This past July, the City of Los Angeles passed its four-year out date for the upcoming 2028 Summer Olympics! For those of us who were around in 1984, THOSE Games will never be forgotten. From a historical perspective, many experts regard our Games as a watershed moment in Olympic history. They commend Los Angeles for playing a vital role in saving the Games at a most difficult time. After our success, every major global venue was once again interested in hosting the Olympic Games! These Games made a profit of $232 million.
As we enter 2025, I’m proud of the role that Culver City played in the success of those 1984 Olympic Games and greatly look forward to a successful 2028 Los Angeles Summer Olympic Games! Our fair city was the headquarters site for the Los Angeles Olympic Organizing Committee (“LAOOC”). Today, the Costco located on Washington Boulevard just before Lincoln Avenue in Culver City marks this location. More than 5,000 LAOOC employees and a number of our Southern California Olympian (“SCO”) members were based there. Our Olympians held positions involved in the public relations, historical, strategic marketing, and sponsorship areas.
I had the honor of exclusively representing the members of the SCO association in its marketing and business practices. Together with the SCO board of directors, a new foundation was created that raised substantial funds that assisted several deserving Olympic hopefuls from our region. Today, I have fond memories of experiencing the incredible enthusiasm of the Olympians, the Olympic organizers, the volunteers (more than 30,000 of them), the sponsors, suppliers, licensees, and a host of third-party companies and groups that included many LA county & city departments and Culver City firms such as Hamilton-Avnet.
The SCO morphed into a dynamic & complete Olympic stakeholder as a result! From the day when my agreement was approved, my firm began contacting major sponsors, suppliers & additional third parties and planning celebrations & tie-ins. The LAOOC created the Spirit Team composed of Olympians who would serve as ambassadors throughout our community and make appearances at hospitals, senior homes, schools, civic organizations and other groups to share their Olympian experiences and excitement.
And in the final weeks just before President Ronald Reagan declared these Games to be OPEN, our Olympic-related activities were busier than ever. Personally, I made up to four appearances per day at events all around our region. I got to know EVERY major hotel’s meeting & event facilities especially in downtown Los Angeles, Beverly Hills, Westwood, West Los Angeles and Culver City. Then, I had the honor of joining all of the participants and enthusiasts at our Memorial Coliseum for that incredible Opening Ceremonies!
These Games CHANGED our region and communities forever! Our beloved metro communities now had a legacy of Olympic Games involvement stretching all of the way back to 1932. We experienced the best in human interactions, civic engagement, cultural enhancement via our Olympic Festival and every artists’ contribution and the TRUE Olympic athletic experience that witnessed exceptional personal growth, world records, outstanding sportsmanship and astounding abilities to perform at the highest level when it appeared that the entire world was watching! And then it concluded but we also received an Olympic afterglow that lasted for years! What a wonderful experience we shared and have described to others who were not here!
