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Great Western Shows Responds to Board of Supervisors Decision, Promises Legal Action

Without responding to the Great Western Show's numerous requests for a meeting, Los Angeles County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky -- with votes from two of the other four Board of Supervisors members -- voted this week (Tuesday, August 24) to shut down the show, which has been providing entertainment for 100,000 members of the public each year for 22 years at Fairplex in Pomona without ever having had a major incident of any kind.

"This man is attempting to destroy the livelihood of not only the Great Western Show but of 2,000 exhibitors who come from all over the world to buy, sell, and trade all types of items such as antique firearms, military memorabilia for those who served in our armed forces, cowboy and Indian artifacts and clothing for collectors of Western Americana, clothing for outdoorsmen, fishing gear, jewelry from around the world, and many other collectibles," said Chad Seger, Show Manager.

"Less than 10 percent of the tables contain modern firearms," Seger added.

Karl Amelang, President of Great Western Shows, Inc., added that the Great Western Show has significant concerns regarding the effect of this week's action by the Board of Supervisors on existing contracts.

"Supervisor Yaroslavsky's motion results in legitimate contracts being broken, not only between the Great Western Show and Fairplex for the two remaining shows this year scheduled for October and December, but also breaking contracts that exist between the Great Western Show and 2,000 show vendors, most of them long-time exhibitors at the show," he said.

"The Great Western Show has 5,000 tables and each of those tables is leased by the show to an individual business person," Amelang explained. "Supervisor Yaroslavsky voted to close the show ultimately because of a single illegal transaction, conducted by way of a sting operation, allegedly performed by one of those exhibitors after the show and at an off-site location. You can compare that with closing down a 500-room hotel because a narcotics deal took place in one of
the rooms," Amelang said.

"After 31 years of operation, with people coming to the Great Western Show from all over the United States, Europe, Japan and Australia, Supervisor Yaroslavsky, capitalizing on the recent tragedies, wants to destroy our business for his own political gain. He is casting the Great Western Show as a political scapegoat for the horrible events that have taken place in our streets and schools, which we all abhor," Amelang added. "Why doesn't he address the real issue, which is the deviant minds of the criminal element in our society today that use hammers, knives, guns, and bombs to injure and kill innocent people?"

"The Great Western Show and all of the show's 2,000 exhibitors have been vilified and defamed by this action of three Los Angeles County Supervisors. Supervisor Yaroslavsky's action and statements insult the many veterans of the U.S. military who exhibit and buy at the show, including the three California Congressional Medal of Honor recipients who were the show's special guests at the October, 1997 show," Amelang concluded. "The Great Western Show will defend itself
in the courts from this arbitrary and ill-advised action."

The Great Western Show is the largest and most popular event held at Fairplex each year, second only to the Los Angeles County Fair itself.

The last Great Western Show took place at Fairplex in Pomona on July 9, 10, and 11 and was attended by about 10,000 people. No illegal activities were reported to the show by any law enforcement agencies.

   Since the May show, Great Western Show management and Fairplex personnel, in conjunction with the California Department of Justice, the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, and the Pomona Police Department, have worked together to enforce very stringent rules and regulations.

   The Great Western Show -- by attracting up to 2,000 exhibitors three times a year and drawing crowds averaging 35,000 at the two larger shows each year -- helps generate as much as an additional $9 million annually into the local economy.

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Great Western Shows to Defend Themselves in Court!
New information from September 8, 1999