I Waited Six Hours For Garth Brooks Tickets.

Before internet was invented, the only way to purchase concert tickets was to wait in line for hours at a ticket office, or call into a 1-800 number and cross your fingers you were able to purchase tickets.  In 1994, Garth Brooks announced he was coming to Beaumont, Texas to play the Montagne Center, I HAD to get tickets.  I wait six hours in line for his tickets at Central Mall in Port Arthur, Texas; the concert tour was for Fresh Horses, his fifth studio album since blasting on the country music scene in 1989.  Ticketmaster had rules for purchasing Garth Brooks tickets for his Beaumont concert: only four per person could be purchased, you had to wait in a line with a "lottery" like ticket, and only three locations were selling tickets in the Beaumont area, Central Mall Dillard's, Parkdale Mall Dillard's, and the Montagne Center.

The morning tickets went on sale started warm, a little humid.  I arrived at Central Mall Dillard's at 5:00am.  The line was already 50-or so deep, and I gladly accept my "lottery" raffle ticket and went to stand in line with my number.  The plan was for the Dillard's ticket office to call out numbers that matched our raffle tickets and we would have the opportunity to purchase a maximum of four tickets.  I patiently waited for the first four hours, but my patience was waning thin when I still didn't have my tickets at 10:00am.  it was depressing watching those in front, or behind me, hear their raffle number and run to the ticket office.  They would leave with a huge grin on their faces, waving their Garth Books' tickets in the air.

Then at 10:30am, my savior arrived in a golf cart and a blow horn.  A Dillard's Ticket Marshall informed us there was not a line at the Montagne Center.  I WAS GONE!  I ran, jumped into my car, raced to the Montagne Center, praying there were not any police waiting for me because I was breaking every traffic law known to man.  I pulled into the parking lot of the Montagne Center, threw my car in park, jumped out (leaving the car running) and ran to the ticket office.  Five minutes later, I had four Garth Brooks' tickets in my hand.  WOW!  it felt like I won the lottery, got an "A" on a test, and landed a dream job all in one shot.  That is how you buy concert tickets, kids, you earn them.