Fenway Corners (Red Sox) | 1 Jersey Street | Fenway

DBM said:
Alright, I'm going to bite, given how so far I don't think anyone has pointed out the blindly obvious here: It's bad enough it's an oil company, in terms of the tens of millions of deaths the industry will have on its hands due to fossil fuel-driven climate change. But it's not just any oil company; it's the oil company that, for the past two decades, has propped-up one of the most brutal governments on earth.

From a moral standpoint, I'd argue the ongoing display of the Citgo sign is quite reprehensible, and only just slightly less repugnant than if, say, in 1942, a giant billboard advertising Krupp stood over Fenway. But, hey, "tradition" and "iconic," right?
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I mean, I can't disagree, but we also do still have the legacy of Krupp (now ThyssenKrupp), Volkswagen, Mercedes-Benz, the Associated Press, Ford, Adidas [neé Dassler Brothers], IBM, Hugo Boss, Chanel, DuPont, and many others who were compliant + complicit with Hitler's Nazi regime, all in the name of commerce. And the world goes round.

I like the Citgo sign, as a landmark I've grown up with, but if it's time to take it down and send it back to Venezuela, I'm good with that, too. Just seems like the Citgo sign is one very odd, arbitrary insignia to cancel when all these other corporate overlords (maybe) have behaved way much worse in the wartime years with no real consequence of their actions that resulted in the horrific death of millions.
 
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kdmc said:
Only speaking for myself now, I grew up seeing that sign on TV, and I love to see it in person when I go to games or flashing in the distance. If they removed the CITGO part and kept the animated triangle I'd be just as happy. But if they took it down entirely it'd feel like a huge loss.
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Yeah, this is really the thing with it. I didn't even grow-up in New England, but I was familiar with the sign from the '86 World Series. When I found myself living in the old Myles Standish Hall (now the plain 610 Beacon) two years later, I was kind of blown away to realize I'd be looking at that sign every single day, and therefore living in the shadow of two legends (the Park and the sign).

As for the issues surrounding the oil company's environmental degradation and alignment with a highly repressive dictatorship, I'd say it's possible to be against those things and still value the sign for the other things that it represents.
 
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I work in renewable energy and it’s my life mission to get us off oil, but I like the Citgo sign and hope it stays forever. I view it as a piece of found pop art. People don’t put Warhol paintings of Mao on the wall because they like the Cultural Revolution.
 
Speaking for myself, when I go to Fenway Park, what tells me "I'm here" isn't a giant sign, but the fact that I'm at Fenway Park. That's just me though, and I do understand why people like the sign.
 
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SirNirch said:
Speaking for myself, when I go to Fenway Park, what tells me "I'm here" isn't a giant sign, but the fact that I'm at Fenway Park. That's just me though, and I do understand why people like the sign.
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I don't think anybody is confusing the sign for the ball park. The argument is that both are culturally significant, particularly the interplay between the two.
 
HenryAlan said:
I don't think anybody is confusing the sign for the ball park. The argument is that both are culturally significant, particularly the interplay between the two.
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I find the idea of the interplay between the two to be a bit overblown. At least in 2025. As a kid in the 90s, I do remember it being a memorable component of the Fenway experience. But with the addition of the monster seats, the towering green advertisement banners over the wall, the construction of the "Whoop" building, etc., it doesn't feel that way to me anymore. There's a lot more visual stimuli while walking through Kenmore or sitting in the stands. Even things like the major jumbotron improvements, lighting upgrades, and additional video and digital displays throughout the park draw the eye away from the sign. Especially as the sun goes down. It used to be the brightest thing around and now it's just another illuminated thing in the background.

Maybe I'm on an island here, but I wonder if some of the "save the sign" sentiment is just nostalgia? I'm a huge fan of Fenway park and truly believe that the historic threads that connect it to the neighborhood are what makes it such a special place. But I don't think the Citgo sign is really all that relevant to the ballpark experience today and I feel like the impact of losing it wouldn't be nearly as significant are some people seem to think.
 
HenryAlan said:
I don't think anybody is confusing the sign for the ball park. The argument is that both are culturally significant, particularly the interplay between the two.
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I don't think I said anyone was confusing the sign for the ballpark. I know both are culturally significant, but I'm just saying that for me specifically (and for some others too), seeing the Citgo sign isn't indicative of making me feel like "wow I'm actually at Fenway Park." Sitting in a seat and seeing the field does that for me, and just thinking of all of the ballplayers that have been there over its history.
 
Count me among those who think it's kind of embarrassing that one of Boston's most iconic visual cues is a sign for a Venezuelan oil company. "Icons of American Cities: The Statue of Liberty, Golden Gate Bridge, The Space Needle, Gateway Arch, Sears Tower, and... an ad for a foreign gas station."
 
chrisbrat said:
Count me among those who think it's kind of embarrassing that one of Boston's most iconic visual cues is a sign for a Venezuelan oil company. "Icons of American Cities: The Statue of Liberty, Golden Gate Bridge, The Space Needle, Gateway Arch, Sears Tower, and... an ad for a foreign gas station."
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I wouldn't say it's as important as the Hollywood sign in LA, but it's in a category on the level of the Fabulous Las Vegas Sign, the South of the Border signage, or the Chicago Theatre Marquee. I agree that it is "one of Boston's most iconic visual cues." The fact that it's a sign for an oil company is almost incidental.
 
chrisbrat said:
Count me among those who think it's kind of embarrassing that one of Boston's most iconic visual cues is a sign for a Venezuelan oil company. "Icons of American Cities: The Statue of Liberty, Golden Gate Bridge, The Space Needle, Gateway Arch, Sears Tower, and... an ad for a foreign gas station."
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It says CITGO but it doesn't mean an oil company anymore. It has a new meaning completely separated from its referent.
 
Apropos of nothing else... I would point out that Citgo, while putatively owned by PDVSA, has a longer history than that ownership. That sign was installed in 1940; only in 1990 did PDVSA acquire Citgo.

Also, it's currently both under the control of a board appointed by the Venezuelan opposition, and sanctions dating to the first Trump Administration bar Citgo funds from being remitted to Venezuela. That has caused PDVSA to default on a major portion of its bonds, and therefore the controlling stake in CITGO that collateralized it is currently up for auction in a forced sale to satisfy creditors - it was supposed to be yesterday, before being delayed yet again - but its not likely going to be Venezuelan for very long.

 
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FK4 said:
If it took out the sign I’d be happy.
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Im a little amused that the conversation went from this post to the Citgo sign, and not that it matters or anyone should care, but in this post I was referring the stupid WHOOP sign. It's horrible.

As for Citgo I love the debates. Im for it and grew up here and I associate some of my earliest memories of being in Boston or driving around with my dad with seeing it at night, mesmerizing. It's interesting how strong the feelings are about this thing, though. This debate surfaces here not all the infrequently, and whenever it does, always generates spirited discussion.
 
FK4 said:
Im a little amused that the conversation went from this post to the Citgo sign, and not that it matters or anyone should care, but in this post I was referring the stupid WHOOP sign. It's horrible.
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Totally my fault, not that it matters to anyone, worked until 2am the last few days and I probably just didn't fully pay attention to what I was reading. I agree with you on the WHOOP sign.
 
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Stlin said:
Apropos of nothing else... I would point out that Citgo, while putatively owned by PDVSA, has a longer history than that ownership. That sign was installed in 1940; only in 1990 did PDVSA acquire Citgo.

Also, it's currently both under the control of a board appointed by the Venezuelan opposition, and sanctions dating to the first Trump Administration bar Citgo funds from being remitted to Venezuela. That has caused PDVSA to default on a major portion of its bonds, and therefore the controlling stake in CITGO that collateralized it is currently up for auction in a forced sale to satisfy creditors - it was supposed to be yesterday, before being delayed yet again - but its not likely going to be Venezuelan for very long.

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Yeah, upon which the likely new owner of Citgo will be... I don't have any f-ing clue who these people are: https://www.dalinarenergy.com/

They seem to have been founded solely to buy Citgo, having been funded by the Koch Brothers and Gold Reserve, Inc, which is a US-based co-owner of two Venezuelan gold mines. The other co-owner is, unsurprisingly, the Government of Venezuela.

So I guess Citgo will be owned by shady Americans who do business with Venezuela?
 
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Meanwhile Boston’s largest piece of public art is the Rainbow Swash, which is located on … a liquefied natural gas tank lol. We love our fossil fuel infrastructure!
 
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BronsonShore said:
I have the evidence of common freaking sense: John Henry is a 75-year-old human being, and human beings die ; The Red Sox are a 124-year-old institution who do not have to worry about things like heart it’s
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I agree with you on the sentiment, but until the tax code changes, Citizens United v. United States is overturned, Qatari Airplanes being “tributed” to Our Leader ends, etc. you’re just shaking clenched fists and yelling at clouds.

But I agree with the sentiment.
 
LtKije said:
I work in renewable energy and it’s my life mission to get us off oil, but I like the Citgo sign and hope it stays forever. I view it as a piece of found pop art. People don’t put Warhol paintings of Mao on the wall because they like the Cultural Revolution.
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Good post!
 
I put the Citgo sign on par with with the Coca-Cola sign in Times Square. Yeah, it's selling Coke, but it seems more than that now, even amid the vast LED sea of other advertisements there.
 
Except Coca-Cola is an American icon in America's biggest city. CITGO is largely unknown to most Americans (other than those who associate it with the Sox) and it's not an American company.

I hear (read) what you're saying, though.
 
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