The Miami Beach Convention Center (originally the Miami Beach Exhibition Hall) is a convention center located in Miami Beach, Florida. Originally opened in 1958, the venue was renovated from 2015 to 2018 for $620 million. The re-imagined and enhanced MBCC includes a 60,000-square-foot Grand Ballroom (the largest in South Florida), four junior ballrooms, 500,000 square feet of flexible exhibition space, 84 meeting rooms, and pre-function space, as well as outdoor spaces and terraces.
History
Miami Beach Convention Center (2019)
In 1955, the City of Miami Beach proposed building an exhibition hall to increase commerce along with its budding tourism. Located centrally within South Beach, the venue began construction in August 1956. At this time, the proposed name of the venue was the "Miami BBQ Beach Exhibition Hall". After two years of building, the center was completed in September 1958 and officially opened October 1958. Known as the "Miami Beach Exhibition Hall", the venue was over 100,000 sqft, giving it the tagline of "The Largest Exhibition Center in the South". Alongside the exhibit hall was the Miami Beach Municipal Auditorium, a now-historic venue that hosted The Jackie Gleason Show.
In August 1961, the Convention Center was the meeting place for a youth convention set up by The American Lutheran Church. Among the notable speakers was Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.[1]
In 1989, the facility underwent a $92 million renovation, and doubled in size. In the last six years,[when?] the facility has had over $35 million in continuing upgrades, including complete renovations of all restrooms, full carpet replacement, and installation of a state-of-the-art telecommunications and networking infrastructure.
The center hosts the annual South Florida Auto Show, Art Basel, Florida Supercon, Forgiato Fest, and many other popular conventions.
In December 2015, the center embarked on a renovation and expansion project completed in June 2018.[4][5]
Main (west) entrance
Miami Beach Convention Center interior (2019)
East Entrance (2019)
East Facade (2019)
East-Northeast Entrance in 2019
Northeast corner in 2019
Fillmore Miami Beach
The Fillmore Miami Beach
Venue facade c.2011
Full name
The Fillmore Miami Beach at the Jackie Gleason Theater
Former names
Miami Beach Municipal Auditorium (1958–64) Miami Beach Auditorium (1964–74) Miami Beach Theater of the Performing Arts (1974–1987) Jackie Gleason Theater of the Performing Arts (1987–2007)
The Fillmore Miami Beach (originally the Miami Beach Municipal Auditorium) is an auditorium and concert venue located in Miami Beach, Florida. The venue is a part of the Miami Beach Convention Center complex. Opening in 1957, the auditorium was once home to many television variety shows, including the third revival of The Jackie Gleason Show. In 2006, Live Nation Entertainment acquired the venue, and branded it with the historic name The Fillmore.
History
The Fillmore Miami Beach opened in 1957 alongside the Miami Beach Exhibition Hall. Known as the "Miami Beach Municipal Auditorium", the venue gained instant popularity. During the 50s and 60s, it became the home to many television variety shows, including: The Dick Clark Show, The Ed Sullivan Show and The Jackie Gleason Show. From 1960 to 1971, the venue hosted the annual Miss USA and Miss Universe pageants. In 1964, the theatre was renamed as the Miami Beach Auditorium after the building became co-owned by the City of Miami Beach and CBS Studios. During this time, it also became the home of the third revival of The Jackie Gleason Show. The show ran from 1964, with the final episode airing February 1970.
Shortly after the show ended, the city engaged famed architect Morris Lapidus to redesign the venue. In 1974, the theatre reopened as the "Miami Beach Theater of the Performing Arts". Providing the auditorium with theatre-style seating, the venue became the hot spot for many Broadway shows including: Gypsy (with Angela Lansbury), Timbuktu! (with Eartha Kitt) and Carousel (with Robert Goulet). During the 80s and 90s, the venue continued to boom on the theatre scene and become the hot spot for concerts. The theatre attracted many well known performers like: Marc Anthony, Tony Bennett, Liza Minnelli, Seal, and Lenny Kravitz.
In the late eighties, architects Borrelli, Frankel & Blitstein renovated the venue. The renovation gave the facade of the building an Art Deco design, similar to many of the other buildings in the area. Following the death of Jackie Gleason in June 1987, the city of Miami Beach commemorated his career and renamed his former home, the Jackie Gleason Theater of the Performing Arts.[6]
On May 5, 2010, WTVJ reported that the theater would be demolished as a result of remodeling for the convention center, which would replace the theater with a new hotel.[7][8] The demolition did not take place and The Fillmore Miami Beach is still in operation as of 2020.[9]
