Van Halen Take On Baltimore Orioles In Comical Lawsuit

According to a lawsuit filed in Los Angeles on August 10, Van Halen are suing the Baltimore Orioles for at least $2 million US, claiming that the baseball team pulled out of an offer to have the band play at their stadium on September 2.

It seems that the Orioles contacted the band in April about hosting a Van Halen concert at Oriole Park at Camden Yards but that the group refused, citing prior touring commitments in the southern US and the prohibitive costs that would be involved in uprooting their tour to perform a one-off show.

The Orioles then offered the band $1 million US to perform the date but were again rebuffed. Undeterred, Orioles "director of entertainment" Don Mark then upped the offer to $1.5 million US plus 80% of ticket and merchandise sales and an expense budget for the band. And, because their mama didn't raise no fools, the Van Halen boys agreed to the new offer and set about reconfiguring their tour to accommodate the show.

Then, in mid-July, the Orioles abruptly reneged on the offer, refusing to communicate with the band or to honour the previously agreed-upon contract.

I'm not sure what's more humorously unlikely in this case -- the fact that a baseball team would go so far out of their way to entice a bunch of aging rockers to perform at their stadium during baseball season and then renege or that Van Halen still have this kind of bargaining power. Seriously, $1.5 million US plus 80% of tickets and merch? Are you kidding me?

On an unrelated note, the Orioles franchise are notorious for grossly overbidding on free agents and have been struggling on the field for a good two decades.

As for Eddie and the boys, Van Halen are scheduled to release a DVD of their 1986 concert film, Live Without A Net, on September 14.