The Aud Farewell Set by City of Buffalo

Recently I have written articles about memorabilia being sold at auction from major league sports venues including Yankee Stadium, Shea Stadium and the RCA Dome. One piece in particular mentioned the upcoming sale of memorabilia from Buffalo Memorial Auditorium affectionately known to Western New Yorkers as The Aud. Although the venue may not be as famous to outsiders as Yankee Stadium and the RCA Dome, The Aud has many wonderful memories for people from the area.

Aside from being the former home of the NHL Buffalo Sabres, The Aud was used to showcase many concerts, political rallies and many other sporting events. After the Buffalo Sabres built the HSBC Arena, The Aud became expendable and will be demolished soon. The City of Buffalo finally announced this week that memorabilia from The Aud will go on sale at a two day festival set for November 15 and 16, 2008 at the Buffalo Niagara Convention Center in Buffalo, New York. Among the many items that will be auctioned off will be sets of the blue seats. Those who have moved out of the area and cannot attend in November, need not despair. More memorabilia will be available in an online auction a week after the event.


The event itself is being organized by Showcase Sports Marketing and will be called “Farewell Old Friend.” More information will be forthcoming on as site they have set up at audfarewell.com

Shea Stadium & RCA Dome Memorabilia to be Auctioned & Sold

Recently I wrote an article about the City of Buffalo announcing that they are seeking an auction company to sell off Buffalo Memorial Auditorium memorabilia. I said it would be sad to see the old place go. Many other fans will feel the same way this week with the announcement of the Shea Stadium memorabilia auction and the upcoming RCA Dome memorabilia auction. Shea Stadium in New York is where the Major League Baseball New York Mets play. The RCA Dome is where the Payton Manning threw many of his touchdown passes in the National Football League. In an era of better stadiums to make players and owners richer, both of those venues are being torn down.

The sale of Shea Stadium memorabilia began today and continues throughout the weekend. Everything at the stadium is being offered for sale including seats, banners, signs, dugout and even the escalators. The kicker here is that in order to bid or buy any of these items you must first join the club. MeiGray Group who is running the sale of memorabilia is first selling, for $2,500 - $10,000 Premiere Club memberships that will allow you a chance at first dibs on the merchandise. They have three levels Platinum, Gold and Silver. The money you pay is being called a minimum purchase deposit and although non-refundable, will be used towards any purchases you make.

On September 24, 2008, the roof of the RCA Dome, which was built in 1984, in Indianapolis, Indiana, will be deflated. After it is completely deflated, the roof will be cut into small pieces and sold as memorabilia along with other memorabilia that is being salvaged within the stadium walls. For about $60 you can obtain a piece of the RCA Dome roof on a plaque from the Colts Pro Shop. Apparently they are also auctioning off items although when I checked out the site recently, there was nothing listed on their auction page. After the roof is gone and everything else is stripped and dismantled, the upper level is going to be imploded. And another great venue in the history of sports and will be gone forever.

Buffalo Memorial Auditorium (The Aud) Memorabilia Auction

The City of Buffalo yesterday and it’s mayor, Byron Brown, announced that they are searching for an auction company to sell memorabilia from the old Buffalo War Memorial Auditorium. The Aud, as it is affectionately known in Western New York is an indoor arena that served the community well from 1940 until 1996. In its heyday, the Aud provided a fantastic venue for everything from NBA basketball (Buffalo Braves) to NHL Hockey (Buffalo Sabres) as well as circuses, wrestling events, ice shows lacrosse and indoor soccer. The Aud was also a favorite destination for concert goers with acts such as the Grateful Dead, Led Zeppelin, Paula Adbul, Garth Brooks and many many others.


In 1970, when the Sabres finally arrived in Buffalo, my brother and I became fans of the team as well as the Buffalo Braves of the NBA. However, the Aud has a deeper meaning for me because I remember going there as a kid. My father was a huge professional wrestling fan and as a kid we watched on TV on Saturday evenings. When the behemoths of the ring came to the Aud in most cases my father, my brothers and I would go to see the action. It was events like these where my father, who has since passed away, bonded. The very last event at the Aud was indeed a wrestling show with proceeds benefitting the Ilio D’Palo Foundation in 1996, my father, my youngest son and I were there. It will be sad to see the Aud finally go.