November 17, 1968 - The "Heidi Bowl" Changes TV Policy 50 Years Ago Today

[selmaborntidefan]

Nowadays it is the policy of the NFL to NOT cut away from games until they're concluded (barring an obvious blowout), but fifty years ago today - in a game involving former Tide QB Joe Namath - NBC managed to anger football fans coast to coast when they cut away from the AFL showdown between the defending AFL champion Oakland Raiders and the eventual 1968 AFL champion NY Jets - and fans missed one of the most incredible comebacks in history. The final 90 seconds of the game saw a total of 17 points scored. (To make it more incredible, Oakland actually had a TD called back).


But the country missed it because NBC executives couldn't reach the proper folks to tell them to delay the start of the movie until the game was over - because of switchboard jams caused by fans wanting to know the same thing.

Of course, if they'd done the right thing......the game wouldn't be nearly so well remembered. The Raiders won, but the Jets won the rematch for the AFL title......and went on to make more history when they won Super Bowl III just eight weeks after getting sacked by Heidi.

 

[PaulD]

Re: November 17, 1968 - The "Heidi Bowl" Changes TV Policy 50 Years Ago Today

I believe Namath later said that he liked Heidi because she kept the country from seeing the Jets give up the game.


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[Bazza]

Re: November 17, 1968 - The "Heidi Bowl" Changes TV Policy 50 Years Ago Today

Thanks for the post, Bill.

I always liked history when I was in school and when you post topics like this....it feels like I'm right back in Mr. Weatherton's class!

 

[Crimson1967]

Re: November 17, 1968 - The "Heidi Bowl" Changes TV Policy 50 Years Ago Today

60 Minutes will be seen in its entirety after the game.


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[Elefantman]

Re: November 17, 1968 - The "Heidi Bowl" Changes TV Policy 50 Years Ago Today

Unfortunately the Heidi effect apparently stops ESPN from braking away from a game like Maryland- East Carolina with 4 minutes left and one team trailing by 21 points when Alabama kicks off. Instead they put the start of our game on ESPN 8 or something like that. I hate when that happens.

 

[Vinny]

Re: November 17, 1968 - The "Heidi Bowl" Changes TV Policy 50 Years Ago Today

Here’s some video.

https://youtu.be/zJAn3cTMXW8


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[selmaborntidefan]

Re: November 17, 1968 - The "Heidi Bowl" Changes TV Policy 50 Years Ago Today

60 Minutes will be seen in its entirety after the game.


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Funny thing there, a generational cliche kind of like, "Where's the beef"?

"A reminder - except on the West Coast - '60 Minutes' will be seen in its entirety after the game."

I finally got to live experience the "why" in 2004 when I lived in California and saw the only Super Bowl since 1982 where the sun was still in the sky at the END of the Super Bowl.

 

[selmaborntidefan]

Re: November 17, 1968 - The "Heidi Bowl" Changes TV Policy 50 Years Ago Today

Unfortunately the Heidi effect apparently stops ESPN from braking away from a game like Maryland- East Carolina with 4 minutes left and one team trailing by 21 points when Alabama kicks off. Instead they put the start of our game on ESPN 8 or something like that. I hate when that happens.

Oh yeah, without question.


One particular one that enraged me:

November 7, 1998. Arkansas is absolutely pulverizing Ole Miss, 34-0. The game probably has about two minutes left. There is NO WAY the conclusion of the game will change. NONE. We play LSU in the infamous game where we get two TDs in the final three minutes, but we miss the start because Jefferson Pilot in many places is on CBS, which had the Alabama-LSU game even then. That last bit drags on and on and on - and it's OBVIOUS that it's over but not cutting away.



Of course, the thing now is still the networks' fault. In 1998, the Jeff Pilot game had a pregame and kicked off at 1120. They've now moved it back and games kick off NLT 1101 in most cases - and they still run over thanks to the endless commercials.

 

[RT27]

Re: November 17, 1968 - The "Heidi Bowl" Changes TV Policy 50 Years Ago Today

Easy to fix split screen, put the game going long in a small window and go to the better game full screen.

 

[bamacon]

Re: November 17, 1968 - The "Heidi Bowl" Changes TV Policy 50 Years Ago Today

I guess Not all networks got the message because they left the Saints game at the start of the 4th quarter last weekend. Dude I was ticked. Mark and the boys were laying it to the Bengals.


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[selmaborntidefan]

Re: November 17, 1968 - The "Heidi Bowl" Changes TV Policy 50 Years Ago Today

It's baaacccckk!!!

 

[formersoldier71]

Re: November 17, 1968 - The "Heidi Bowl" Changes TV Policy 50 Years Ago Today

Thread title is incorrect. Should be 51 years.

 

[Ledsteplin]

Re: November 17, 1968 - The "Heidi Bowl" Changes TV Policy 50 Years Ago Today

November 17, 1968. The day I turned 16 years old.

 

[ALA2262]

Re: November 17, 1968 - The "Heidi Bowl" Changes TV Policy 50 Years Ago Today

What I remember most about that game was the ABC Saturday night game on November 16, 1968 featuring Bama at Miami. My brother-in-law and I were at his neighbor's house watching the game, and at some point one of them asked what top pro games were on the next day. I was all but laughed out of the house when I immediately said Jets-Raiders, and was informed they were referring to "pro" games and not the AFL. I really got the last laugh when I watched the Super Bowl at the end of the season with the same brother-in-law who was a big Colts fan. :biggrin: