In July 1959, a race riot broke out during a Fats Domino concert/dance when an unidentified man kicked over the table of a man and woman who had just finished a dance – the man was African American and the woman was Caucasian. It took more than an hour to quell the disturbance which drew 18 police patrol cars, three police paddy wagons, and an ambulance. Police estimated that were 2,500 people in the ballroom during the disturbance and that 40 different fights were going on when they arrived. The concert promoter, LeRoy Smith (1911–1989), estimated that 1,600 were in attendance and that only 4 fights had broken out. There were no serious injuries or damage to the ballroom. No arrests were made.Rock 'n' Roll Riot Hospitalizes Two, Stars and Stripes, July 29, 1959Fight Breaks Out at Domino's Show, Greeley Daily Tribune, col. 4, pg. 16, July 27, 1959.
