A three-hour wait for a concert? Not for this guy

I read about the three-hour delay for Alice Cooper and Mötley Crüe to take the main stage at the California Mid-State Fair on July 25. I agree with those who say the fair did the right thing in giving money back to those who for whatever reason didn’t want to stay. Those who stayed to watch the performance were rightly refused their money back.

Three hours? I get anxious and then angry if a show is minutes late in starting. If the ticket says the curtain goes up at 8 p.m., I expect it to go up at that time. I hate it when there are still concertgoers trying to find their seats in those final moments before a show’s scheduled start. There should be a great big section in the back of the auditorium for those who arrive after the curtain goes up.

But all that aside, I wondered who I would wait three hours to see. That is just about the limit on how long I can sit, so waiting three hours to see a show that lasts another couple of hours would be too much for this guy.

I’ve asked this of a number of people who said it comes down to age on how long you’d wait to see your favorite performer, or stand in line to get tickets to the show in the first place. I believe one of my daughters stood in line for hours to get tickets to Garth Brooks. She was in her 20s then. There was a time about 20 years ago when a friend of mine and I took lawn chairs and sat in line for a couple of hours to purchase, of all things, tickets to see Bill Cosby at the Performing Arts Center.

And, I’ll admit, I have gotten in line as early as 7 a.m. a couple of years in a row to get tickets to the Friends of the Atascadero Library’s annual “Dancing With Our Stars.” The cause (supporting a library for Atascadero) drove me to do it.

So back again to the question of who I would wait three hours to see?

I can’t think of anyone. It could be Frank Sinatra, who I consider one of the best crooners who every performed, and I wouldn’t wait. The only music I really ever listened to was big bands, classical and musicals. I did get to attend a performance by Benny Goodman when he and his band visited Newport, R.I.

But sorry, Benny, and Frank and Glenn (Miller), I wouldn’t wait three hours to see you.

This story was originally published August 3, 2015 at 6:47 PM with the headline "A three-hour wait for a concert? Not for this guy."