Forest Hills Stadium at 100 Years Old: From Dylan and Dolly to David Byrne and Don Draper, a Look Back at the Venue’s Most Memorable Moments
variety.comEthan Shanfeld Forest Hills Stadium could have been a condominium. The legendary Queens, New York, tennis-stadium-turned-amphitheater — longtime home of the U.S.
Open, which would later host outdoor concerts by the likes of the Beatles, Frank Sinatra, Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Ray Charles and the Rolling Stones — had gone decades without live music and was casually courting offers from developers to knock down the stadium and build housing units.
Meanwhile, in 2012, music entrepreneur Mike Luba had just finished a tour with Mumford & Sons and was looking for a “wacko” venue for the folk rockers to play in New York.
Luba grew up on Long Island and remembered hearing stories about Forest Hills from his parents, whosesecond date was a Simon & Garfunkel concert at the venue.And given that half of the members of Mumford & Sons grew up in Wimbledon, he thought the tennis stadium was a perfect match.
Read more on variety.com