Pasadena Convention Center

The Pasadena Civic Auditorium

The Pasadena Convention Center is a convention center in Pasadena, California, near Los Angeles, owned by the City of Pasadena. It consists of three buildings.

Pasadena Civic Auditorium

The Civic Auditorium, one of the major structures in the Pasadena Civic Center District, was built in 1931 and is best known for being the home for the Emmy Awards from 1977 until 1997. It was designed by architects George Edwin Bergstrom, Cyril Bennett, and Fitch Haskell.^[1] Today, the Auditorium is home to the People's Choice Awards and the former home of the Pasadena Symphony Orchestra. It has also been used for some episodes of American Idol. It was used as the show's venue for "Hollywood Week" in season 10. The 3,029-seat theater hosts musicals, operas and concerts, among other events, on its 56 by 42 ft (17 by 13 m) stage.

The venue's theatre organ was acquired in 1979, having been commissioned in 1938 as a touring organ by Reginald Foort, who attended its inauguration on 23 April 1980.^[2] It was used by the BBC during and after World War II.^[2]

In addition to the main auditorium, the Civic Auditorium building originally contained two lecture rooms and an exhibition hall of 100 by 200 ft (30 by 61 m).^[3]

The Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever special was taped here on March 25, 1983; and aired on NBC in May. The show is best remembered for Michael Jackson's performance of "Billie Jean" in which he debuted his signature dance move the "Moonwalk".^[4] Louis Armstrong's 1951 album Satchmo at Pasadena was also recorded here.

The auditorium has also been used for the Miss Teen USA 2007 pageant. The preliminary and final competitions were broadcast live on NBC. It also brought in for auditions of the 11th season of America's Got Talent.

Exhibition Building

The Exhibition Building features 31,200 sq ft (2,900 m²) of exhibit space and can seat up to 4,400 for various events. Adjacent to the Exhibition Building is a 15,000 sq ft (1,400 m²) annex seating up to 600 patrons.

Conference Building

The Conference Building has 20 meeting rooms totaling 28,000 sq ft (2,600 m²).

See also

• List of convention centers in the United States

References

1. California Southland, April, 1927; California Arts and Architecture, March, 1932
2. "ATOS: Pasadena Civic Auditorium Moller". Retrieved 14 August 2014.
3. Southwest Builder & Contractor, January 2, 1925
4. Williams, Janette (June 25, 2009). "Michael Jackson left indelible mark on Pasadena". Whittier (Calif.) Daily News. Retrieved July 4, 2009.

External links

• Pasadena Convention Center
• The Pasadena Civic Auditorium

Coordinates: 34°08′36″N 118°08′39″W / 34.143383°N 118.144243°W