Yankee Stadium [I] Renovation (1974 - 1975)

[quagmire]

I would not doubt it was Steinbrenner, although my understanding is that the upperdeck, without the colums could not support a roof and frieze.
However, it COULD have been saved and hung on the back wall, instead of the concrete replica that was placed there instead.
I believe it was established here that the frieze was made of copper despite what Tony Morante has said.
There are a few pieces of the frieze that survived, that are said to be copper, but I dont think an analyis was preformed on them either to be sure of what metal it was made from.
Maybe someone here could tell us for sure either way?

Wasn't the original frieze in bad shape due to the lack of maintenance to the whole stadium?

[Gary Dunaier]

You must remember my last year in oys was when I was 15- I was not studying the details of the concrete or the gates

Youth is not an excuse.

personally I like beam- sorry

[NYFan1stYankFan2nd]

Again, technically it may be wrong, but are we going to be pedantic and insist that the masses call it by the correct technical term?

Well, this IS America - not Europe or Asia. To most people living here a post, pole, beam, column, girder, can all describe a vertical member that might block the view of the game from their seat. It's simple to sort out, really: Beams and girders are horizontal elements, columns and pillars are verticals. Trusses can be either.

[DN4L]

if you polled 100 yankee fans you might find Im more right than you- even if Im wrong

A. Beams
B. Support Columns

I vote for option "A"..

[NYFan1stYankFan2nd]

A. Beams
B. Support Columns

I vote for option "A"..

Beams are also horizontal. In Europe - and the rest of the world - B would be correct.

[quagmire]

A. Beams
B. Support Columns

I vote for option "A"..

I vote B. We shouldn't tolerate false things to continue being false.

If someone thinks Yankee Stadium was torn down in 1973, then they need to be corrected. You can say you don't like the changes in the renovation and think it changed how Yankee Stadium felt, but it was the same stadium as before the renovation.

Soda is not pop, we shouldn't let that continue( joking).

etc.

[shaneslatts]

Well, I dont think so myself.
I remember on the news when they were taking it down, a construction worker on the ground was hitting it with a slege hammer, not a fun thing to see, trust me.

Wasn't the original frieze in bad shape due to the lack of maintenance to the whole stadium?

[the stadium guy]

You're correct. Technically, the fans might be wrong for calling blue "red", but guess what? "Red" becomes the accepted nomenclature and in effect the correct or popular way to say it. Technically, locke may be correct, that it's a "support column" but I've heard Sox fans call it a "pole" and "support beam" at Fenway, i.e. "We sat behind the pole."

Same with Old Yankee Stadium. I'm sure that my father, my uncles, and many fans would understand what a support column was, but in baseball speak, they sat "behind the pole" or "beam." Ditto the "frieze." I've always called it that, but I'll bet that most fans, especially during OYS's day, called it a "facade" until most recently, when NYS was built. Heck, I bet a majority of fans still do. I have an old Yankee yearbook that shows pictures of Mantle's blast where it was described as "almost clearing Yankee Stadium, had the ball not hit the facade.

Again, technically it may be wrong, but are we going to be pedantic and insist that the masses call it by the correct technical term?

From the "can of worms" department:

Let's face it.....I don't know of anyone who DIDN'T call the frieze "the facade" back in the day. Hell, I even remember the late Dick Young referring to it as the "scalloped valance" in an article for the Daily News in early 1976, when the renovation was nearly finished.

Brad

[shaneslatts]

Things were simpler then.
You didnt want to have a seat behind a 'pole'
You sat in either the upper deck, the middle deck, or the grandstand.
If you were rich, you went to the Stadium Club before a game.....
Now you can sit in the middle level promanade deck, or the sushi bar Luxury salon,
Maybe they will change the name from 'bleachers' to 'extra sunshine luxury seating'
Soon we will have the Super Gold Extra Luxury Diamond Club
When I go the the New Stadium, I am going to ask for Tickets in the darn UPPERDECK!!

I vote B. We shouldn't tolerate false things to continue being false.

If someone thinks Yankee Stadium was torn down in 1973, then they need to be corrected. You can say you don't like the changes in the renovation and think it changed how Yankee Stadium felt, but it was the same stadium as before the renovation.

Soda is not pop, we shouldn't let that continue( joking).

etc.

[NYFan1stYankFan2nd]

From the "can of worms" department:

Let's face it.....I don't know of anyone who DIDN'T call the frieze "the facade" back in the day. Hell, I even remember the late Dick Young referring to it as the "scalloped valance" in an article for the Daily News in early 1976, when the renovation was nearly finished.

Brad

I'd call it a "valance" any day over calling it a "facade"! Nothing wrong with valance. Though most folks might associate that term more with the piece that runs across the top of curtains.

[Mike Wagner]

Dear Friends

Enclosed is a section from my upcoming book, "Babe's Place." I just read Michael Burke's autobiography, "Outrageous Good Fortune," published by Little, Brown & Company in 1984. I only just learned about this book. It's 422 pages, and I've enjoyed it. I had the honor and pleasure of meeting Michael Burke a number of times at Yankee games, as he sat to the left of the Yankee dugout. I did obtain a number of autographs from him. He was ALWAYS such a kind and honest gentleman. He cared about the fans. That's certainly how I felt whenever I met him. I will ALWAYS have a great LOVE and RESPECT for Mr. Burke thanks to his wonderful humanity.

I'm going to open a can of worms here. In his book, on page 307, he calls the frieze the "facade." He wrote,
- - - - - - - - - - - -
"Another high priority was to retain the copper facade around the top of the grandstand. If in a photograph you saw nothing but the facade, you knew it was Yankee Stadium, no other. I lost that one. Time and again the architects told me the facade demand was impossible, were sent back to the drawing board, and, finally convinced me that if we were to be rid of the girders, to give everyone an open view of the field, the new structure would not support the facade."

"Then take it down and mount it around the perimeter wall behind the bleachers. We've got to preserve that characteristic somehow. Come back and tell me you can do that." They found a way. Years later, long after I left the Yankees, I happened across a television interview with George Steinbrenner. The reporter asked him about preserving the facade, applauding the fact that it had been done. In response George related how it came about. "You see, I was watching a game at the Stadium one night in 1972, the last year in the old park. My good friend Cary Grant was my guest. 'George,' he said, 'you've just got to keep that facade. It's so characteristic of the Yankees." 'OK, Cary,' I said; 'we'll do it for you.' And we did." Oh, well.
- - - - - - - - - - - -
I know what you're going to say. 1973 was the last year. Also, everyone called it a "facade." That's what I called it, too. I wanted to put the page on here, but was unable to. My computer skills are not nearly as good as yours, so I had to type it in verbatim by hand.

-Mike


The following is in my book, "Babe's Place":

THE TRADEMARK

Nothing defined Yankee Stadium more than its copper scalloped frieze, which many fans called the façade. The length of each panel measured 26’1 15/16” or 42’0”. Not long after being installed, oxidation caused the copper to turn the same green color as the Statue of Liberty. The Olean Evening Herald, in Olean, New York, published a photo and story titled, “New Yankee Baseball Stadium Topped By Copper Cornice Weighing 15 Tons.” The article stated, “One of the most striking features of the new stadium will be the copper cornice weighing 15 tons that will surmount the roof.” It went on to say, “The Yankee management wanted a frieze of soft green color to blend with the green of the grass, and planned galvanized metal at first. But when they found how much it would cost to paint it often enough to keep it from rusting, they turned to copper, which will be as permanent as the concrete on which the stadium is built.” The brownish copper would naturally turn to a green hue thanks to oxidation.

An October 9th, 1923, article in The Mansfield News, in Mansfield, Ohio, declared, “Both the cornice and bat were done in copper because of the permanency of that metal and the fact that both its perfect resistance to the weather and in lightness preclude the possibility of repairs ever having to be made.” The bat they referred to was the three foot length copper baseball bat that served as a weather vane. A copper baseball sat above the bat.

The rival New York Giants had a frieze or decoration that ringed their grandstand. Since the two teams were not on the friendliest of terms, maybe the American League upstarts wanted to outclass their National League counterparts by displaying a more prominent one that was unlike any other.

Finding out who designed the frieze or how the design was arrived at has been evasive at best. Possibly the idea came from the airiness and dignity of an opera house, such as the Verona Arena in Italy, or Komische Opera House in Berlin, Germany. Or, perhaps, one of the numerous viaducts or railroad trestles that dot the east coast of the United States. Quite possibly, Jacob Ruppert or one of the engineers who designed Yankee Stadium felt such an expression of art would lend an air of dignity to baseball’s grandest arena.

The plans from Osborn Engineering, the firm that designed Yankee Stadium, called for the frieze to be made of 22 gauge Toncan copper. The idea of a wooden frieze was bandied about, but it would have to be painted yearly. A 1923 ad by United Alloy Steel Corp, of Canton, Ohio, ran the headline, “Tons of Toncan went into this stadium.” The flyer said, “Toncan is commercially pure iron, alloyed with just the right amount of copper, which gives it the greatest possible resistance to rust.” Molybdenum alloyed with the copper made the iron non-corrosive. In part, the ad also claimed, “Toncan is anti-corrosive and rust resisting.” Copper’s green patina also resisted glare from the sun. Harry Swanson, in his book, Ruthless Baseball, credited Kinnear Manufacturing, of Columbus, Ohio, with installing the original 1923 frieze. Swanson extensively researched the building of Yankee Stadium.

The October 1937 issue of the Bulletin of Copper & Brass Research Association, in New York, called the ballpark’s topper the largest copper frieze in the world. The extension of the right field grandstand for several thousand fans also added more copper frieze, as well. The story said the Stadium’s frieze now contained a total of 43 tons of sixteen-ounce copper. The narrative went on to say the Hermann & Grace Co. installed 36 tons of copper in the Stadium in 1923. Continuing on, the piece said that A.E. Carlson used 50,000 pounds of copper to extend the 1937 frieze expansion. This included the ornamental work that covered the open ends of the Grandstand. The original frieze sold for scrap to a man in Albany, New York, for $75,000. He melted it down.

Trying to find accurate information for the frieze that was installed above the scoreboard for the 1973 – 1976 renovation proved to be difficult, too. Michael Burke insisted the Stadium retain the famous frieze. The architects said the new upper deck could not support it. Burke wanted it located on the wall behind the bleachers, so as not to lose the famous symbol. Although the renovation changed the look of Babe’s Place, Yankee fans were grateful not to have lost their cherished trademark.

Allan M. Siegal, in an August 29, 1974 New York Times article, wrote, “The arching frieze of sea-green copper that draped the top of the old stadium will echo faintly in precast concrete trim above the new scoreboard.” The New York Daily News contradicted that story in a November 13th, 1975 piece that related, “Rather than abandon the famed valance decoration, the Yankees decided to place a facsimile of it, in white cement, as a centerpiece, running from one end of the bleachers to the other.” In fact, fans were not sure as to whether the frieze was made of concrete, fiberglass, plastic, copper, or a mixed composition of any of these materials.

The frieze consisted of 10 sections that reached from the left field escalator tower to the left of the dead-centerfield scoreboard, and eight segments from center field to the right field grandstand. Each segment weighed about 11 tons, and consisted of four pieces – the top section, lower arch, and two sides.

Ralph Terowsky served as vice president of Tern Construction during the reconstruction of Yankee Stadium. He confirmed that the centerfield frieze in the renovated Yankee Stadium was composed of precast concrete. This is also borne out in a Nab-Tern blueprint drawing dated December 4th, 1978, in which the frieze is referred to as “P/C Conc. Frieze.” The drawing stated the top elevation of the frieze was 91 feet, 5 ¼ inches.
The bottom listed at 78 feet, 6 ¾ inches. The flagpoles attached to the frieze stood at 35 feet tall. The elevation of the top of the scoreboard measure 78 feet, 4 ¾ inches, while the bottom came in at 54 feet, 4 ¾ inches.

This “light concrete” is manufactured with more air bubbles, which appears foamy and plastic. This mixture is less dense than standard concrete, thus giving it more durability in extreme weather conditions. This would prevent the frieze from cracking. Mr. Terowsky could not recall who manufactured the famed symbol, but he did solve the ongoing question as to the composition of the famous icon of The House That Ruth Built.

[brooklyndodger14]

Dear Friends

Enclosed is a section from my upcoming book, "Babe's Place." I just read Michael Burke's autobiography, "Outrageous Good Fortune," published by Little, Brown & Company in 1984. I only just learned about this book. It's 422 pages, and I've enjoyed it. I had the honor and pleasure of meeting Michael Burke a number of times at Yankee games, as he sat to the left of the Yankee dugout. I did obtain a number of autographs from him. He was ALWAYS such a kind and honest gentleman. He cared about the fans. That's certainly how I felt whenever I met him. I will ALWAYS have a great LOVE and RESPECT for Mr. Burke thanks to his wonderful humanity.

I'm going to open a can of worms here. In his book, on page 307, he calls the frieze the "facade." He wrote,
- - - - - - - - - - - -
"Another high priority was to retain the copper facade around the top of the grandstand. If in a photograph you saw nothing but the facade, you knew it was Yankee Stadium, no other. I lost that one. Time and again the architects told me the facade demand was impossible, were sent back to the drawing board, and, finally convinced me that if we were to be rid of the girders, to give everyone an open view of the field, the new structure would not support the facade."

"Then take it down and mount it around the perimeter wall behind the bleachers. We've got to preserve that characteristic somehow. Come back and tell me you can do that." They found a way. Years later, long after I left the Yankees, I happened across a television interview with George Steinbrenner. The reporter asked him about preserving the facade, applauding the fact that it had been done. In response George related how it came about. "You see, I was watching a game at the Stadium one night in 1972, the last year in the old park. My good friend Cary Grant was my guest. 'George,' he said, 'you've just got to keep that facade. It's so characteristic of the Yankees." 'OK, Cary,' I said; 'we'll do it for you.' And we did." Oh, well.
- - - - - - - - - - - -
I know what you're going to say. 1973 was the last year. Also, everyone called it a "facade." That's what I called it, too. I wanted to put the page on here, but was unable to. My computer skills are not nearly as good as yours, so I had to type it in verbatim by hand.

-Mike


The following is in my book, "Babe's Place":

THE TRADEMARK

Nothing defined Yankee Stadium more than its copper scalloped frieze, which many fans called the façade. The length of each panel measured 26’1 15/16” or 42’0”. Not long after being installed, oxidation caused the copper to turn the same green color as the Statue of Liberty. The Olean Evening Herald, in Olean, New York, published a photo and story titled, “New Yankee Baseball Stadium Topped By Copper Cornice Weighing 15 Tons.” The article stated, “One of the most striking features of the new stadium will be the copper cornice weighing 15 tons that will surmount the roof.” It went on to say, “The Yankee management wanted a frieze of soft green color to blend with the green of the grass, and planned galvanized metal at first. But when they found how much it would cost to paint it often enough to keep it from rusting, they turned to copper, which will be as permanent as the concrete on which the stadium is built.” The brownish copper would naturally turn to a green hue thanks to oxidation.

An October 9th, 1923, article in The Mansfield News, in Mansfield, Ohio, declared, “Both the cornice and bat were done in copper because of the permanency of that metal and the fact that both its perfect resistance to the weather and in lightness preclude the possibility of repairs ever having to be made.” The bat they referred to was the three foot length copper baseball bat that served as a weather vane. A copper baseball sat above the bat.

The rival New York Giants had a frieze or decoration that ringed their grandstand. Since the two teams were not on the friendliest of terms, maybe the American League upstarts wanted to outclass their National League counterparts by displaying a more prominent one that was unlike any other.

Finding out who designed the frieze or how the design was arrived at has been evasive at best. Possibly the idea came from the airiness and dignity of an opera house, such as the Verona Arena in Italy, or Komische Opera House in Berlin, Germany. Or, perhaps, one of the numerous viaducts or railroad trestles that dot the east coast of the United States. Quite possibly, Jacob Ruppert or one of the engineers who designed Yankee Stadium felt such an expression of art would lend an air of dignity to baseball’s grandest arena.

The plans from Osborn Engineering, the firm that designed Yankee Stadium, called for the frieze to be made of 22 gauge Toncan copper. The idea of a wooden frieze was bandied about, but it would have to be painted yearly. A 1923 ad by United Alloy Steel Corp, of Canton, Ohio, ran the headline, “Tons of Toncan went into this stadium.” The flyer said, “Toncan is commercially pure iron, alloyed with just the right amount of copper, which gives it the greatest possible resistance to rust.” Molybdenum alloyed with the copper made the iron non-corrosive. In part, the ad also claimed, “Toncan is anti-corrosive and rust resisting.” Copper’s green patina also resisted glare from the sun. Harry Swanson, in his book, Ruthless Baseball, credited Kinnear Manufacturing, of Columbus, Ohio, with installing the original 1923 frieze. Swanson extensively researched the building of Yankee Stadium.

The October 1937 issue of the Bulletin of Copper & Brass Research Association, in New York, called the ballpark’s topper the largest copper frieze in the world. The extension of the right field grandstand for several thousand fans also added more copper frieze, as well. The story said the Stadium’s frieze now contained a total of 43 tons of sixteen-ounce copper. The narrative went on to say the Hermann & Grace Co. installed 36 tons of copper in the Stadium in 1923. Continuing on, the piece said that A.E. Carlson used 50,000 pounds of copper to extend the 1937 frieze expansion. This included the ornamental work that covered the open ends of the Grandstand. The original frieze sold for scrap to a man in Albany, New York, for $75,000. He melted it down.

Trying to find accurate information for the frieze that was installed above the scoreboard for the 1973 – 1976 renovation proved to be difficult, too. Michael Burke insisted the Stadium retain the famous frieze. The architects said the new upper deck could not support it. Burke wanted it located on the wall behind the bleachers, so as not to lose the famous symbol. Although the renovation changed the look of Babe’s Place, Yankee fans were grateful not to have lost their cherished trademark.

Allan M. Siegal, in an August 29, 1974 New York Times article, wrote, “The arching frieze of sea-green copper that draped the top of the old stadium will echo faintly in precast concrete trim above the new scoreboard.” The New York Daily News contradicted that story in a November 13th, 1975 piece that related, “Rather than abandon the famed valance decoration, the Yankees decided to place a facsimile of it, in white cement, as a centerpiece, running from one end of the bleachers to the other.” In fact, fans were not sure as to whether the frieze was made of concrete, fiberglass, plastic, copper, or a mixed composition of any of these materials.

The frieze consisted of 10 sections that reached from the left field escalator tower to the left of the dead-centerfield scoreboard, and eight segments from center field to the right field grandstand. Each segment weighed about 11 tons, and consisted of four pieces – the top section, lower arch, and two sides.

Ralph Terowsky served as vice president of Tern Construction during the reconstruction of Yankee Stadium. He confirmed that the centerfield frieze in the renovated Yankee Stadium was composed of precast concrete. This is also borne out in a Nab-Tern blueprint drawing dated December 4th, 1978, in which the frieze is referred to as “P/C Conc. Frieze.” The drawing stated the top elevation of the frieze was 91 feet, 5 ¼ inches.
The bottom listed at 78 feet, 6 ¾ inches. The flagpoles attached to the frieze stood at 35 feet tall. The elevation of the top of the scoreboard measure 78 feet, 4 ¾ inches, while the bottom came in at 54 feet, 4 ¾ inches.

This “light concrete” is manufactured with more air bubbles, which appears foamy and plastic. This mixture is less dense than standard concrete, thus giving it more durability in extreme weather conditions. This would prevent the frieze from cracking. Mr. Terowsky could not recall who manufactured the famed symbol, but he did solve the ongoing question as to the composition of the famous icon of The House That Ruth Built.

For all the talk surrounding the proper name of Yankee Stadium's most enduring icon: cornice, frieze, facade, or valence, it should be duly noted that "facade" was the official name of choice of the Yankee public relations department going as far back as 1954 when Robert O. Fishel was the director.

Coming on board with the Yankees after stints with the Bill Veeck-owned Cleveland Indians and St. Louis Browns (including involvement with the Eddie Gaedel prank) until the Browns moved to become the Baltimore Orioles, Fishel was the eventual editor of both the Yankee scorecards and yearbooks plus all official (you know, I had never realized until just now how that mirrors his name...) press releases.

In describing Mantle's two titanic Stadium blasts in 1956 and 1963 that almost left the park, it was Fishel who wrote of how both had struck the "facade." It was my very first encounter (and I am quite sure many other young Mantle fans as well) with the word that became, rightly or wrongly, forever the name of most universally recognized symbol of Yankee Stadium.

Mike, Stadium fans await with anticipation the debut of your "Babe's Place!"

To paraphrase the Iron Horse, we may have been given a "bad break" (the final demolition of the original Yankee Stadium), but we have an awful lot to look forward to: your book, StadiumBuilder's physical model, and Kaplanski's & bkhockey3's 1973 and 1923 virtual Yankee Stadiums.

Dennis
BrooklynDodger14

[Mike Wagner]

Dear Dennis,

Thank you for your nice note. I didn't know the "fascade" was called that since 1954. And, thank you for your wishes about "Babe's Place." It's at a publisher right now. I hope all goes well and they see fit to publish it. "Babe's Place" has a lot of specific information not found anywhere else, so it definitely fills at least one niche. Especially with regard to the 1970s renovation.

I also look forward to the finished products of Kaplanski, stadiumbuilder, and bhockey3. They must have the patience of saints!!! All of them have done such a spectacular job!!! I hope they each come out with a poster, book, or something to showcase their superior talents. The beauty of their work calls for widespread audiences.

-Mike

[brooklyndodger14]

Dear Dennis,

Thank you for your nice note. I didn't know the "facade" was called that since 1954. And, thank you for your wishes about "Babe's Place." It's at a publisher right now. I hope all goes well and they see fit to publish it. "Babe's Place" has a lot of specific information not found anywhere else, so it definitely fills at least one niche. Especially with regard to the 1970s renovation.

I also look forward to the finished products of Kaplanski, stadiumbuilder, and bhockey3. They must have the patience of saints!!! All of them have done such a spectacular job!!! I hope they each come out with a poster, book, or something to showcase their superior talents. The beauty of their work calls for widespread audiences.

-Mike

Thanks, Mike.

I would like to ammend and clarify a possibly misleading point that I had inadvertantly created:

My reference to 1954 was actually indicating the start of Bob Fishel's 20-year tenure as Yankee PR director. It was during his watch that the Mantle home runs hit the "facade" in '56 and '63. So, my correction would be to say that the word "facade" would be the official Yankee word since at least 1956.

My apologies for any confusion.

(Attached is Mantle's 2nd homer as described in the 1963 Yearbook. It's ironic that the picture depicts a Mantle at bat against KC but shows the Stadium in a pre-1959 game as seen by the older scoreboard)

Dennis
BrooklynDodger14

[Mike Wagner]

Dear Dennis,

There's no need to apologize. I keep thinking how lucky you were to be a vendor for so long. You must have the best memories!!!!!

-Mike

[DN4L]

When I go the the New Stadium, I am going to ask for Tickets in the darn UPPERDECK!!

Best seats in the house, IMO...

[shaneslatts]

Those are nice seats.
My main complaint about the new Stadium is that big black Resturant. It looks like someone popped my old Microwave in the Bleachers.-
If that thing is gone, it really opens up monument park
I also think it would have been better if they had placed the scoreboard more towards rightfield, more like the old scoreboard in the 1973 Stadium
While I'm at it, I also dont like the seats in front of the bleachers, the bleachers seating should come all the way down to the field.
It would be better if the bullpens were located between the grandstand and the bleachers in both right and left filed as well.
If they did those things when desiging Yankee Stadium, it would really recall the pre 1973 Stadium.
I guess I'm going to have to get used to it this way

[shaneslatts]

Mike, back in the day, the type of design called the frieze or the fascade was also called 'gingerbread facade'.
It was, and still is very common in old homes along the Jersy Shore, especially Wildwood and really especially Cape May.
If I were a betting man, I would think Col. Ruppert spent some time on the Jersey Shore, and was inspired by what he saw there. Here is an example

Dear Dennis,

Thank you for your nice note. I didn't know the "fascade" was called that since 1954. And, thank you for your wishes about "Babe's Place." It's at a publisher right now. I hope all goes well and they see fit to publish it. "Babe's Place" has a lot of specific information not found anywhere else, so it definitely fills at least one niche. Especially with regard to the 1970s renovation.

I also look forward to the finished products of Kaplanski, stadiumbuilder, and bhockey3. They must have the patience of saints!!! All of them have done such a spectacular job!!! I hope they each come out with a poster, book, or something to showcase their superior talents. The beauty of their work calls for widespread audiences.

-Mike

[NYFan1stYankFan2nd]

Mike, back in the day, the type of design called the frieze or the fascade was also called 'gingerbread facade'.
It was, and still is very common in old homes along the Jersy Shore, especially Wildwood and really especially Cape May.
If I were a betting man, I would think Col. Ruppert spent some time on the Jersey Shore, and was inspired by what he saw there. Here is an example

Now THAT is a FACADE! It is on the EXTERIOR of the home, facing the SIDEWALK. You can't hope to make the connection from that to YS just because they bear a vague resemblence to each other. LOL.

[Mike Wagner]

Dear Friends,
WOW, that is some beauty!!! I recall another nice one at West Point called the Wedding Cake House. My guess is that since a number of railroad viaduct bridges on the east coast resemble the frieze or facade - or whatever you want to call it - that may be the inspiration for the one designed for Yankee Stadium. I'd love to know who actually designed it. Someone from Osborn Engineering perhaps?

-Mike

[shaneslatts]

Now THAT is a FACADE! It is on the EXTERIOR of the home, facing the SIDEWALK. You can't hope to make the connection from that to YS just because they bear a vague resemblence to each other. LOL.

Umm.... not too many Victorian Homes put a facade on the INSIDE of a building. So I kind of doubt that ol Col Ruppert would be looking at the INSIDE of a home to see a facade, Nor would I expect to see a facade on the outside of Yankee Stadium
All I meant was that I wouldnt be surprised at all if the Yankees got their idea for the frieze from a style of archetecture that was popular just a couple of decades before Yankee Stadium was built.
Point being that was just one example of this type of archetecture. Some are of course much more modest, some are even more elaborate. If you google it you would find various types of this ' gingerbread' type of design.
Back in the late 1880s to the early 1910's this stuff was very popular. Builders used it to give a home an air of dignaty, and this is the same reason Yankee Stadium was ringed with its famous facade/ frieze

[locke40]

Mike, back in the day, the type of design called the frieze or the fascade was also called 'gingerbread facade'.
It was, and still is very common in old homes along the Jersy Shore, especially Wildwood and really especially Cape May.
If I were a betting man, I would think Col. Ruppert spent some time on the Jersey Shore, and was inspired by what he saw there. Here is an example

Excellent photo! I just love it! Especially how the cornice wraps around the corners. I wish HOK had wrapped the new frieze around the corners like that.

[the stadium guy]

I also look forward to the finished products of Kaplanski, stadiumbuilder, and bhockey3. They must have the patience of saints!!! All of them have done such a spectacular job!!! I hope they each come out with a poster, book, or something to showcase their superior talents. The beauty of their work calls for widespread audiences.

-Mike

Hey.....

I built one too, you know.....certainly not as good as the others, but the first of the bunch...sixteen and a half years in the making.....

Brad "Dangerfield"

[YankeeStadium1923]

Those are nice seats.
My main complaint about the new Stadium is that big black Resturant. It looks like someone popped my old Microwave in the Bleachers.-
If that thing is gone, it really opens up monument park
I also think it would have been better if they had placed the scoreboard more towards rightfield, more like the old scoreboard in the 1973 Stadium
While I'm at it, I also dont like the seats in front of the bleachers, the bleachers seating should come all the way down to the field.
It would be better if the bullpens were located between the grandstand and the bleachers in both right and left filed as well.
If they did those things when desiging Yankee Stadium, it would really recall the pre 1973 Stadium.
I guess I'm going to have to get used to it this way

The Mohegan Monstrosity looks like a feature that would have been added to a 1990's ballpark.

The symetrical look of the outfield gives new Yankee Stadium a generic boring look. I absolutely agree that the scorboard should have been off center with the Mohegan pushed back and running foul pole to foul pole.

It would have been great seeing the bullpens placed between the grandstand and the bleachers, however in Pre-renovated Yankee Stadium fans would toss and dump beer on opposing pitchers from the Upper Deck. These actions probably were taken into account when Yankee Stadium was renovated and new Yankee Stadium was built.

It's funny how when I watch the Yankees on the road I compare other ballparks to new Yankee Stadium. Something I never had to do with Old Yankee Stadium.
Without the frieze and enclosed sidewalk great hall facade, there is nothing special about new Yankee Stadium. Most Stadiums around the league have a more aesthetically pleasing outfield look than new Yankee Stadium.

[NYFan1stYankFan2nd]

The Mohegan Monstrosity looks like a feature that would have been added to a 1990's ballpark.

The symetrical look of the outfield gives new Yankee Stadium a generic boring look. I absolutely agree that the scorboard should have been off center with the Mohegan pushed back and running foul pole to foul pole.

It would have been great seeing the bullpens placed between the grandstand and the bleachers, however in Pre-renovated Yankee Stadium fans would toss and dump beer on opposing pitchers from the Upper Deck. These actions probably were taken into account when Yankee Stadium was renovated and new Yankee Stadium was built.

It's funny how when I watch the Yankees on the road I compare other ballparks to new Yankee Stadium. Something I never had to do with Old Yankee Stadium.
Without the frieze and enclosed sidewalk great hall facade, there is nothing special about new Yankee Stadium. Most Stadiums around the league have a more aesthetically pleasing outfield look than new Yankee Stadium.

Context, people, context! John Mullaly Park did not impose the same size limitations that the original 1922 purchase did. OYS was confined and shaped by the very plot she was situated on. Such limitations don't exist at the current site, allowing the symmetry of design actually preferred in the modern game.

That said, I am on the side of the asymmetry, off-center scoreboard and support-column fans here. Those characteristics gave the place character.

(huh?)