End of racing at Hollywood Park: autumn meet will be its last

End of racing at Hollywood Park:

autumn meet will be its last

At that time, the Land Company advised racing would continue at Hollywood

Park for a minimum of three years and a concerted effort would be made during

that period to try and revitalize the sport's underlying business model.

"Ownership has been upfront from the beginning that the property would

eventually be developed unless there were significant changes in the horse

racing business,'' Liebau said.

"Despite the Hollywood Park Land Company financially supporting two statewide

initiatives with varying degrees of support from other segments of the racing

industry, the attempts to upgrade the business model were not successful.

"From an economic point of view, the land now simply has a higher and better

use, so, unfortunately, racing will not continue here once the 2013 autumn meet

is completed.''

Liebau added further logistics regarding the pending closure will be worked

out in the coming months.

From its opening in June 1938 under the direction of motion picture moguls

Jack and Harry Warner, Hollywood Park has been the home of unforgettable

achievements from legendary performers -- both human and equine -- and

innovations that continue to be important parts of the racing experience.

The fabled Seabiscuit captured the inaugural Hollywood Gold Cup 75 years ago,

the first Thoroughbred on a superstar-studded roster of winners that also

includes *Noor, Citation, Swaps, Round Table, Ack Ack, Affirmed, Ferdinand,

Cigar, Skip Away; females Happy Issue, Two Lea and Princessnesian; and

three-time winners Native Diver and Lava Man.

There is also the memory of what is arguably Hollywood Park's most famous

race -- the conquering of undefeated Triple Crown winner Seattle Slew by J.O.

Tobin in the 1977 Swaps Stakes. Before a crowd of more than 68,000, Seattle

Slew, three weeks removed from completing his Triple Crown sweep in the Belmont

Stakes, finished -- echoing the words of iconic track announcer Harry Henson --

a well-beaten fourth.

The Swaps Stakes was created three years earlier to honor the greatest

California bred in history. Owned by breeder Rex C. Ellsworth and trained by

Mesh Tenney, Swaps was memorialized 55 years ago with a bronze statue that

remains near the clubhouse entrance.

One of the most popular horses ever to race in the United States, John Henry

did some of his best work at Hollywood. The Ole Bob Bowers gelding, who was

trained by Ron McAnally for owners Dorothy and Sam Rubin, won six stakes at

Hollywood Park, becoming the first horse to surpass $4 million in career

earnings when he captured the 1983 Hollywood Turf Cup.

The Breeders' Cup became a reality in its inaugural running at Hollywood Park

in 1984 and returned twice more -- in 1987 and 1997 -- to the Track of the Lakes

and Flowers.

Highlights include Wild Again's shocking upset in the inaugural Classic after

a very eventful stretch run, Ferdinand's narrow win over Alysheba in the 1987

Classic and Skip Away's dominance in the 1997 Classic.

The inventiveness fostered at Hollywood Park -- under leadership provided by

forward thinking executives such as James Stewart, Vernon O. Underwood, Mervyn

LeRoy, Marjorie Everett and R.D. Hubbard -- remains evident to this day.

Some of the game's fixtures that began at Hollywood Park include Sunday

racing, which debuted in April of 1973; giveaways to fans, topped by a tote bag

promotion which drew a record 80,348 on May 4, 1980; and the Pick 6 --

Underwood's brainchild -- and the $1 million guaranteed Pick 6 pool, which

became a reality in 1998 during Hubbard's tenure.

Several other exotic wagers came to life at Hollywood Park, including Rolling

Pick 3s, the Superfecta, the Place Pick All, the Pick 4 and the Players' Pick 5,

a reduced takeout wager which debuted at the beginning of the 2011 spring/summer

meet.

The Hollywood Land Company also spent more than $8 million to install Cushion

Track nearly seven years ago. California's first synthetic surface, which opened

for training September 13, 2006, is widely considered to be the state's safest

and fairest main track.

"Our fans and all of the employees who have worked at Hollywood Park -- both

past and present -- deserve our thanks and gratitude,'' Liebau said. "They have

been the backbone of this historic venue.''

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