Yesterday (Sept. 17), the city of Pasadena, Calif. held a special ribbon-cutting ceremony for its new Van Halen Stage at the Playhouse Village Park. As reported by BraveWords, the event took place following a 2021 city-wide survey the resulted in the City Council voting to name the stage after the group (which was formed by residents Eddie and Alex Van Halen in 1972).
Back in October 2021 (exactly one year after Eddie Van Halen died), a plaque dedicated to the late guitarist was revealed, too. It’s currently located on a wall outside of the Pasadena Civic Auditorium, and it reads:
The Van Halen Family emigrated from the Netherlands to Pasadena in 1962. Alex and Eddie Van Halen attended schools in Pasadena and began playing music together with Eddie on guitar and Alex on drums. Years later, the brothers formed the band Van Halen, along with bassist Michael Anthony and vocalist David Lee Roth. Between 1975 and 1978, Van Halen performed 14 concerts at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium and Conference Center.
Regarded as one of the most successful bands of all time, Van Halen will forever be remembered for reinventing Rock ‘n’ Roll and their connection to Pasadena.
Speaking to Pasadena Now at the time, Mayor Victor Gordo said that he was “honored” to serve the band margaritas when they stopped by Ranchera Mexican restaurant (where he worked when he was younger). He added: “As a young teen, I could not afford a concert ticket, but I was definitely a fan.”
You can watch a video of the plaque dedication below:
Eddie Van Halen Plaque Dedication in Pasadena, Calif. on Oct. 11, 2021
Interestingly, Blabbermouth noted, Eddie Van Halen himself received 3,400 “favorable responses” on the aforementioned city-wide survey (with the runner-up, science fiction writer Octavia Butler, receiving about 525 “favorable responses”). Once the beloved six-string virtuoso was chosen, the Van Halen family “requested that the stage area be named for the entire Van Halen band” instead of just their shining six-string virtuoso.
You can see various social media posts chronicling yesterday’s dedication below:
Likewise, you can view a couple of videos of the ribbon-cutting itself below: