Gorts - I meant to post this post as a new thread. Obviously it has nothing to do with Brazil Can someone help me out and make it it's own thread? Thanks Chris
A good explanation of this phenomenon can be found here. The '86 Mets might have all their games on tape, although I wouldn't bet the farm on it. Not sure about entire '75 Series, although I know the complete NBC television broadcasts of Games 6 and 7 are intact (MLB.com has them available through their "Baseball's Best" subscription service, where you can either watch them online or download to DVD). There are two complete *radio* broadcasts of Seattle Pilot games in existence (these are likewise available from MLB.com, this time on CD or cassette; look under 5/13/69 and 9/22/69); no video footage that I'm aware of. And I'm afraid the answer to the Roger Maris question is a resounding "no"; you can find some scattered radio broadcasts at the previous link, and there may be film footage of #61 and others extant, but no way will you find audio or visual documents of *all* Maris's dingers.
As videotape and other storage media have gotten cheaper, more and more games have been archived. I'm sure WOR has at least every Mets game from '86 and beyond, for instance. But prior to the late '70s or so, it's pretty hit-and-miss. I'm a small-time collector of NFL video, and I've found that of the three networks, CBS was by far the worst when it came to "wiping" game telecasts and putting soap operas or something on the old videotape. As a result, there's no game video of Super Bowl II, for instance. NBC and ABC were much better. I believe every 'Monday Night Football' game still exists on videotape, and NBC's videotape of Super Bowl III is a staple of the football video collecting community. So is NBC video of World Series games going back to 1968 or so. Anything that exists from the Maris era is likely to be either on newsreel film or kinescope. It's highly doubtful that any complete-game video of the Seattle Pilots exist at all. The only 1969 major-league action you're likely to find on video (as opposed to celluloid) are Cubs games (WGN saves everything) and World Series games from NBC. Still, it pays to keep your ears open and not give up hope. It's amazing what filters down to the collecting community sometimes. Five or six years ago, a complete-game CBS telecast of the 1961 NFL championship (Giants @Packers) surfaced; turns out it had been used for an Armed Forces telecast overseas, and that copy of the game tape had never been destroyed.
Thanks for the replies! Around what time was the first VCR available? Might it be possible that someone taped Super Bowl II on an early VCR? IIRC I read somewhere that Brian Wilson had one of the first VCR's in '66 or '67...odd that NBC was good about keeping Sports Footage but couldn't save those early Tonight Show appearences
I think (very expensive) consumer VCRs were around in the late '60s, but it was another 10 years before they were even remotely affordable for the general public. If anyone has tape of SB II, they haven't stepped forward. Every other Super Bowl telecast survived on video, at least in part.
What amazes me it that apparently only a handful (2 or 3) complete ABA games survive and they are from 1976. There are a few highlight reels and 2nd halves of games but not many. This just blows me away - I mean we aren't talking about ancient history here... http://www.remembertheaba.com/ABAGeneralInfo/ABAFaq.html#ABAVideotapes
What about the first Super Bowl (or "NFL-AFL Championship Game", as it was then called)? I know both CBS and NBC telecast that one; is either network's broadcast available somewhere?
It's not available for sale; in fact, no complete NFL games are, at least not above-ground. I think the league, NFL Films, and the networks are still working out who owns those original telecasts. Videotape of the first Super Bowl exists -- I've seen clips from it on various programs. But the telecast hasn't filtered down to collectors yet as far as I know.
Ah, gotcha. I've gotten several of the SB telecasts through trading, but I'd never seen the first one offered anywhere. Always wondered why ESPN Classic never showed actual TV footage of old NFL games, as it does with other sporting events; maybe legal issues are to blame as you suggest. The NFL Films productions are masterful, of course, but nothing "takes you back" like actual TV/radio footage that captures events as they unfolded.
So true. A few years ago, NBC showed their original telecast footage of the Franco Harris "Immaculate Reception" play, and it was amazing. The announcers were confused, the cameraman lost the ball for a second, and then there was this incredible roar as everyone at Three Rivers realized that Harris was headed to the end zone. As well as NFL Films does what they do, there's no duplicating that "as it happened" feel with celluloid.
