The Forum opened on December 30, 1967. From 1967 to 1999, the Forum was home to the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA) and the Los Angeles Kings of the National Hockey League (NHL) before both teams joined the NBA's Los Angeles Clippers at the Staples Center (now Crypto.com Arena). From 1997 to 2001, the Forum was also the home of the WNBA's Los Angeles Sparks until they moved to Crypto.com Arena as well. 

The Forum has previously been known as the Great Western Forum,[4] and was nicknamed "the Fabulous Forum" by long-time Lakers play-by-play announcer Chick Hearn.[5] It is also known informally as the LA Forum to distinguish it from other places with the name "Forum".