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The Question: Would Los Angeles support major league baseball? (Asked in Los Angeles)
JULIE JULIANA
Sherman Oaks, Calif.
Secretary
"I wonder. I occasionally go to Wrigley Field to see the Angels play. Only a few hundred fans are there. That's Triple-A baseball. Los Angeles will only support big spectacles like the Rose Bowl game. It won't support a major league team unless it's a winner all the way."
MEL ALLEN
Bedford Village, N.Y.
Sportscaster
"It can and will. While the fans don't support minor league baseball, great crowds flock to football and other sports. Los Angeles would give another miracle team to the majors. The big problem is the schedule and transportation. At the present time, lots of players don't like to fly."
CHARLES E. WILSON
Washington, D.C.
Secretary of Defense
"I would think so, because of greater Los Angeles' vast population. The tremendous interest I have seen in football during the annual Rose Bowl game would indicate countrywide interest in other athletic contests, particularly our national and popular game of baseball."
WARREN M. DORN
Mayor of Pasadena,
Calif.
"Very definitely. Ours is the most sports-minded area in the world. Where else could you get a turnout of 1,500,000 at the Tournament of Roses parade, 101,000 at the Rose Bowl game and 40,000 at the Santa Anita Race Track, on the same day? We want major league baseball."
ELMER M. WILSON
Los Angeles
Concert director
"Certainly. Los Angeles is the world's greatest sports center. Our people live an outdoor life. Sport is their primary recreation. Greater Los Angeles has 4 million residents. We have filled the Rose Bowl, the Coliseum, the Hollywood Bowl and the Santa Anita Race Track, all on the same day."
J. A. RANEY
Indianapolis, Ind.
International president Kiwanis
"Yes. Los Angeles can support anything. It's one of the richest industrial areas in the U.S. The people love sports. I've never seen anything quite like the crowds that jam their way into football games and horse races. There's a void without major league baseball, and it should be filled."
DR. ALFRED L. GERRIE
Pasadena, Calif.
President, Tournament of Roses Assn.
"I see no reason why we couldn't. We have gone first-class in every other sport. This sports interest would become even greater with major league baseball. I'll hazard the prediction that if the Dodgers come to Los Angeles they will double their attendance."
MRS. RUTH S. GARDINER
Los Angeles
Realtor
"No. There are too many new residents. Neither the city nor its inhabitants are closely knit. Our baseball fans think that baseball in the Pacific Coast League is major league baseball. They like to call it the third major league. But the Los Angeles Angels are dying on the vine."
RUBE SAMUELSON
Sports editor,
Pasadena Star-News
"Yes. The Rams-Browns pro football game drew 87,000. The same day 40,000 jammed the opening at Santa Anita, with about 30,000 returning each day. The Rose Bowl game drew 101,000. That's close to a half million in one week. The people, the money and the interest are here."
BILL SCHROEDER
Los Angeles
Official, Helms
Athletic Foundation
"Los Angeles will support any major sport. We've proved it by supporting tennis, golf, football and Olympic trials. The Olympic track and field trials of 1952 and 1956 were held here because they knew we could raise the money. And we did. We would love major league baseball."
HAL GARTNER
N. Hollywood, Calif.
Owner Valley Garden Arena
"No. Los Angeles is too spread out. Any place you build a ball park will be out of place. The people are home owners. After a day's work they like to putter in the garden. Saturday games would pull, but one day isn't enough. The Dodgers would be a novelty, but only for a while."
TWELVE PHOTOS
NEXT WEEK
Why do you like the New York Yankees? (Asked at the Itami Air Base, Japan)
