Congress has cut federal funding for public media — a $3.4 million loss for LAist. We count on readers like you to protect our nonprofit newsroom. Become a monthly member and sustain local journalism.
This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.
This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.
Photos: When The Dodgers First Landed In Los Angeles In 1958
Unless your long-term memory has been wiped clean by mysterious men in black suits working for some covert government agency, you already know that the Dodgers came to L.A. via Brooklyn (the story is probably more complicated than you may think; Walter O'Malley, who brought the Dodgers here, had actually worked to keep the team in Brooklyn).
What sometimes gets forgotten is the jubilant welcome the team received. The Dodgers were popular from the get-go; they played their first few seasons at the Coliseum, and drew a crowd of 78,672 fans (then a league record for single-game attendance) for their first game ever as an L.A. team. By the end of the inaugural season, 1,845,556 fans had seen the Dodgers play in L.A., which was over 800,000 more than what the team drew in Brooklyn in the previous season.
It all stands in stark contrast to what other L.A. teams would face upon arriving in the Southland. The Kings toiled away in a thankless lot for four decades before the Stanley Cup brought them real, lasting attention (they went to the finals in 1993, but the fanfare died pretty quick after that). And let’s not even get into the Rams' and Chargers' underwhelming returns to L.A. While most other teams are tasked with winning to gain acceptance, it seemed that the Dodgers were regarded as a part of the city's fabric the moment they set foot in L.A.
Which is all to say that that first season in 1958 was pretty magical. The Dodgers would put up a losing record, but fans were still treated to the play of Duke Snider and a still-developing Sandy Koufax. There was a whole parade that escorted them to their first game, and entertainment stars would drop in to schmooze. It seemed like the team could do no wrong. It would be only a year later when residents in Chavez Ravine were forcibly evicted from their homes as construction for Dodger Stadium took hold. But, for that one shining year in 1958, everything was still a fairy tale.
Support for LAist comes from
We’ve gathered some images of that remarkable first year from the Los Angeles Public Library. As you can see, the Los Angeles Dodgers were beloved from the very first day.
As Editor-in-Chief of our newsroom, I’m extremely proud of the work our top-notch journalists are doing here at LAist. We’re doing more hard-hitting watchdog journalism than ever before — powerful reporting on the economy, elections, climate and the homelessness crisis that is making a difference in your lives. At the same time, it’s never been more difficult to maintain a paywall-free, independent news source that informs, inspires, and engages everyone.
Simply put, we cannot do this essential work without your help. Federal funding for public media has been clawed back by Congress and that means LAist has lost $3.4 million in federal funding over the next two years. So we’re asking for your help. LAist has been there for you and we’re asking you to be here for us.
We rely on donations from readers like you to stay independent, which keeps our nonprofit newsroom strong and accountable to you.
No matter where you stand on the political spectrum, press freedom is at the core of keeping our nation free and fair. And as the landscape of free press changes, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust, but the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news from our community.
Please take action today to support your trusted source for local news with a donation that makes sense for your budget.
Thank you for your generous support and believing in independent news.
Chip in now to fund your local journalism
(
LAist
)
Trending on LAist
-
With less to prove than LA, the city is becoming a center of impressive culinary creativity. -
Nearly 470 sections of guardrailing were stolen in the last fiscal year in L.A. and Ventura counties.
-
Monarch butterflies are on a path to extinction, but there is a way to support them — and maybe see them in your own yard — by planting milkweed.
-
With California voters facing a decision on redistricting this November, Surf City is poised to join the brewing battle over Congressional voting districts.
-
The drug dealer, the last of five defendants to plead guilty to federal charges linked to the 'Friends' actor’s death, will face a maximum sentence of 65 years in prison.
-
The weather’s been a little different lately, with humidity, isolated rain and wind gusts throughout much of Southern California. What’s causing the late-summer bout of gray?
Best of LAist