Angel Stadium
Angel Stadium of Anaheim is a baseball stadium in Anaheim, California. It has been the home ballpark of the Los Angeles Angels of Major League Baseball (MLB) since its inception 56 years ago in 1966, and it was also the home stadium of the Los Angeles Rams of the National Football League (NFL) from 1980 to 1994.
The stadium’s unofficial nickname, The Big A, was coined by Herald Examiner Sports Editor Bud Furillo. It is the fourth-oldest active ballpark in the majors, trailing only Fenway Park, Wrigley Field, and Dodger Stadium, and it has hosted the All-Star Game three times: in 1967, 1989, and 2010.
ARTIC (Anaheim Regional Transportation Intermodal Center), which serves the Metrolink Orange County Line and Amtrak Pacific Surfliner, is located close on the other side of State Route 57 and can be accessible by the Douglass Road gate in the parking lot’s northeast corner. From several locations along the line, which connects San Luis Obispo, Los Angeles, and San Diego, the station gives convenient access to the stadium, the nearby Honda Center, and Disneyland. Anaheim Resort Transit, as well as Orange County Transportation Authority buses, stop at the facility.
Aside from professional baseball and football, Angel Stadium has hosted high school and college football games, the World Football League, two crusades by Evangelist Billy Graham, nearly 20 consecutive annual crusades by Evangelist Greg Laurie, Eid el Fitr celebrations and concerts, and two to three AMA Supercross Championship races per year.
The stadium also contains the KLAA studios and offices, which are owned and run by the Angels (830 AM).
Location and the “Big A”
Angel Stadium and its accompanying parking lot are generally defined to the north by Katella Avenue, to the east by the Orange Freeway, to the south by Orangewood Avenue, and to the west by State College Boulevard.
The iconic “Big A” sign, which originally served as a scoreboard support in left field, is positioned near the parking lot’s eastern perimeter. Following Angels victories, the halo near the top of the 230-foot (70-meter) tall, 210-ton symbol is illuminated (both at home and on the road). After a victory, broadcaster Victor Rojas would exclaim, “Light that baby up!”
Filming location
Angel Stadium has been used in several notable cinema pictures. The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad! (1988) concludes with an electronically manipulated Reggie Jackson attempting to shoot Queen Elizabeth II. The exteriors were shot at the ballpark, but the majority of the baseball scenes were filmed at Dodger Stadium. Kim Basinger speaks to an extraterrestrial counsel in the 1988 sci-fi comedy My Stepmother Is an Alien, which was shot in Angel Stadium. The baseball sequences in the 1990 comedy Taking Care of Business were filmed in the stadium and portrayed a World Series clash between the Angels and the Chicago Cubs. The ballpark is extensively featured in the Disney version of Angels in the Outfield (1994), however much of the interior images were shot at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. In the filming of The Fan, the stadium acted as a stand-in for Candlestick Park (1996). Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo and Air Bud: Seventh Inning Fetch scenes were also shot here.
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