Letter from 1997 Seeking Garth Brooks Tickets

I've said it before, we work in a pretty cool business, radio. We get to hang out inside on the hot humid days and ice cold days too. But most important, we get to hang out with awesome people. Listeners.

Kerri sent me this email the other day;

My cousin Vicki composed this letter in 1997 to win Garth Brooks tickets, but the drawing was random & we didn't win. Would love to see Garth Brooks & Trisha Yearwood for an early birthday present on September 16, 2017! My cousin still lives in Marion & I live in Murdo, SD. Since then I got "The Dance" with music notes tattooed above my right ankle! Love me some Garth‼️

The simple fact that Garth Brooks is coming to The Denny Sanford Premier Center, Saturday, September 16 has a lot of people digging up old memories. Hey, 20 years is a long time.

The last time Garth Brooks was in town, cell phones were probably in a black bag on the floor board of your car, or like the one Michael Douglas talked on out on the beach in Wall Street.

According to The People History.com;

Cost Of Living 1997

• How Much things cost in 1997
• Yearly Inflation Rate USA 2.34 %
• Year End Close Dow Jones Industrial Average 7908.
• Interest Rates Year End Federal Reserve 8.50%
• Average Cost of new house $124,100.00
• Average Income per year $37,006 
• Average Monthly Rent $576 
• Cost of a gallon of Gas $1.22
• Average cost of new car $16,900
• Loaf of Bread $1.17
• Movie Ticket $4.59
• 1 LB Hamburger meat $1.38 and 
• Mike Tyson Bites Evander Holyfield's ear during a match and is suspended from boxing

I talked with Sal from Lake Andes this past weekend. She ended up taking off work and going to Yankton to try to buy tickets to the show. She couldn't. Then she ended up winning tickets from Kickin' Country.

We've talked at length in the building about the promotion that Kickin' Country had to win tickets to the Garth Brooks concerts the last time he was in town. If my memory serves me correctly, one lady said that she would pee her pants for a chance to see Garth Brooks. I just asked our Market Manager Don Jacobs, he said she did win the tickets. He couldn't remember her name. If she would call Kickin' in the 5:00 PM hour some time, we would love to talk to her: 605-361-8000.

I was on the air that day, so missed out on the hullabaloo. I do remember people standing in line at The Lewis Stores. At the time, they were a Ticktmaster outlet. If memory serves me correct, they handed out tickets with numbers on them, then people had to line up to get their tickets.

A lot has changed since then. We sit at our desk or use our smart phones to buy tickets now. One thing that hasn't changed is Garth coming to Sioux Falls, South Dakota still creates a buzz like nothing else.

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