Key Dated In Kingdome History

After two previous attempts failed, King County voters on May 13, 1968, approved $40 million in bonds to build a multipurpose domed stadium, eventually named the Kingome. Here are other key dates in the Kingdome 20-year history:

1976 March 27 _ Opening night: A marching band of 2,000 plays "76 Trombones," and a telegram from President Gerald Ford is read by King County Executive John Spellman. But the night's best line comes from entertainer Danny Kaye, part-owner of the yet-unnamed Seattle baseball team, who advises: "Get your World Series tickets early."

April-June _ Talk about multipurpose: Three superstars from widely different realms light up the Dome in its opening months. In April, international soccer star Pele and his New York Cosmos defeat the Sounders 3-1 in the first sports event. In May, Rev. Billy Graham draws 434,100 to an eight-day crusade. And in June, Paul McCartney and Wings set an indoor-attendance record for a single act, 67,000. Dressed in black with a pink scarf, McCartney woos the crowd with favorites such as "Yesterday" and "Maybe I'm Amazed." But what's this? One writer notes the ex-Beatle, nearly 34, is beginning to sport a few gray hairs.

Aug. 1 _ Seahawk kickoff: Franchise's first game is a 27-20 exhibition loss to San Francisco.

Aug. 14 _ First death: Mason County man suffers heart attack at Seahawks game.

1977 Jan. 17 _ NFL Pro Bowl: O.J. Simpson scores from three yards out to put the American Football Conference (AFC) on top in the first quarter; AFC never loses the lead and notches a 24-14 win.

April 6 _ Play ball: First Mariners game is a 7-0 loss to California Angels.

Dec. 3 _ Prep titles: The birth of the "Kingbowl" sees four high-school championships on the same field in the same day, drawing nearly 34,000 fans. The day's winners: Colton, Chewelah, Burlington-Edison and Sumner. Over the years, the Dome has also hosted high-school baseball and basketball championships.

1978 July 28 _ Judgment day: U.S. District Judge Morrell Sharp awards King County $12.3 million from original Dome contractor, the Donald M. Drake Co., because the company walked off the job in a dispute.

1979 May _ Supreme Sonics: The SuperSonics cap their first year as Kingdome tenants with their only National Basketball Association (NBA) championship. But the Dome hosts just a single game of the title series against Washington, a 105-95 Seattle win May 27. The Sonics win Game 4 in the Seattle Center Coliseum (a day the Mariners have the Dome) and wrap up the title with a Game 5 win in Washington.

July 17 _ Stars shine: National League wins 50th Major League All-Star Game, 7-6.

Dec. 15 _ Peerless party: A cast of 3,000 singers, dancers and musicians, along with a forest of lighted Christmas trees and 150,000 balloons are all part of Boeing's 1979 employee Christmas extravaganza, in which 103,152 are entertained at two seatings. To this day, the event is listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as the largest Christmas party ever staged.

1980 April 15 _ NBA record: Game 5 of the Sonics playoff series against Milwaukee draws 40,172, most to attend an NBA game to date.

1981 Oct. 14,15: _ Mega-concert: The first Rolling Stones concert in the Dome is sold out in four hours, so a second is added the following afternoon. Together, they draw 137,000.

1982 May 6 _ Ancient Mariner: Gaylord Perry wins 300th game, beating Yankees 7-3.

Oct. 2 _ Target Seattle: The dangers of nuclear war are explored in a nine-day event culminating with music and speakers in the Dome.

1983 Feb. 16 _ Ramp deaths: An Olympia man leaving a Sonics game climbs a ramp railing and falls 47 feet off the other side, becoming the third person to die in a fall from the ramps in 16 months. County officials blame the negligence of those involved, not the stadium, but order pointed concrete placed on the railings to avert other tragedies.

March 5-13 _ Home sweet Dome: The nine-day Seattle Home Show, attended by 173,648, sets a Kingdome attendance mark for a consumer show.

December _ Seahawk high point: Seattle's NFL playoff debut brings heady times for the home fans. Dave Krieg throws three touchdown passes and Curt Warner runs for 99 yards as the Hawks beat Denver 31-7 in the AFC Wild Card Game. Excitement builds as a 27-20 road win over Miami launches Seattle into the AFC championship. The Hawks drop that game 30-14 to the L.A. Raiders, and never again knock on the Super Bowl door.

1984 April 2 _ Final Four: Two seven-footers, each to become a giant in the NBA, battle in the Dome's first National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) title game. In the end, Patrick Ewing's Georgetown Hoyas top Akeem Olajuwon's Houston Cougars, 84-75.

Dec. 22 _ Raider haters: Seahawks eliminate defending Super Bowl Champ L.A. Raiders 13-7 in AFC wild-card game but lose the following week in Miami, 31-10.

1986 March 27 _ Dome at a decade: Kingdome celebrates 10 years as Spellman, then the former governor, calls it "the most honest building in Seattle ... a first-class, easy-to-maintain structure."

Oct. 6 _ The catch: Before a national audience on Monday Night Football, Steve Largent sets an NFL record by receiving a pass in his 128th straight game. In a 14-year career, all with Seattle, Largent becomes the city's favorite Seahawk, sets several records and lands his picture on a Wheaties box. In more recent days, he becomes a U.S. congressman from Oklahoma and enters the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

1987 Feb. 8 _ Local MVP: SuperSonics forward Tom Chambers is the Most Valuable Player in the 1987 NBA All-Star Game as West wins 154-149 in overtime.

1989 April 3 _ Fantastic "Final Four" finish: Seton Hall, the Cinderella team, leads near the end, but Michigan is on top when it counts, winning the Dome's second NCAA championship in an overtime thriller, 80-79. Afterward, Seton Hall's Gerald Greene, who missed a free throw that could have won the game, is philosophical: `You can't bring the game back and play it over again."

1990 June 2 _ Randy rules: The lanky lefty striding to the mound against Detroit has been a Mariner for just a year, a week and a day. But when Randy Johnson's last pitch crosses the plate at 97 miles an hour, he completes what no Mariner pitcher has in 2,100 previous games, a no-hitter. The crowd goes crazy, but when Johnson calls his father from the clubhouse, his dad's first concern is the fact that Randy allowed six walks.

Aug. 31: _ Like father, like son: Mariners Ken Griffey Sr. and Ken Griffey Jr. become the first father and son to play in the same major-league lineup.

1992 Nov. 30 _ Voice of the Seahawks: Two days before he dies from cancer, longtime Seahawks broadcaster Pete Gross is inducted into the team's Ring of Honor. He departs the Kingdome with his signature call, "Touchdown Seahawks!"

1993 April 22 _ No means no: Chris Bosio throws the Mariners' second no-hitter, beating Boston 7-0. 1994 April 11 _ Big crowd: Mariner home opener, a 9-8 win over Minnesota, draws largest regular-season crowd in club history, 57,806.

July 19 _ Tile trouble: First it's an inconvenience, then a headache and finally, a tragedy. Four wood-fiber tiles fall from the Kingdome ceiling shortly before the Mariners are to play the Baltimore Orioles. An inspection shows all 40,000 tiles must be replaced. Then on Aug. 17, a crane basket holding two workmen falls 250 feet, killing William Louth, 32, of Portland, and Jorge Turincio, 39, of San Diego. The stadium remains closed until November.

Dec. 15 _ Voodoo venue: Back in the Dome after 14 years, Mick Jagger and the the Rolling Stones delight 48,400 at the "Voodoo Lounge."

1995 April 3 _ UCLA triumphs: Bruins win the Dome's third NCAA "Final Four," defeating reigning national champ Arkansas 89-78.

October _ Mariner mayhem: Seattle savors its first taste of baseball-playoff excitement. The Dome rocks as a 9-1 victory over California locks up the American League West crown. Three must-win victories against the Yankees, each more dramatic than the last, put Seattle into the league championship. Mariner fever is so potent that even when Seattle loses the pennant series to Cleveland in six games, fans rise for a prolonged ovation.

1996 February _ Behring exit: Citing concerns about the Kingdome's safety in an earthquake, Ken Behring says he's taking his NFL franchise out of town. County officials object and both sides file lawsuits.