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105-806: Before the Yuengling Center, USF's basketball teams played at various locations on and off campus. The basketball teams first played at Curtis Hixon Hall in downtown Tampa, and later split their home schedule between Curtis Hixon Hall, the Bayfront Center in St. Petersburg , Expo Hall at the Florida State Fairgrounds , and the USF Gymnasium on campus, among others. By 1975, both the University of South Florida and

210-679: A Satanic cult singer. The final shows by Alice Cooper as a group were in Brazil in March and April 1974, including the record indoor attendance estimated as high as 158,000 fans in São Paulo on March 30, at the Anhembi Exposition Hall at the start of the first ever South American rock tour. In 1975, Alice Cooper returned as a solo artist with the release of Welcome to My Nightmare . To avoid legal complications over ownership of

315-525: A behind closed doors set called the WWE ThunderDome , which lasted until July 2021. The student section was renamed in honor of former USF men's basketball coach Amir Abdur-Rahim following his death in 2024. The Corral opened in 1995 as the home to the Bulls volleyball team at a cost of $ 5 million (about $ 10 million in 2023 dollars). The Corral spans 11,500 square feet on the west side of

420-417: A boa constrictor hugging Cooper on stage, the murderous axe chopping of bloodied baby dolls, and execution by hanging at the gallows . In January 1972, Cooper was again asked about his peculiar name, and told talk show hostess Dinah Shore that he took the name from a " Mayberry RFD " character. The summer of 1972 saw the release of the single " School's Out ". It went Top 10 in the U.S. and to number 1 in

525-503: A villainous side, portraying a potential threat to modern society. The success of the band's single and album, and their tour of 1971, which included their first tour of Europe (audience members reportedly included Elton John and a pre- Ziggy Stardust David Bowie ), provided enough encouragement for Warner Bros. to offer the band a new multi-album contract. Their follow-up studio album Killer , released in November 1971, continued

630-424: A Down (1999 and 2002), Green Day (2005), My Chemical Romance (2005), Kanye West (2005), Tool (2007), Lil Wayne (2007), Daddy Yankee (2009), and Drake (2011). On September 14, 2012, Elton John performed the first concert held in the renovated building, his third concert at the arena in total. Since the 2012 renovation, notable concerts include Imagine Dragons (2013), Fall Out Boy (2013), Panic! at

735-411: A Top 10 hit for Cooper. It was a concept album that was based on the nightmare of a child named Steven, featuring narration by classic horror movie film star Vincent Price , and serving as the soundtrack to Cooper's new stage show, which now showcased more theatrics than ever, including an 8-foot-tall (2.4 m) furry Cyclops which Cooper decapitated and killed. Accompanying the album and stage show

840-537: A backstage party, the movie's main characters Wayne Cambell and Garth Algar discover that when offstage, Cooper is a calm, articulate intellectual as he and his band discuss the history of Milwaukee in depth. Wayne and Garth respond to an invitation to hang out with Cooper by kneeling and bowing reverently before him while chanting "We're not worthy! We're not worthy!" In 1994, Cooper released The Last Temptation , his first concept album since DaDa (1983). The album deals with issues of faith, temptation, alienation and

945-479: A concert by Alice Cooper . In 2000, the original inflatable roof was replaced with a more conventional hard dome and additional facilities for USF indoor sports programs were added around the main arena at a cost of about $ 8 million (about $ 14.2 million in 2023 dollars). In 2011, USF began a major renovation of the Yuengling Center at a cost of $ 35.6 million (about $ 48.2 million in 2023 dollars). Among other interior improvements, this renovation reconfigured

1050-522: A concert setup. It hosted concerts and sports, conventions and trade shows, large community events such as New Year's Eve dances and Gasparilla-related festivities, and political events, such as a large 1968 campaign rally for presidential candidate Richard Nixon . Curtis Hixon Hall was the site of a wide variety of sporting events. The first event in the new facility was a boxing card held on February 15, 1965, and it hosted many subsequent boxing and wrestling cards throughout its lifetime, including

1155-443: A dental psychosis scene complete with dancing teeth, and the ultimate execution prop and highlight of the show: the guillotine . The guillotine and other stage effects were designed for the band by magician James Randi , who appeared on stage during some of the shows as executioner . In 2012 at Dragon Con , Randi and Cooper discussed their working relationship during this period. The Alice Cooper group had now reached its peak and it

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1260-649: A feather pillow, and a live chicken garnered attention from the press; the band decided to capitalize on the tabloid sensationalism , creating in the process a new subgenre, shock rock . Cooper claims that the infamous "Chicken Incident" at the Toronto Rock and Roll Revival concert in September 1969 was an accident. A chicken somehow made its way onto the stage into the feathers of a feather pillow they would open during Cooper's performance, and not having any experience with farm animals, Cooper presumed that, because

1365-713: A gradual commercial decline, with the last two not charting within the Billboard Top 200. Flush the Fashion , produced by Roy Thomas Baker , known for his work with Queen and the Cars , had a thick, edgy new wave musical sound that baffled even longtime fans, though it still yielded the US Top 40 hit " Clones (We're All) ". The track also surprisingly charted on the US Disco Top 100 chart. Special Forces featured

1470-569: A group for the show: Glen Buxton , Dennis Dunaway , John Tatum, and John Speer. They named themselves the Earwigs. They dressed up in costumes and wigs to resemble the Beatles , and performed several parodies of Beatles songs, with the lyrics modified to refer to the track team: in their rendition of " Please Please Me ", for example, the line "Last night I said these words to my girl" was replaced with "Last night I ran four laps for my coach". Of

1575-561: A legitimate revival with the Desmond Child produced and Grammy -nominated studio album Trash , which spawned a hit single " Poison ", which reached No. 2 in the UK and No. 7 in the US, and a worldwide arena tour . In 1991, Cooper released his nineteenth studio album Hey Stoopid featuring several notable rock musicians guesting on the record. Released as glam metal 's popularity was on

1680-433: A local No. 1 hit, backed by "No Price Tag". By 1967, the band had begun to make regular road trips to Los Angeles to play shows. They soon renamed themselves Nazz and released the single "Wonder Who's Lovin' Her Now", backed with future Alice Cooper track "Lay Down and Die, Goodbye". Around this time, drummer John Speer was replaced by Neal Smith . By the end of the year, the band relocated to Los Angeles. In 1968,

1785-514: A more aggressive but consistent new wave style, and included a new version of "Generation Landslide" from Billion Dollar Babies (1973). His tour for Special Forces marked Cooper's last time on the road for nearly five years; it was not until 1986, for Constrictor , that he toured again. 1982's Zipper Catches Skin was a more pop punk -oriented recording, containing many quirky high-energy guitar-driven songs along with his most unusual collection of subject matters for lyrics, and Patty Donahue of

1890-471: A music video for the "Poison" B-side " I Got a Line on You " after the song was featured on the soundtrack to Iron Eagle II (1988). On April 7, 1988, Cooper nearly died of asphyxiation after a safety rope broke during a rehearsal concert wherein he pretended to hang himself, a stunt he would often perform during live concerts. In 1988, Cooper's contract with MCA Records expired and he signed with Epic Records . Then in 1989 his career finally experienced

1995-487: A nationally televised 1971 light heavyweight championship bout between Bob Foster and Ray Anderson . Other notable fighters appearing at Curtis Hixon Hall included Earnie Shavers , Emile Griffith , José Roman , Vicente Rondón , and Maurice Watkins . Curtis Hixon Hall also hosted many basketball games. It was the first home court of the University of South Florida 's men's and women's basketball teams and

2100-407: A new downtown sports arena (the future Amalie Arena , which opened in 1996), city leaders agreed that Curtis Hixon Hall had outlived its usefulness. Mayor Sandy Freedman 's administration decided to tear down the building and replace it with Curtis Hixon Park. Demolition of the facility began in 1993 and the park was dedicated in 1995. Aquamarine-colored tiles from the hall were set into each bench at

2205-465: A pipe-dream became an overwhelming burden." The success of Welcome to My Nightmare marked the final breakup of the original members of the band, with Cooper collaborating with their producer Bob Ezrin, who recruited Lou Reed 's backing band, including guitarists Dick Wagner and Steve Hunter , to play on the album. Spearheaded by the US Top 20 hit ballad " Only Women Bleed ", the album was released by Atlantic Records in March of that year and became

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2310-453: A rest from one another", said manager Shep Gordon at the time. "A lot of pressure had built up, but it's nothing that can't be dealt with. Everybody still gets together and talks." Journalist Bob Greene spent several weeks on the road with the band during the Muscle of Love Christmas Tour in 1973. His book Billion Dollar Baby , released in November 1974, painted a less-than-flattering picture of

2415-605: A restaurateur, and, since 2004, a radio disc jockey (DJ) with his classic rock show Alice's Attic . Vincent Damon Furnier was born on February 4, 1948, in Detroit , Michigan , the son of Ether Moroni Furnier (1924–1987) and his wife Ella Mae ( née McCart; 1925–2022). He was named after his uncle, Vincent Collier Furnier, and the short-story writer Damon Runyon . His father was an evangelist in The Church of Jesus Christ , and his paternal grandfather Thurman Sylvester Furnier

2520-536: A stake through the heart of the Love Generation". In autumn 1970, the Alice Cooper group teamed with producer Bob Ezrin for the recording of their third studio album, Love It to Death . This was the final album in their Straight Records contract and the band's last chance to create a hit. That first success came with the single " I'm Eighteen ", released in November 1970, which reached number 21 on

2625-697: A sustained period of activity from Alice Cooper, the decade in which he would turn 60. He toured extensively releasing a steady stream of studio albums to favorable critical acclaim. Beginning in 2000 with Brutal Planet , a return to horror-filled heavy metal, industrial rock , set in a dystopian post-apocalyptic future. The album was produced by Bob Marlette , with longtime Cooper production collaborator Bob Ezrin returning as executive producer. The accompanying world tour, which included Cooper's first concert in Russia, also resulted in Brutally Live (2000),

2730-452: A time. Despite the publicity from the chicken incident, the band's second studio album, Easy Action , produced by David Briggs and released in June 1970, fared even worse than its predecessor, entirely failing to chart within the Billboard Top 200. Around this time, fed up with Californians' indifference to their act, they relocated to Pontiac, Michigan , where their bizarre stage act

2835-527: Is an American rock singer and songwriter whose career spans sixty years. With a raspy voice and a stage show that features numerous props and stage illusions , Cooper is considered by many music journalists and peers to be "The Godfather of Shock Rock ". He has drawn equally from horror films, vaudeville , and garage rock to pioneer a macabre and theatrical brand of rock designed to shock audiences. Originating in Phoenix, Arizona , in 1964, Alice Cooper

2940-537: Is widely seen as being pivotal in helping to create and develop the band's definitive sound. The group's 1971 tour featured a stage show involving mock fights and gothic torture modes being imposed on Cooper, climaxing in a staged execution by electric chair , with the band sporting tight, sequined, color-contrasting glam rock -style costumes made by prominent rock-fashion designer Cindy Dunaway (sister of band member Neal Smith, and wife of band member Dennis Dunaway). Cooper's androgynous stage role had developed to present

3045-568: The Billboard Hot 100 in early 1971. Not long after the album's release in January 1971, Warner Bros. Records purchased Alice Cooper's contract from Straight and re-issued the album, giving the group a higher level of promotion. Love It to Death proved to be their breakthrough studio album, reaching number 35 on the U.S. Billboard 200 album charts. It would be the first of 11 Alice Cooper group and solo albums produced by Ezrin, who

3150-558: The ABA 's Floridians , and it was also used for high school basketball games and tournaments. Curtis Hixon Hall was Tampa's primary concert venue from the mid-1960s until the early 1980s, with only a handful of the biggest acts playing at much larger Tampa Stadium . Many of the top musical performers of the era played at Curtis Hixon Hall, including Bob Dylan (both solo and as part of the Rolling Thunder Revue ), The Who ,

3255-578: The COVID-19 pandemic —to Yuengling Center beginning with the April 12 episode of Raw , following WrestleMania 37 (which was held at Tampa's Raymond James Stadium ). The ThunderDome was relocated from Tropicana Field due to the start of the Tampa Bay Rays ' 2021 season ; as before, programs produced at the arena were held behind closed doors with no in-person audience. During their residency at

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3360-712: The Jägermeister Ice Cold 4D event (webcast). In 2011, Bruce, Dunaway, and Smith appeared on three tracks they co-wrote on Alice's solo studio album Welcome 2 My Nightmare . In 2017, they appeared on two tracks they co-wrote on Alice's solo studio album Paranormal , released in July, and in November they joined his current live band for five tour dates in the United Kingdom. Following the 1976 US No. 12 ballad hit " I Never Cry "; two studio albums, Alice Cooper Goes to Hell and Lace and Whiskey ; and

3465-534: The University of Florida in Gainesville had decided to build new on-campus indoor sports facilities. The two schools pooled their resources and shared the cost of a basic arena design to stretch limited state funding. The "core unit" of the Sun Dome and UF's O'Connell Center were nearly identical, and they each featured a flexible, inflatable roof made of Teflon and supported by a system of blowers. However,

3570-525: The Woodstock -esque Strawberry Fields Festival near Toronto , Ontario, in August 1970. The band's mix of glam and increasingly violent stage theatrics stood out in stark contrast to the bearded, denim-clad hippie bands of the time. As Cooper himself stated: "We were into fun, sex, death and money when everybody was into peace and love. We wanted to see what was next. It turned out we were next, and we drove

3675-563: The devil 's henchmen trying to dupe Kermit , Gonzo and Miss Piggy into selling their souls). He also appeared in an against-typecasting role as a piano-playing disco waiter in Mae West 's final film, Sextette , and as a villain in the film Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band . Cooper also led celebrities in raising money to remodel the famous Hollywood Sign in Los Angeles, California. Cooper himself contributed over $ 27,000 to

3780-509: The pay-per-view Royal Rumble in 1995 (which notably saw Shawn Michaels become the first person entering at number 1 to win the titular Royal Rumble match by outlasting all 29 of the other participants). On March 24, 2021, WWE announced that it would move its ThunderDome residency—a bio-secure bubble used to film the company's weekly programs Raw , SmackDown , and Main Event , as well as those shows' associated pay-per-views, due to

3885-433: The 1977 US No. 9 ballad hit " You and Me ", it became clear during his 1977 US tour that Cooper was in dire need of help with his alcoholism (at his alcoholic peak it was rumored that he was consuming up to two cases of Budweiser beer and a bottle of Seagram's Seven Crown whiskey a day). Following the tour, Cooper had himself hospitalized in a sanitarium for treatment, during which time the live album The Alice Cooper Show

3990-398: The 1981 Special Forces project, on a tour titled The Nightmare Returns. The Detroit leg of this tour, which took place at the end of October 1986 during Halloween , was captured on film as The Nightmare Returns (1987), and is viewed by some as being the definitive Alice Cooper concert film. It was released on DVD in 2006. The concert, which received rave reviews in the rock music press,

4095-514: The Cheetah club in Venice, Los Angeles , where the band emptied the entire room of patrons after playing just ten minutes, they were approached and enlisted by music manager Shep Gordon , who saw the band's negative impact that night as a force that could be turned in a more productive direction. Shep then arranged an audition for the band with composer and renowned record producer Frank Zappa , who

4200-519: The Disco (2013 and 2014), Alan Jackson (2015), Zedd (2015), 2 Chainz (2016 and 2022), Arcade Fire (2017), Tyler, the Creator (2019 and 2022), Young Thug (2019), Illenium (2019), AJR (2019), Portugal. The Man (2022), and Ghost (2022). WWE has hosted several professional wrestling events at the Sun Dome; it hosted Saturday Night's Main Event for the first time in 1985, and hosted

4305-685: The Grateful Dead , Creedence Clearwater Revival , The Monkees , Chuck Berry , Led Zeppelin , Jefferson Airplane , Johnny Cash , Elton John , Elvis Presley, Black Sabbath , Sly & The Family Stone , The Jackson 5 , Eagles , Santana , Bob Marley and The Wailers , The Beach Boys , KISS , ZZ Top , Hank Williams Jr. , The Isley Brothers , Van Halen , Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers , Rush , The Kinks , Talking Heads , Dire Straits , U2 , and Stevie Ray Vaughan , among many others. Notable shows included: Curtis Hixon Hall

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4410-465: The London cast recording of the musical Jesus Christ Superstar . In 1999, the four-disc box set The Life and Crimes of Alice Cooper appeared, which contained the authorized biography of Cooper, Alcohol and Razor Blades, Poison and Needles: The Glorious Wretched Excess of Alice Cooper, All-American , written by Creem magazine editor Jeffrey Morgan . The first decade of the 21st century saw

4515-418: The O'Connell Center included facilities for other sports (namely gymnastics, volleyball, swimming and diving) around the main arena, while the Sun Dome as originally built did not, though it later added The Corral for the women's volleyball team after a renovation in 1995. The $ 12 million Sun Dome broke ground in November 1977 on formerly open land on the southeast side of campus near Fowler Avenue. Construction

4620-431: The Sun Dome on February 7, 2009. The Sun Dome also hosted Bellator 72 and 94 in 2012 and 2013 respectively. Former campuses: Future teams: Discontinued teams: Curtis Hixon Hall 27°56′57″N 82°27′43″W  /  27.94917°N 82.46194°W  / 27.94917; -82.46194 Curtis Hixon Hall was an indoor sports arena , convention center , concert venue, and special events center which

4725-580: The UK, and remains a staple on classic rock radio to this day. The studio album School's Out reached No. 2 on the US charts and sold over a million copies. The band relocated to their new mansion in Greenwich, Connecticut . With Cooper's on stage androgynous persona completely replaced with brattiness and machismo , the band solidified their success with subsequent tours in the United States and Europe, and won over devoted fans in droves while at

4830-418: The US Top 10, performing better than Muscle of Love . However, the band's 1974 feature film Good to See You Again, Alice Cooper (consisting mainly of 1973 concert footage with 'comedic' sketches woven throughout to a faint storyline), released on a minor cinematic run mostly to drive-in theaters , saw little box office success. On March 5, 1974, Cooper appeared on episode 3 of The Snoop Sisters playing

4935-529: The Waitresses provided guest vocals and "sarcasm" on the track "I Like Girls". 1983 marked the return collaboration of producer Bob Ezrin and guitarist Dick Wagner for the haunting epic DaDa , the final studio album in his Warner Bros. contract. In mid-1983, after the recording of DaDa was completed, Cooper was hospitalized for alcoholism again, and cirrhosis of the liver. Cooper was finally stable and sober (and has remained sober since that time) by

5040-922: The Yuengling Center was the premier indoor concert venue in the Tampa Bay area and hosted many big-name artists. The first concert held at the Yuengling Center (then the USF Sun Dome) was Alice Cooper , on November 25, 1980. Other notable acts hosted at the Yuengling Center prior to the renovations completed in 2012 include Jimmy Buffett (1982, 1985, 1986, and 1988), The Beach Boys (1984, 1985, and 1989), Ozzy Osbourne (1984, 1988, and 1991), Grateful Dead (1985), U2 (1985), Madonna (1985), Tom Petty (1985, 1990, and 1995), Billy Joel (1987), Frank Sinatra (1987 and 1988), Fleetwood Mac (1987 and 1990), AC/DC (1988), Bob Dylan (1988, 1993, 2006, and 2010), Bon Jovi (1995), Steely Dan (1996), Backstreet Boys (1998), Britney Spears (1998 and 1999), System of

5145-534: The Yuengling Center, WWE held two pay-per-view events, WrestleMania Backlash and Hell in a Cell . WWE resumed live touring on July 16, thus ending the ThunderDome productions. The company finished tapings at the Yuengling Center on July 9; the final show to air featuring the ThunderDome at the Yuengling Center was the July 15 episode of Main Event . Creator Clash was hosted at the Yuengling Center in 2022. UFC hosted UFC Fight Night: Lauzon vs Stephens at

5250-507: The all-female GTOs , who liked to "dress the Cooper boys up like full size Barbie dolls," played a major role in developing the band's early onstage look. Cooper's debut studio album, Pretties for You (1969), was eclectic and featured an experimental presentation of their songs in a psychedelic context. Alice Cooper's "shock rock" reputation apparently developed almost by accident at first. An unrehearsed stage routine involving Cooper,

5355-505: The arena with a capacity of up to 1,000 fans. Prior to the opening of The Corral, the volleyball team played in the USF Gymnasium , now called the Campus Recreation Center. In addition to USF sporting events, the Yuengling Center hosts USF's commencement ceremonies along with many concerts, shows, and special events. Between the arena's opening in 1981 until the opening of what is now known as Amalie Arena in 1996,

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5460-508: The band by the end of 1988 (although Kane Roberts played guitar on " Bed of Nails " on Cooper's 1989 studio album Trash ). In 1987, Cooper made a brief appearance as a vagrant in the supernatural horror film Prince of Darkness , directed by John Carpenter . His role had no lines and consisted of generally menacing the protagonists before eventually impaling one of them with a bicycle frame. Also in 1987, Cooper appeared at WrestleMania III , escorting wrestler Jake "The Snake" Roberts to

5565-587: The band continued their grueling schedule and toured the United States again. Continued attempts by politicians and pressure groups to ban their shocking act only served to fuel the legend of Alice Cooper further and generate even greater public interest. Their 1973 US tour broke box office records previously set by the Rolling Stones and raised rock theatrics to new heights; the multi-level stage show by then featured numerous special effects, including Billion Dollar Bills, decapitated baby dolls and mannequins,

5670-416: The band learned that Todd Rundgren also had a band called Nazz , which was signed to a major label, and found themselves in need of another stage name. Furnier also believed that the group needed a gimmick to succeed, and that other bands were not exploiting the showmanship potential of the stage. They chose the name "Alice Cooper" largely because it sounded innocuous and wholesome, in humorous contrast to

5775-423: The band's image and music. In his 2007 book Alice Cooper, Golf Monster , Cooper stated that his look was inspired in part by films. One of the band's all-time favorite movies was What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962) starring Bette Davis : "In the movie, Bette wears disgusting caked makeup smeared on her face and underneath her eyes, with deep, dark, black eyeliner." Another movie the band watched over and over

5880-524: The band, showing a group in total disharmony. Cooper later wrote an autobiography with Steven Gaines called Me, Alice (1976) which gave Cooper's version of that era of his career, among other things. During this time, Cooper relocated back to Los Angeles and started appearing regularly on television shows such as The Hollywood Squares , and Warner Bros. released the Greatest Hits compilation album. It featured classic-style artwork and reached

5985-600: The bounds of entertainment." The controversy spilled over into the German segment of the tour, with the German government actually succeeding in having some of the gorier segments of the performance removed. It was also during the London leg of the tour that Cooper met with a near fatal accident during rehearsal of the hanging execution sequence that occurs at the end of the show. Constrictor (1986) and Raise Your Fist and Yell (1987) were recorded with lead guitarist Kane Roberts and bassist Kip Winger , both of whom would leave

6090-418: The chicken had wings, it would be able to fly. He picked it up and threw it out over the crowd, expecting it to fly away. The chicken instead plummeted into the first few rows occupied by wheelchair users, who reportedly proceeded to tear the bird to pieces. The next day the incident made the front page of national newspapers, and Zappa phoned Cooper and asked if the story, which reported that he had bitten off

6195-562: The chicken's head and drunk its blood on stage, was true. Cooper denied the rumor, whereupon Zappa told him, "Well, whatever you do, don't tell anyone you didn't do it." The band later claimed that this period was highly influenced by Pink Floyd , especially their debut studio album The Piper at the Gates of Dawn (1967), the only Pink Floyd album made under the leadership of founding member Syd Barrett (lead vocals and guitar). Glen Buxton said he could listen to Barrett's guitar for hours at

6300-469: The commercial success of Love It to Death and included further single success with " Under My Wheels ", " Be My Lover " in early 1972, and " Halo of Flies ", which became a Top 10 hit in the Netherlands in 1973. Thematically, Killer expanded on the villainous side of Cooper's androgynous stage role, with its music becoming the soundtrack to the group's morality-based stage show, which by then featured

6405-534: The exception of Smith, who graduated from Camelback High School (which is referred to in the song "Alma Mater" on the band's fifth studio album School's Out ), all of the band members were on the Cortez High School cross-country team. Cooper, Buxton, and Dunaway were also art students, and their admiration for the works of surrealist artists such as Salvador Dalí would further inspire their future stage antics. One night after an unsuccessful gig at

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6510-418: The first time in his career. Cooper spent a lengthy period away from the music business dealing with personal problems. His divorce from Sheryl Cooper was heard at Maricopa County Superior Court, Arizona, on January 30, 1984, but a decision was made by the couple not to move forward with the divorce. The following month he guested at the 26th Annual Grammy Awards alongside co-presenter Grace Jones . Behind

6615-444: The frustrations of modern life, and has been described as "a young man's struggle to see the truth through the distractions of the 'Sideshow' of the modern world". Concurrent with the release of The Last Temptation was a three-part comic book series written by Neil Gaiman , fleshing out the album's story. This was to be Cooper's last album with Epic Records since according to Brian 'Renfield' Nelson, Cooper's personal assistant, "Alice

6720-437: The greatest moments of my life was getting pie-faced by Soupy. He was one of my all time heroes." Cooper's studio albums from the beginning of the 1980s have been referred to by Cooper as his "blackout albums" because he cannot remember recording them, owing to the influence of his new, and increasing cocaine addiction. Flush the Fashion (1980), Special Forces (1981), Zipper Catches Skin (1982) and DaDa (1983) saw

6825-452: The group banned altogether from performing in the country. In February 1973, Billion Dollar Babies was released worldwide and became the band's most commercially successful studio album, reaching No. 1 in both the US and UK. " Elected ", a late-1972 Top 10 UK hit from the album, which inspired one of the first MTV -style story-line promo videos ever made for a song (three years before Queen 's promotional video for " Bohemian Rhapsody "),

6930-400: The group name, "Alice Cooper" had by then become Furnier's new legal name. Speaking on the subject of Alice Cooper continuing as a solo project as opposed to the band it once was, Cooper stated in 1975, "It got very basically down to the fact that we had drawn as much as we could out of each other. After ten years, we got pretty dry together." Manager Gordon added, "What had started in a sense as

7035-435: The group, only Buxton knew how to play an instrument—the guitar—so Buxton played guitar while the rest mimed on their instruments. The group got an overwhelming response from the audience and won the talent show. As a result of their positive experience, the group decided to try to turn into a real band. They acquired musical instruments from a local pawn shop , and proceeded to learn how to play them, with Buxton doing most of

7140-405: The live album A Fistful of Alice (1997) was released, and in 1997 he lent his voice to the intro track of Insane Clown Posse 's The Great Milenko . During his absence from the recording studio, Cooper toured extensively every year throughout the latter part of the 1990s, including, in 1996, South America, which he had not visited since 1974. Also in 1996, Cooper sang the role of Herod on

7245-635: The much larger Tampa Convention Center in 1990 made it obsolete. Curtis Hixon Hall was demolished in 1993, and the land was converted into a public park. The park was redesigned and incorporated into the Tampa Riverwalk in 2010, and the facility's former footprint is now home to the Tampa Museum of Art , the Glazer Children’s Museum , and the northern portions of Curtis Hixon Waterfront Park . The Hall's namesake, Curtis Hixon ,

7350-489: The park. The site was redeveloped again in the late 2000s to integrate the area into the city's Riverwalk project . A new Tampa Museum of Art and the Glazer Children's Museum opened in 2010 on the footprint of Curtis Hixon Hall, while the open space immediately to the south became a redesigned Curtis Hixon Waterfront Park . Alice Cooper Alice Cooper (born Vincent Damon Furnier ; February 4, 1948)

7455-423: The project, buying an O in the sign in memory of close friend and comedian Groucho Marx . In 1979, Cooper also guest starred on good friend Soupy Sales ' show, Lunch with Soupy Sales and was hit in the face with a pie, as part of the show. When asked about the experience, Cooper had this to say about his friend: "Being from Detroit, I came home every day and watched Soupy at lunch (Lunch with Soupy Sales). One of

7560-527: The ring for his match against The Honky Tonk Man . After the match, which Roberts lost, ended, Cooper got involved and threw Jake's snake Damien at Honky's manager Jimmy Hart . Roberts considered the involvement of Cooper to be an honor, as he had idolized Cooper in his youth and was still a huge fan. WrestleMania III, which attracted a WWF record 93,173 fans, was held in the Pontiac Silverdome near Cooper's home town of Detroit. Cooper recorded

7665-530: The same time horrifying parents and outraging the social establishment. In the United Kingdom, Mary Whitehouse , a Christian morality campaigner, persuaded the BBC to ban the video for "School's Out", although Whitehouse's campaign did not prevent the single also reaching number one in the UK. Cooper sent her a bunch of flowers in gratitude for the publicity. Meanwhile, British Labour Member of Parliament Leo Abse petitioned Home Secretary Reginald Maudling to have

7770-712: The scenes Cooper kept busy musically, working on new material in collaboration with Aerosmith guitarist Joe Perry . The spring of 1984 was taken up with filming, Cooper acting in the B-grade horror movie Monster Dog , filmed in Torrelodones , Spain. Shortly thereafter he reconciled with Sheryl; the couple relocated to Chicago. The year closed with more writing sessions, this time in New York during November with Hanoi Rocks guitarist Andy McCoy . In 1985, he met and began writing songs with guitarist Kane Roberts . Cooper

7875-400: The seating area to make the facility ADA compliant and LEED Silver certified. It also added a larger center hung scoreboard, a larger team store, a new concourse level with concessions and restrooms, and a new, athletes-only dining hall. On the outside, original exterior concrete was repaired, bricks were added to some portions of the facade, and the entrance gates were improved. This project

7980-597: The second Glen Buxton Memorial Weekend for a show at CoopersTown in Phoenix. They reunited for another show, with Steve Hunter on guitar, on December 16, 2010, at the Dodge Theatre in Phoenix. This lineup would perform together again (televised) on March 14, 2011, at the induction of the original Alice Cooper group into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame , as well as on May 11, 2011, at London's Battersea Power Station at

8085-409: The sound and look of heavy metal, and has been described as the artist who "first introduced horror imagery to rock'n'roll, and whose stagecraft and showmanship have permanently transformed the genre". He is also known for his wit offstage, with The Rolling Stone Album Guide calling him the world's most "beloved heavy metal entertainer". Aside from music, Cooper is a film actor, a golfing celebrity,

8190-469: The studio album Constrictor . The album spawned the hits " He's Back (The Man Behind the Mask) " (the theme song for the movie Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives ; in the video for the song Cooper was given a cameo role as a deranged psychiatrist) and the fan favorite " Teenage Frankenstein ". The Constrictor album was a catalyst for Cooper to make a triumphant return to the road for the first time since

8295-539: The teaching, as well as much of the early songwriting. They soon renamed themselves the Spiders , featuring Furnier on lead vocals, Buxton on lead guitar, Tatum on rhythm guitar, Dunaway on bass guitar, and Speer on drums. In 1966, the Spiders graduated from Cortez High School, and after North High School football player Michael Bruce replaced John Tatum on rhythm guitar, the band released their second single, "Don't Blow Your Mind", an original composition which became

8400-413: The time DaDa and The Nightmare home video (of his 1975 TV Special) were released in the fall of that year; however, both releases performed below expectations. Even with The Nightmare scoring a nomination for 1984's Grammy Award for Best Long Form Music Video (he lost to Duran Duran ), it was not enough for Warner Bros. to keep Cooper on their books. By February 1984, Cooper became a "free agent" for

8505-594: The time such as the Friday the 13th series and A Nightmare on Elm Street , served up a shocking spectacle similar to its predecessor, and courted the kind of controversy, especially in Europe, that recalled the public outrage caused by Cooper's public performances in America in the early 1970s. In Britain, Labour MP David Blunkett called for the show to be banned, saying "I'm horrified by his behaviour – it goes beyond

8610-588: The time, such as the Guns N' Roses third studio album Use Your Illusion I , on which he shared vocal duties with Axl Rose on the track " The Garden ". He also had a brief appearance as the abusive stepfather of Freddy Krueger in the A Nightmare on Elm Street slasher film Freddy's Dead: The Final Nightmare (1991). Cooper made a cameo appearance in the 1992 comedy film Wayne's World . Cooper and his band first appear on stage performing "Feed My Frankenstein" from their studio album Hey Stoopid . Afterwards at

8715-417: The uniquely shaped building in a modified Googie architecture style. Construction of the 62,000 square feet (5,800 m ) facility cost approximately $ 5 million and was mostly financed by municipal bonds issued by the city of Tampa. It was dedicated on January 23, 1965. Curtis Hixon Hall could be reconfigured and subdivided to accommodate many different events. It had a maximum capacity of about 8000 in

8820-506: The wane, and just before the explosion of grunge , it failed to have the same commercial impact as its predecessor. The same year also saw the release of the video Alice Cooper: Prime Cuts which chronicled his entire career using in depth interviews with Cooper himself, Bob Ezrin, and Shep Gordon. One critic has noted that Prime Cuts demonstrates how Cooper had used (in contrast to similar artists who succeeded him) themes of satire and moralization to such good effect throughout his career. It

8925-482: The year,” which he took “very seriously.” Cooper was active in his church at ages 11 to 12. Following a series of childhood illnesses, he moved with his family to Phoenix, Arizona , where he attended Cortez High School . In his high school yearbook, his ambition was to be "A million record seller". In 1964, 16-year-old Furnier was eager to participate in Cortez High School's annual Letterman's talent show, so he gathered four fellow cross country teammates to form

9030-528: Was Barbarella (1968): "When I saw Anita Pallenberg playing the Great Tyrant in that movie in 1968, wearing long black leather gloves with switchblades coming out of them, I thought, 'That's what Alice should look like.' That, and a little bit of Emma Peel from The Avengers ." The classic Alice Cooper group lineup consisted of Furnier, lead guitarist Glen Buxton, rhythm guitarist Michael Bruce, bassist Dennis Dunaway, and drummer Neal Smith. With

9135-527: Was a leader and later president (1963–1965) of that church organization. The Furnier family resided in East Detroit on Lincoln Ave near Kelly Road, a few blocks from Eastland Mall . Cooper attended Kantner Elementary School, recalled watching horror movies at the Eastown Theatre (where he would later perform), and local neighborhood trick-or-treating on Halloween, the “biggest night of

9240-429: Was a long-time mayor of Tampa who died in 1956 while serving his fourth term in the office. Curtis Hixon Hall was planned and built in the early 1960s during the administration of Tampa mayor Nick Nuccio , who pushed for the construction of many public works projects around town. It was named for Curtis Hixon , the mayor of Tampa from 1943 until he died while still in office in 1956. Local architect Norman Six designed

9345-410: Was also described by Rolling Stone magazine as bringing "Cooper's violent, twisted onstage fantasies to a new generation". The Constrictor album was followed by Raise Your Fist and Yell in 1987, which had an even rougher sound than its predecessor, as well as the Cooper classic " Freedom ". The subsequent tour of Raise Your Fist and Yell , which was heavily inspired by the slasher horror movies of

9450-407: Was among the most visible and successful acts in the industry. Beneath the surface, however, the repetitive schedule of recording and touring had begun to take its toll on the band. Muscle of Love , released at the end of 1973, was to be the last studio album from the classic lineup, and marked Alice Cooper's last UK Top 20 single of the 1970s with " Teenage Lament '74 ". An unsolicited theme song

9555-482: Was completed in April 2012. In 2017, USF announced that the Sun Dome's management would be taken over by Jeff Vinik , owner of the Tampa Bay Lightning , via Tampa Bay Entertainment Properties, LLC. On June 12, 2018, USF announced a 10-year naming rights deal with brewer Yuengling , effective July 1, 2018. In April 2021, WWE began a long-term residency at Yuengling Center, broadcasting its shows from

9660-479: Was considered small and outdated by the mid-1980s and was relegated to hosting smaller events such as small trade shows and local events such as high school graduations while most sporting events and concerts shifted to places like the USF Sun Dome (which opened in 1980) and the nearby restored Tampa Theater . When the much larger Tampa Convention Center opened in 1990 and Tampa began making plans to build

9765-413: Was followed by two more UK Top 10 singles, " Hello Hooray " and " No More Mr. Nice Guy ", the latter of which was the last UK single from the album; it reached No. 25 in the US. The title track, featuring guest vocals by Donovan , was also a US hit single. Around this time Glen Buxton left Alice Cooper briefly because of waning health. With a string of successful concept albums and several hit singles,

9870-483: Was in the Prime Cuts video that Bob Ezrin delivered his own summation of the Alice Cooper persona: "He is the psycho killer in all of us. He's the axe murderer, he's the spoiled child, he's the abuser, he's the abused; he's the perpetrator, he's the victim, he's the gun slinger, and he's the guy lying dead in the middle of the street". During the early 1990s, Cooper guested on records by the most successful bands of

9975-503: Was interested in going to Hollywood Records even before 'The Last Temptation' was released because Bob Pfeifer, who originally signed Alice to Epic, was now the President of Hollywood Records. After 'The Last Temptation' was finished, Alice requested that Sony /Epic let him go so that he could make the switch to Hollywood. He just wanted to go where his friends are." and was his last studio release for six years, though during this period

10080-469: Was located at 600 Ashley Drive along the Hillsborough River in downtown Tampa, Florida . It opened in 1965, and was the primary concert, indoor sports, and civic gathering place for the city of Tampa for about twenty years. The construction of newer and more specialized facilities around town during the 1980s gradually reduced the number of events held at Curtis Hixon Hall, and the opening of

10185-417: Was looking to sign bizarre music acts to his new record label, Straight Records . For the audition Zappa told them to come to his house "at 7 o'clock." The band mistakenly assumed he meant 7 o'clock in the morning. Being woken up by a band willing to play that particular brand of psychedelic rock at seven in the morning impressed Zappa enough for him to sign them to a three-album deal. Another Zappa-signed act,

10290-772: Was much better received by Midwestern crowds accustomed to the proto-punk styles of local bands such as the Stooges and the MC5 . Despite this, Cooper still managed to receive a cream pie in the face when performing at the Cincinnati Pop Festival . Michigan would remain their steady home base until 1972. "L.A. just didn't get it," Cooper stated. "They were all on the wrong drug for us. They were on acid and we were basically drinking beer. We fit much more in Detroit than we did anywhere else." Alice Cooper appeared at

10395-615: Was originally a band consisting of Furnier, guitarists Glen Buxton and Michael Bruce , bassist Dennis Dunaway , and drummer Neal Smith . The band released seven albums from 1969 to 1973, and broke up in 1975. Having legally changed his name to Alice Cooper, Furnier began a solo career that year with the concept album Welcome to My Nightmare . Throughout his career, Cooper has sold over 50 million records. Cooper has experimented with various musical styles, mainly hard rock , glam rock , heavy metal , and glam metal , but also new wave , art rock , and industrial rock . He helped shape

10500-596: Was recorded for the James Bond spy film The Man with the Golden Gun (1974), but a different song of the same name by Lulu was chosen instead. By 1974, the Muscle of Love album still had not matched the top-charting success of its predecessor, and the band began to have constant disagreements. For various reasons, the members agreed to take what was expected to be a temporary hiatus. "Everyone decided they needed

10605-507: Was released to theaters in 1976. The film was released in a special edition DVD in 2017. Such was the immense success of Cooper's solo project that he decided to continue as a solo artist, and the original band became officially defunct. Bruce, Dunaway, and Smith would go on to form the short-lived band Billion Dollar Babies, producing one studio album— Battle Axe —in 1977. While occasionally performing with one another and Glen Buxton , they would not reunite with Alice until October 23, 1999, at

10710-700: Was released. In 1978, a sobered Cooper used his experience in the sanitarium as the inspiration for his semi-autobiographical studio album From the Inside , which he co-wrote with Bernie Taupin , known for his work with Elton John; it spawned yet another US Top 20 hit ballad, " How You Gonna See Me Now ". The subsequent tour's stage show was based inside an asylum, and was filmed for Cooper's first home-video release, The Strange Case of Alice Cooper , in 1979. Around this time, Cooper performed "Welcome to My Nightmare", "You and Me", and "School's Out" on The Muppet Show (episode #307) on March 28, 1978 (he played one of

10815-461: Was slowed on both the Sun Dome and the O'Connell Center when cracks appeared in precast concrete support beams. The problems were eventually fixed, and the sister facilities were completed within a few weeks of each other in late 1980 – the Sun Dome in November and the O'Connell Center in December. The first two events at the new arena were a USF men's basketball game against Florida A&M and

10920-399: Was subsequently signed to MCA Records , and appeared as guest vocalist on Twisted Sister 's song "Be Chrool to Your Scuel". A music video was made for the song, featuring actor Luke Perry and Cooper donning his black snake-eyes makeup for the first time since 1979, but neither the song nor the video drew public interest. In 1986, Alice Cooper officially returned to the music industry with

11025-542: Was the television special The Nightmare , starring Cooper and Vincent Price , which aired on US prime-time TV in April 1975. The Nightmare (which was later released on home video in 1983 and gained a Grammy Award nomination for Best Long Form Music Video ) was regarded as another groundbreaking moment in rock history. Adding to it all, a concert film, Welcome to My Nightmare , produced, directed, and choreographed by West Side Story cast member David Winters and filmed live at London's Wembley Arena in September 1975,

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