It was the site of the 19 NBA All-Star Games, the 1981 NHL All-Star Game, 1984 Olympic basketball, and the Big West Conference (from 1983 to 1988) and 1989 Pacific-10 Conference men's basketball tournaments. Īlongside Madison Square Garden in New York City, The Forum was once one of the best-known indoor sports venues in the U.S., largely due to the Lakers' success and the Hollywood celebrities often seen there. This had previously been unheard of in an indoor arena the size of the Forum. Architect Charles Luckman's vision was brought to life by engineers Carl Johnson and Svend Nielsen, who were able to engineer the structure so that it had no major support pillars. Opening on December 30, 1967, the Forum was an unusual and groundbreaking structure. The Forum was also the home of the WNBA's Los Angeles Sparks from 1997 to their 2001 move to Staples Center. The Forum achieved its greatest fame as home to the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA) and the Los Angeles Kings of the National Hockey League (NHL) from 1967 to 1999, when both teams joined the NBA's Los Angeles Clippers (who had played at the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena) at the new Staples Center. Located between West Manchester Boulevard, across Pincay Drive and Kareem Court, it is north of SoFi Stadium and the Hollywood Park Casino, about 3 miles (4.8 km) east of Los Angeles International Airport (LAX). The Forum is a multi-purpose indoor arena in Inglewood, California, United States, adjacent to Los Angeles.