Cow Palace Faces the End of an Era

By Mario Ortega Jr.

The Cow Palace, the famed California arena on the border of Daly City and San Francisco, could be torn down if it is sold under a proposal by State Sen. Leland Yee. Yee has drafted a bill that would allow California to sell the state-owned arena to Daly City, which wants to redevelop the area around the Cow Palace. The state would benefit from the sale by eliminating the costs to maintain the arena, which opened in 1941, including necessary upgrades to meet earthquake standards. The Cow Palace was once a main entertainment venue in the Bay Area and has hosted numerous notable events, including speeches by John F. Kennedy, in 1960, and Republican Presidential Nominee Barry Goldwater, at the Republican National Convention in 1964, and concert performances by the Beatles and Elvis Presley among many others. The NBA’s Golden State Warriors and NHL’s San Jose Sharks were tenants of the arena before moving to Oakland and San Jose.

The arena also has a rich boxing history. The Cow Palace hosted several amateur tournaments, including the respected San Francisco Golden Gloves beginning in the early 80’s, that featured many local fighters that went on to professional boxing fame. On October 14, 1949, the first professional boxing event of record was held at the arena, as NBA Heavyweight Champion Ezzard Charles defeated Pat Valentino, of San Francisco, via eighth-round knockout in what was by all accounts a memorable battle. A remarkable 19,870 spectators paid $167,870 to see the pride of San Francisco make a go at Charles’ title. Come backing Joe Louis took on Andy Walker, the California State Heavyweight Champion from San Francisco, at the Cow Palace on February 3, 1951, grossing $96,000. In another memorable bout, Sandy Saddler regained his World Featherweight title from Flash Elorde at the Cow Palace on January 18, 1956 by TKO, when the referee stopped the bout due to a cut. Elorade, a bloody mess, was ahead on all three cards at the time of the stoppage. The crowd, almost entirely for Elorde, booed the end result of the gory battle. Boxing greats Willie Pep, Gene Fullmer, Joey Maxim, Raul Macias, Sugar Ray Robinson and Eder Jofre all competed in the Cow Palace ring during the arena’s strong run from the early 50’s to the early 60’s. My great uncle, Johnny Ortega, fought the legendary Mexican fighter Jose Beccera at the Cow Palace on the June 15, 1956 undercard of Macias’ NBA Bantamweight title defense against Dommy Ursua.

Boxing events were held sparingly at the arena in the 70’s and 80’s. Only one boxing event was held at the Cow Palace in the 90’s, a David Tua-headlined card in 1998. In December of 2003 the last boxing card was held at the arena and was unfortunately a forgettable and poorly run event. The event, promoted by Rose Jewel Promotions - the company of former WBO titlist Lupe Aquino and his wife Jamie, was nearly cancelled the day of and left it’s customers outside for over an hour after the scheduled start time. There were several long delays in between the bouts, attributed to the taping of the card, leaving the crowd displeased with their experience. Reportedly several of the fighters on the card were paid with bad checks. It is regrettable that may be the last boxing memory at the once great Cow Palace.

The proposed bill has set off a public debate in the Bay Area over the arena’s fate. Many in the area feel the arena should be considered a historical landmark, while others feel the area could benefit from the proposed sale. Public forums are being held on Sen. Yee’s bill this month. The forums take place on March 8th at 10 am at the Visitacion Valley Community Center in San Francisco, March 8th at 11 am at the Bayshore Community Center in Daly City and on March 25th at 7 pm at the Saddleback Homeowners Clubhouse in Daly City. SFGate.com has also posted a platform for its readers to voice their opinions on the matter at sfgate.com/ZCOZ.

Mario Ortega Jr. can be reached at ortega15rds@lycos.com