stadium Grant Field Mile High Stadium Omni Coliseum

Important figures

David Byrne Paul Child Kaizer Motaung Ron Newman Victor Nogueira Jomo Sono Ted Turner Art Welch Phil Woosnam

Other topics

Related articles

Honors

NASL Championship (2)

1968 (Champions) 1969 (Finalist) 1971 (Finalist)

NASL Division titles (3)

1968 (Atlantic Division) 1971 (Southern Division) 1981 (Southern Division)

NASL Indoor League Regular Season (1)

1979–80 (Champions)

NASL Indoor League Division (2)

1979–80 (Eastern Division) 1980–81 (Eastern Division)

Seasons

North American Soccer League (1966–85)

1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1978 1979 1980 1981

North American Soccer League indoor (1975–84)

1979–80 1980–81

v t e

Atlanta
Atlanta landmarks

Current

Commercial

Atlantic Station AmericasMart Clermont Lounge Five Points Coca-Cola sign Lenox Square Mary Mac's Tea Room Phipps Plaza Ponce City Market Underground Atlanta The Varsity

Governmental

Atlanta
Atlanta City Hall Elbert P. Tuttle United States
United States Court of Appeals Building Federal Penitentiary Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta Georgia Governor's Mansion Georgia Railroad Freight Depot Georgia State Capitol

Miss Freedom

Monuments

Atlanta
Atlanta from the Ashes (The Phoenix) Carnegie Education Pavilion Millennium Gate Oakland Cemetery Stone Mountain
Stone Mountain Confederate Memorial World Athletes Monument

Museums

APEX Museum Atlanta
Atlanta Contemporary Art Center Atlanta
Atlanta Cyclorama & Civil War Museum Atlanta
Atlanta History Center Callanwolde Fine Arts Center Children's Museum of Atlanta College Football Hall of Fame Delta Flight Museum Fernbank Museum of Natural History Fernbank Science Center Hammonds House Museum High Museum of Art Jimmy Carter Library and Museum Joel Chandler Harris House
Joel Chandler Harris House (Wren's Nest) King Plow Arts Center Margaret Mitchell
Margaret Mitchell House and Museum Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site Michael C. Carlos Museum Museum of Contemporary Art of Georgia Museum of Design Atlanta National Center for Civil and Human Rights Rhodes Memorial Hall House Museum Robert C. Williams Paper Museum William Breman Jewish Heritage & Holocaust Museum World of Coca-Cola

Parks and wildlife

Atlanta
Atlanta Botanical Garden BeltLine Stone Mountain Centennial Olympic Park Chastain Park Chattahoochee River Fernbank Forest Georgia Aquarium Grant Park Historic Fourth Ward Park Zoo Atlanta Piedmont Park Woodruff Park

Performing arts

Alliance Theatre Atlanta
Atlanta Symphony Hall Atlanta
Atlanta Civic Center Buckhead
Buckhead Theatre Center for Puppetry Arts Fox Theatre Goat Farm Arts Center King Plow Arts Center Plaza Theatre Shakespeare Tavern The Masquerade The Tabernacle Tara Theatre Variety Playhouse Woodruff Arts Center

Residential (former)

Asa G. Candler Jr. (Callanwolde)

Water T. Candler (Lullwater)* Joel Chandler Harris (Wren's Nest) Alonzo F. Herndon Edward H. Inman (Swan House) Martin Luther King, Jr. Ferdinand McMillan (The Castle) Margaret Mitchell Edward C. Peters (Ivy Hall) Amos Giles Rhodes (Rhodes Hall) Rufus M. Rose Craigie House

Skyscrapers

Historic (pre-WWII)

Candler (1906) Flatiron (1897) Healey (1914) Hurt (1926) J. Mack Robinson (Empire) (1901) The Metropolitan (1911) Rhodes-Haverty (1929) Southern Bell (1929) William-Oliver (1930) Winecoff Hotel
Winecoff Hotel (1913)

Downtown

25 Park Place
25 Park Place (Trust Company of Georgia) 55 Marietta Street
55 Marietta Street (Fulton National Bank) 191 Peachtree Tower Centennial Tower Equitable Five Points Plaza Fourth National Bank building Georgia Power Georgia-Pacific Tower Hyatt Regency Atlanta Marriott Marquis One Park Tower Peachtree Center Peachtree Summit State of Georgia Building SunTrust Plaza TWELVE Centennial Park Westin Peachtree Plaza Hotel

Midtown

12th & Midtown (1010 Midtown 10 Sixty Five Midtown 1075 Peachtree) 1100 Peachtree 1180 Peachtree 1280 West AT&T Midtown Center Atlantic Center Plaza Atlantic Station
Atlantic Station (171 17th Street The Atlantic) Bank of America Plaza The Campanile Coca-Cola Colony Square CNN Center Four Seasons Hotel Atlanta/GLG Grand Georgian Terrace Hotel Mayfair Condominiums One Atlantic Center
One Atlantic Center (IBM Tower) Promenade II Spire ViewPoint

Buckhead

2828 Peachtree 3344 Peachtree 3630 Peachtree Atlanta
Atlanta Financial Center Atlanta
Atlanta Plaza Buckhead
Buckhead Grand Mandarin Oriental Paramount at Buckhead Park Avenue Condominiums Park Place The Pinnacle Realm Resurgens Plaza Terminus Tower Place

Perimeter Center

Concourse Corporate Center V & VI (King & Queen towers) Park Towers I & II Three Ravinia Drive

Sports venues

Bobby Dodd Stadium Georgia State Stadium GSU Sports Arena McCamish Pavilion Mercedes-Benz Stadium Philips Arena SunTrust Park

Former

688 Club Atlanta
Atlanta Cabana Motel Atlanta
Atlanta Hotel Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium Atlanta
Atlanta (Confederate) Rolling Mill Atlantic Steel
Atlantic Steel Mill Centennial Olympic Stadium† Coca-Cola Olympic City DeGive's Opera House Equitable Building (1892) Fourth National Bank Georgia Dome 3rd Georgia Governor's Mansion
Georgia Governor's Mansion (John H. James mansion) Henry Grady Hotel Hotel Aragon Kimball House Loew's Grand Theatre Masonic Temple National Museum of Patriotism Omni Coliseum Paramount Theater Piedmont Hotel Ponce de Leon amusement park Ponce de Leon Park
Ponce de Leon Park (ballpark) Ponce de Leon Springs Republic Block Rich's Riverbend Apartments Roxy Theatre SciTrek State Square Terminal Station Trout House Turner Broadcasting tower Turner Field† Union Stations: 1853 1871 1930 Post Office and Customs House/City Hall (1911-1930) Washington Hall

† – Centennial Olympic Stadium
Centennial Olympic Stadium was rebuilt in 1997 as Turner Field. In turn, Turner Field
Turner Field was rebuilt as Georgia State Stadium
Georgia State Stadium in 2017.

Planned

Atlanta
Atlanta Multi-Modal Passenger Terminal Atlanta
Atlanta Symphony Center

Wikimedia Commons has media related