Blast from the past # 8 (Live in Central Park - Diana Ross)
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For this Blast from the past I would like to take you back to 21st & 22nd of July 1983. I just turned 18 on July 20th of that same year when one day later Diana Ross took center stage at New-York's Central Park. I saw this concert as a birthday present from her, which wasn't of course! Anyway, when Diana started her performance little did she know that this dream of hers will go down in history as the Rainy Concert! Diana, a superstar had this vision of giving a free concert in Central Park for years. The money she would make from it she would donate to the city of New-York to built a children's playground. Diana born and raised in Detroit knew what it's like to grow up with almost nothing and that's why she wanted to use her Superstar status to give something back to the black community and people in general! This playground would be built from the money they would make from T-shirts etc... During Diana's performance on July 21st New-York became the center of this huge thunderstorm forcing Diana to stop singing and leave the stage! At first she thought that it was just a little rain shower and that it would pass by but after a while she realized that it wouldn't and that she had to give way to the storm. However, she didn't until she was told that all spectators had left the park safely. If I would ask you the question; in which place you don't want to be during a thunderstorm? I'm sure you would answer: not where there are many trees, not where there's lot of iron and steal, not standing with my feet in water holding a microphone, not where I'm surrounded by lots of electric equipment! Well Diana did! She kept talking to the audience to leave the park quietly, no pushing or whatsoever and that she would return the next day! She put her own life at risk for the sake to save the lifes of many others cause she knew that the moment she would leave the stage the lights would go out and that the audience was left by itself in the dark! This again shows what a great performer and human being she is! So, when she was back on the next day she could hardly believe that the public was there as well! Because of that it was a very emotional concert! When the concert was over and everybody had to be paid cause the lighting people, television, etc... now had worked for two days, there was no money left to built the playground! Everybody who knows Diana Ross personally always
has told me that whenever she promises something she will keep her promise no matter what! The same thing here. She promised New-York this playground... New-York got it's playground only not from the money made with the concert but it was built with 275.000 USD of Diana's private money!
Here's a link to the opening of day two and some segments of day one! Imagine that it was 3 o'clock in the afternoon when both concerts took place...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vMJNrYEleBA
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For this Blast from the past I would like to take you back to 21st & 22nd of July 1983. I just turned 18 on July 20th of that same year when one day later Diana Ross took center stage at New-York's Central Park. I saw this concert as a birthday present from her, which wasn't of course! Anyway, when Diana started her performance little did she know that this dream of hers will go down in history as the Rainy Concert! Diana, a superstar had this vision of giving a free concert in Central Park for years. The money she would make from it she would donate to the city of New-York to built a children's playground. Diana born and raised in Detroit knew what it's like to grow up with almost nothing and that's why she wanted to use her Superstar status to give something back to the black community and people in general! This playground would be built from the money they would make from T-shirts etc... During Diana's performance on July 21st New-York became the center of this huge thunderstorm forcing Diana to stop singing and leave the stage! At first she thought that it was just a little rain shower and that it would pass by but after a while she realized that it wouldn't and that she had to give way to the storm. However, she didn't until she was told that all spectators had left the park safely. If I would ask you the question; in which place you don't want to be during a thunderstorm? I'm sure you would answer: not where there are many trees, not where there's lot of iron and steal, not standing with my feet in water holding a microphone, not where I'm surrounded by lots of electric equipment! Well Diana did! She kept talking to the audience to leave the park quietly, no pushing or whatsoever and that she would return the next day! She put her own life at risk for the sake to save the lifes of many others cause she knew that the moment she would leave the stage the lights would go out and that the audience was left by itself in the dark! This again shows what a great performer and human being she is! So, when she was back on the next day she could hardly believe that the public was there as well! Because of that it was a very emotional concert! When the concert was over and everybody had to be paid cause the lighting people, television, etc... now had worked for two days, there was no money left to built the playground! Everybody who knows Diana Ross personally always
has told me that whenever she promises something she will keep her promise no matter what! The same thing here. She promised New-York this playground... New-York got it's playground only not from the money made with the concert but it was built with 275.000 USD of Diana's private money!Here's a link to the opening of day two and some segments of day one! Imagine that it was 3 o'clock in the afternoon when both concerts took place...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vMJNrYEleBA
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posted by Patrick at Friday, December 29, 2006
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