Aug. 21, 1951: Moms and kids lined up around the block to see Disney’s animated film “Alice in Wonderland” at the cool, air-conditioned Stanley Theater. A much larger crowd would gather at the theater at decade later, when DJ Porky Chedwick broadcast live at the Stanley to promote the movie “Birdman of Alcatraz.” Thousands of people jammed Seventh Street and Penn Avenue in the summer of 1961 to see the “Daddio of the Raddio.” Bridges and roads leading to the Golden Triangle were gridlocked. Mayor Joseph M. Barr requested an end to the broadcast in hopes it would ease the logjam.
Beginning in 1977, the Stanley hosted some of the country’s best rock acts, including the Grateful Dead, Bruce Springsteen, Queen, Blondie, the Velvet Underground, Journey and Frank Zappa. It was at the Stanley that raggae legend Bob Marley performed his final concert on Sept. 23, 1980, eight months before his death from cancer.
(Pittsburgh Press photo)
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