The Palace Was Imploded Today
I’ll never forget my dad taking me and my brother to a game the year it opened. Piling into a mini-van and making the drive from Mount Pleasant, which felt like days, and being so excited to see the Pistons introduction.
Go Vipers forever.
Anyone been to great lakes crossing lately? Who else still has a cheap Michigan shirt from Steve & Barry's?
I bought about 6-8 shirts many years back from the State Street store. I can't even remember now how long that store has been closed for. What was the shirt deal? 3 for $20? Buy 1, Get 2 Free?
RIP Palace....many great memories there of the Bad Boys and concerts.
You used to be able to get a gaudy faux leather maize/blue jacket for about fifteen bucks. You still see 60 year old dads and scalpers in them from time to time on gameday.
I'm a 60 year old who used to shop at S&B's. I'll admit to buying the t-shirts, but those jackets were too gaudy even for me.
I still have a tattered old sweatshirt from Steve & Barry's that I wear around the house. All the t-shirts are gone.
In 1998 I bought two pairs of mesh shorts from S&B on State Street, one blue, one maize, for 10 or 15 dollars. I have slept in the blue ones every night for the past 22 years and I'm wearing the maize ones now because I work out in them and I just finished a run. They are both in perfect shape.
My dilemma is that I have three children but only two pairs for them to inherit. Conversely, it would be gauche to be buried wearing two pairs. S&B: Blessing or Curse?
I still have 2 sweatshirts that are in perfect shape that I bought before my kids were born. My oldest will be a sophomore in high school.
Steve & Barry's --- they had the most random University shirts there.
Sometime around 2000, I bought about 15 different long-sleeve t-shirts from the Great Lakes Crossing store. All kinds of random schools, basically anyone where I thought their logo was cool. As I recall, among the t-shirts I bought were UTEP, Virginia Tech, New Mexico, Furman, Idaho and MTSU. There were others, but I recall those specifically.
Wow! I was just golfing with my dad at Fieldstone earlier this week and saw what remained of the Palace. I’ve golfed there a couple times with my dad over the months and saw the demo progress continue. I didn’t know they planned to implode it with explosives.
Is there such a word as "implosives" when used for this purpose? It's so weird to read that something was imploded with explosives.
The explosives still send their force outwards. The building implodes, because it collapses inwards (at least when done properly).
That went better than the Silverdome implosion and is the second-biggest implosion the Palace has seen (Rasheed leaving Horry open is the biggest).
I dunno, I think Malice at the Palace was also right up there!
I filed that under E for explosion.
One of only two games I ever saw there. Best sports moment I've ever seen live that wasn't a Michigan game. This super-loudmouth Pacers fan sitting right behind us made the whole game so miserable, then right at the end, your basic force majeure event :) That dude knew the Pacers' season was over the second Artest took off into the stands. Losing the game was 100% worth that jerk's misery.
#Malice4Ever
Looks like they did a better job than with the Silverdome.
Ack, sorry fishbulb.
Fortunately for you, I do not have an implosive personality.
Wow, that’s almost as much dust as there is in my house. The wife decided this week was a good time to have hardwood flooring installed. We’re on day 5, but they said they would be done today. Hope springs eternal. I want my house back.
What a waste.
Agreed. It lasted what, 30 years? It was a game changer in Arena design. It was up-to-date right up until now. Only problem was that Bill Davidson just had to put it in the boondocks.
The Pistons owned their building and land but decided to move with Ilitch because they thought they would lose event revenue to the new arena.
Little did they know you need a vertigo pill and protective climbing gear in order to watch a game in either of the upper levels. Comerica park should have been a sign that fans in this area don't go to arenas just because they are new.
I never visited the Palace, but it's still sad to see a building with history go the way of the Dodo. I didn't even know it was slated for destruction!
Saw a bunch of bands in the parking lots (warped tour) and a couple games
you didn’t miss much
I'll never forget the One Direction concert I took my nieces to, and hid in the luxury box.
I saw my first Pistons game there when I was younger. My dad got a few tickets from a buddy. We sat almost near the back to watch Isiah, Dumars, and Lambeer. I don't remember who they were playing, but I remember watching James Edwards emphatically dunk on someone, and wondering as a little kid how the basketball hoop could withstand so much force.
The palace was a nice place, lots of pistons games. Saw some good shows there as well, nine inch nails with a perfect circle opening, tool, a perfect circle headlining there and depeche mode as well off the top of my head.
It was a perfectly fine arena, just for the Pistons, and privately financed! Taxpayers were never on the hook for it. The only issue was that its location was out of the way for some fans. It's a shame.
First time I ever smoked pot was in the Palace. There with friends to see Ratt, Britny Fox and Kix. Yes, I'm kinda old.
I'm not gonna lie this makes me feel sad, and old... I saw so many Pistons games there. Have only seen one at PizzArena and it just isn't the same. Oh well. RIP mighty Palace.
Ditto for me! Especially in the moniker PIZZARENA!
One the one hand it's sad because the Palace was a classy place – "best arena" in the NBA for beaucoup years in a row, and those courtside luxury boxes were *chef's kiss*. On the other hand it's refreshing to see it avoid the pathetic fate of Tiger Stadium and the Silverdome.
It was a fine enough venue. But Tom Gores (who owned both the Pistons and the Palace) didn't seem interested in keeping it after he moved the Pistons. There clearly was some agreement to have it not compete with the new Little Caesars Arena, because right after they left, the Palace stopped booking concerts. Gores then got a big offer on the land and sold.
Can't imagine it was cost effective without a major sports team there.
All of the above, except for poor design. It was nice arena. I'm surprised Auburn Hills did not want it as a convention center?
Was there every year from 2007 to 2010 for MHSAA Individual Wrestling State Finals. Always an exciting event. Great arena and lots of great memories.
Wasn't a dump.
Actually well designed, inside and underside. My firm did telecom for them, I saw the whole place both public and private. They’d put in 36 “ of compacted dirt for equestrian events, pretty amazing.
I wonder if that dust can be very healthy for anything within range. Demo companies should be responsible for that, too.
Without Malice.
Lots of pistons and vipers games and two great concerts- Oasis in ‘96 and Beasties in ‘98?hello nasty tour.
fare the well palace
saw beasties in 94 ..... biggest mosh pit I have ever seen ... sweet Jesus first and only time ever I was too scared to get in a pit
Been in dozens and dozens of mosh pits with major bands, plenty of walls of death ... that beastie pit was stupid
I remember when LeBron had 29 of the teams 30 points at the palace. It was a moment of individual greatness. LeBron has had a lot of great moments but that was really early in his career. He single handily carried the Cavaliers to victory that night. He left it all on the floor that night as they say. That will be in the documentary they make about his career when he retires. Definitely my favorite moment in the palace besides the malice of course.
Wow, I still remember watching the Piston play the Lakers at the silverdome in the 1989 NBA championship. Bon Jovi was sitting up in the rafters since he was getting ready for a concert on the other side of the curtain. I think we set the record for a basketball game at the time with over 62,000 in the silverdome. I remember going to a game at the Palace and getting to sit in one of the GM suites, since my bil worked for GM in 2006.
Good riddance! Davidson should have kept the Pistons in Detroit
Davidson was the best thing that ever happened to the Pistons.
My favorite moment was Game 5 in ‘04.
But not too far after that was seeing David Bowie and NIN in ‘95.