A well-orchestrated party — even the Biggest in History — deserves a well-orchestrated news conference, and that’s what it got.

About an hour before The Who took the stage in the Astrodome Saturday night, the three main band members and party pitchman Randy Quaid met the press to answer a few questions and exchange gifts with a Special Olympics participant.

Party sponsor Miller Lite has committed $1 million to the Texas Special Olympics as a result of the weekend events.

Denis Poulos, chairman of the Texas charity, said the money raised will be used to double the number of Special Olympics participants from 25,000 to 50,000 by 1992.

Who vocalist Roger Daltrey, trim and tan in his jeans and gray T-shirt, fielded the five questions the press were allowed.

The best part of the group’s tour was that The Who, which has argued and brawled through many of its 25 years, is ending the tour on a harmonious note, Daltrey said.

“We’ve ended up friends, which is great for us. That’s a real triumph. It was not a happy ending in 1982, but it feels great now,” Daltrey said.

The freedom from financial pressure from record companies to tour and record albums is another advantage of their current situation.

“That freedom is something we never enjoyed in the past,” Daltrey said.

Answering a question about criticism that the event was sponsored by the brewer, Daltrey said the sponsor wasn’t the point.

“As long as we’re raising money for charity, we’d consider anything. That’s the main reason we’re here,” he said.

A Special Olympics participant, Kevin Maples, 31, presented Quaid and The Who with gold medals he had won in competition.

Guitarist and songwriter Pete Townshend’s wit surfaced as he read the inscription on the medal. A cameraman interrupted by knocking over a stack of soda cans. At that point, Townshend blurted out an obscenity about the press.

After the laughter subsided, Townshend politely said, “But we are glad to be here, and we hope you are, too.”

Townshend later gave Maples a Gibson electric guitar autographed by the group members. He cautioned that “the instrument is capable of causing a lot of damage,” alluding to a hand injury Townshend suffered earlier in the tour.

“They’re going to give a Special Olympics next year just for me,” Townshend said.

Townshend then referred to Maples as a “giant,” and Maples posed as if he were playing a guitar solo. The guitarist stepped in front of Maples, saying, “Well, maybe not.”

Bill Graham, the veteran concert organizer, was on hand for the news conference and said the tour was going smoothly. Modern rock tours of giant stadiums are not without their troubles, he said.

“It’s easier because the technology is better, but the facilities are bigger, and you have to hire more people,” he said.

“With more people, something is bound to go wrong,” he said.