 | Faye Graves, a native Wichitan, attended school at Friends and Wichita State, concluding at Midwestern Theological Seminary. He has been active in media for many years with Channel 12, KIRL, KFDI, KOOO AM & FM (Omaha), KFRM & KICT 95, as an owner, manager, producer, director and announcer. He has served as President of the Haysville Board of Education. He has also served on several national boards of the Southern Baptist Convention. Faye currently serves as Executive Pastor and Director of Administration and Education at Immanuel Baptist Church, 1415 S. Topeka, Wichita. You may contact Faye by e-mail fmgraves@amenibc.org, or by phone at (316) 262-1452. |
Nostalgia
2003-09-01 10:08:00
Do you remember?
: Where did people in Wichita go before Century II and the Kansas Coliseum were built?
ANSWER: You know, with all the talk about new arenas for Wichita, I was just remembering the one that served this city for many years, the old Forum. The Forum was located at William and Water and was used for any kind of public exposition that came to Wichita. Sport, Boat and Travel shows, the Home Show, school graduations, church functions and all kinds of specialty display shows used the entire building. For the smaller crowds, there was the Arcadia Theater located on the northeast corner of the building. There was also the major auditorium on the south side, and a huge garage, or as we called it, exposition area, in the center. The city actually had three extra-wide streets to channel traffic to downtown and to the Forum. The Forum was host to nearly every major artist and movie star personality of those glamorous times. I remember one show that I attended that featured Count Basie and His Orchestra, Billy Eckstine, Nat King Cole, Sarah Vaughn and Ella Fitzgerald... that was a star-studded evening! Hap Peebles was Wichita’s major promoter during this time and he helped Channel 12 and me bring Johnny Cash and Bobby Lord to the Forum for our yearly Hi-Fi Hop Dance Contest... for just $1000. Hap scheduled many country shows with all the top recording stars, and then took them two blocks to the Missouri Pacific Dance Hall on Douglas for a big evening. The Forum also housed the National Guard, and during the mobilization time of World War II, the guard was activated and actually used the Forum for barracks and began their drilling maneuvers in downtown Wichita. The Forum, of course, gave way for the construction of Century II. There are so many remembrances we all have of shows and events we witnessed at the old Forum. Perhaps you have a special event you would like to mention. Let us know, we’d love to hear from you! From last month’s article about dragging Douglas, I received a call from Patrick Glynn, a former motorcycle officer and he informed me that in 1876, citizens were complaining about racing on Douglas... only then it was horses. The sheriff at the time was issuing tickets. A horse had three gates, walking, trotting or galloping. If he was going faster than a walk, the rider received a ticket for speeding.
