More than 1.35 million people attended the 2012 Orange County Fair, which closed its curtains Aug. 12, after 23 days of activities under the Home Sweet Home theme.
That was down 4% from last year’s record attendance of 1.4 million.
Fair officials attributed the decline partly to a heat wave in OC during the final stretch of the fair.
This was the first fair run by Jerome Hoban, the new chief executive of the OC Fair & Event Center. Former Chief Executive Steve Beazley resigned from the post earlier this year and now works for the Simon Foundation for Education and Housing in Newport Beach.
Fair-promoted concerts at the Pacific Amphitheatre saw ticket sales reach a record high. The venue held seven sold-out performances by Heart and Duran Duran, as well as Earth, Wind & Fire and others.
Concerts at the Hangar, another concert venue that opened in 2010, also had record-high attendance. Sold-out tribute shows included the Prince Tribute Show and the Reflection of Michael Jackson.
—Jane Yu
