Today In History with The Retrospectors The Anti-Disco Army
Rerun: ‘Disco Demolition Night’, the brainchild of 24 year-old shock jock Steve Dahl, caused mass hysteria at Comiskey Park, Chicago on 12th July, 1979 - causing a pitch invasion that lead to 39 arrests.
Intended as a promotional event for a Tigers vs White Sox doubleheader, attendees were lured with discounted admission if they turned up to the game armed with disco records to be blown up with powerful explosives; an intermission entertainment that has since been contextualised as a racist, homophobic book-burning.
In this episode, Olly, Rebecca and Arion examine why Chicago was caught in a rock/disco divide; revisit the club classics of 1979; and question the wisdom of sex on third base…
Further Reading:
• Broadcast footage from the night - from The Museum of Classic Chicago Television: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kqDkBM9vxw8
• ‘Disco Demolition: the night they tried to crush black music’ (The Guardian, 2019):
https://www.theguardian.com/music/2019/jul/19/disco-demolition-the-night-they-tried-to-crush-black-music
• ‘July 12, 1979: 'The Night Disco Died' — Or Didn't’ (NPR, 2016): https://www.npr.org/2016/07/16/485873750/july-12-1979-the-night-disco-died-or-didnt
‘Why am I hearing a rerun?’
Each Thursday and Friday we repeat stories from our archive of 800+ episodes, so we can maintain the quality of our independent podcast and bring you fresh, free content every Monday-Wednesday…
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The Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill.
Theme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Emma Corsham.
Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2024.
Image: By Eddie Wagner - Original publication: 1979, Chicago TribuneImmediate source: https://www.chicagomag.com/chicago-magazine/july-2016/the-night-disco-died/, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=72807463
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