JFK Assassination: The STUPIDEST NFL CONTROVERSY | Colts @ Rams (1963) 

PS: This isn't the only video about the JFK assassination coming out today. We've got another one coming in 4 hours on another game from that day and another bizarre controversy

The Lions were sold to William Clay Ford on 11/22/63. This was the darkest day in Lions history

1. Imagine the clusterfuck if the Cowboys and/or the Redskins had been at home that week!

Is it bad that when I imagined the marching band playing a tone deaf song, I imagined "Hit the road Jack"? That would be next-level tone deaf.

The Rams could have also had the band perform the National Anthem. This was clearly a lack of communication on both sides.

It like you want Stairway To Heaven to be your tribute song and they played the song backward

They shouldve ask which song they would perform. Im sure the student would understand if im the Rams I would canceled the Halftime and invite them to the game

A lot of small businesses had signs on their doors that weekend: "Closed due to a death in the family."

There's no right or wrong answer here as to cancel the games or let them go on. Everyone handles grief differently. I wasn't alive for the JFK assassination but I was for 9/11. I was a big WWE fan at the time and WWE decided not to cancel their next show after 9/11 and I was so grateful for that, I was worried and scared and it felt like the world had been turned upside down, so it was nice to feel that normality again of watching WWE on tv, to alleviate some of that fear and worry for a couple of hours.

I see that nod to 'We Didn't Start the Fire' at the end.

I remember the story CBS did back in 1993 on the games that NFL played days after JFK assassination and didn't know that none of the games was televised

This vid has one of the most record-scratching, incredulous "I'm sorry, **WHAT?!?!**" in channel history

The non-sequitur about the one hit wonder walking 1,000 miles got me thinking. That’s also the length the Scottish duo The Proclaimers would walk. They’d walk 500 miles and 500 more

Also my Mom's 16th Birthday.

Wow 60 years

Ironically, sportscaster Dick Stockton 21st birthday was on the same day as the Kennedy assassination. He was born November 22, 1942. Today on this day the 60th anniversary of the JFK assassination, he turns 81.

I remember long ago reading part of a book an ex-NFL player wrote about playing in the NFL. He played for the Cardinals in 1963 and said that before the start of the game the Sunday after the assassination, the crowd was silent and sad. But as soon as the game got going, the crowd started yelling and totally forgot about the circumstances. People were looking for a break from the nonstop 24/7 coverage (which was unheard of back then) of the assassination on radio/TV.

I was in my high school marching band and pep band. It would have been pretty straightforward, given the circumstances, to march out to the center of the field to the tick of a single snare drum, stand at attention, and play the Star Spangled Banner. Then about face, play America the Beautiful, and march off the field to that single ticking drum. Oh, and everyone wears a black armband.🤓

I'm usually annoyed by the expression "read the room," but it applies here. Talk about a Dumb Decision!

I wonder if the Rams knew what that band planned to play after they found out about JFK's death. I know logistics complicated things, but something had to be done. Rozelle should've nailed the Rams for this.

Really shouldnt be laughing this hard at that vanessa carlton joke

I'm not a band person, but don't high school bands have a couple of standard numbers that they can whip out and play blindfolded? It seems like that would've been a better option.

The Baltimore Colts were in the WESTERN conference? That’s another facepalm.

Half expected a "Welcome to Dumb Decisions" during this video

This is worse than..... The QB spiking the ball on every play!

Aldous Huxley and C.S. Lewis also died on Nov. 22, 1963. Had Oswald not killed JFK, the day's news would have been dominated by the coincidence of the deaths of these two influential people.

Fun fact the fords bought the lion on this day

Horrible day, stupidity only added to the misery.

By the way, the JFK Presidential Library in Boston, the assassination is covered as a black hallway with footage of the coverage of the assassination

Imagine if NBC stuck to its schedule and televised "Singing In the Rain" on Monday night just hours after the funeral

The PA announcer in Cleveland referred to the visiting team as the Cowboys instead of Dallas. The AFL cancelled games that weekend. What if the former Dallas Texans hadn’t moved to Kansas City after winning the 1962 double overtime thriller vs the Houston Oilers? Texans could have had a game in Dallas that weekend at the Cotton Bowl. MLB postponed Opening Day games after MLK was assassinated in 1968 but after RFK was taken away two months later, Commissioner Eckert postponed some games and not others. I think they wanted the players to play.

A somber day indeed, sixty years ago.. Even tho I’m not a baby boomer

Thank you, Colin, for another brilliant video. I also went on to watch the second JFK video (about the Giants fans' "protest") and in both cases, I saw your genius in finding stories no one else could tell. To add to what happened in Cleveland that same day: I have heard that the public address announcer at Municipal Stadium was instructed not to say "Dallas" at any point during the game, because that was the city in which JFK was assassinated, and furthermore because at that time, Dallas was known as a right-wing stronghold and home to various hate groups.

12:16 I'M SORRY WHAT THE MARCHING BAND FROM CLOVIS NEW MEXICO PLAYED MUSIC FROM LAWRENCE OF FREAKING ARABIA A FILM THAT NOT ONLY IS A YEAR OLD AND STILL HOT PROPERTY AND STILL THEY PLAYED IT IN A FOOTBALL GAME LESS THAN 2 WHOLE DAYS AFTER THE WORST ASSASSINATION IN AMERICAN HISTORY I'M SPEECHLESS

Some people like to sit at home dwell on the negative and just be miserable. Then they get butt hurt when others would rather go out and be distracted for a little bit. Imagine getting mad that someone wanted to try and not be stressed for a few hours when you didn’t.

The NFL was extremely tone deaf and this would never, ever fly today. The backlash would be swift and decisive.

12:44 i almost spit out my drink when I heard that. That was hilarious. Great video my man.

Since you have another video coming out later today I’m going to use that video to give any opinions as to whether the games should have been played that weekend and Rozelle’s decision making.

Trap queen is great lol

12:15 😎

The AFL did the Right Thing at the time ..Rozell would later go on to say it was his Worse mistake ever as Commissioner . Incredibly 3 years later the AFL forced the NFL to Merge rest is history!

I have to wonder how much the ego of the marching band director played a part in this. As someone who used to be in an orchestra, there've been stories and experiences of many a conductor who were bound and determined to play what they were scheduled to play, when they were scheduled to play it for no real reason other than feeling like an authority figure over the kids in their care. Maybe he pushed on over the objections of Rozelle, Reeves, and everyone else due to a stubborn desire to not look any less powerful than before.

That was what I thought you would do when I suggested this video-very well done 0-I did not know this about the rams and yes it was the worst idea they ever made-at least the afl made father the right decision to cancel the games compared to the nfl !😮😮

Had the Cowboys had a home game that weekend, the week's games would have for sure been postponed. A worse choice for music from a motion picture would be "Camelot."

Where did you get this information? Outstanding research, JaguarGator.

Knowing that the President was a big football fan, I can kind of understand Roselle's decision. I'm a huge game show fan, and if I were the President and died in office, I might want my fellow game show fans to be able to watch the game shows they expected to see. (And believe me, you do NOT want to be a station manager when daytime programs get pre-empted!)

JFK'S assassination happened on a Friday, so I could understand the AFL, NHL, and NBA shutting down 9-11 was on a Tuesday...On Friday, MLB should have resumed, CFB should have played Saturday, and NFL on Sunday...The high school football games went on as scheduled that Friday

IOW, the NFL wanted to follow circus tradition of "the show must go on."

Lawrence of Arabia won 7 Oscars in 1963.

People forget from 1959-1965 the Rams had losing seasons and because of Television games begain to be Blackout in LA back then and neeed anything to keep people coming

At least they didn't play 'louie louie' like the band stepping over Ricardo monantabalns corpse in the naked gun..

Maybe the high school band would've been better off playing "Louie, Louie" instead.

The Lions were at Minnesota on the 24th. Vikings won 34-31. Only 28,000 showed up.

I’m glad you brought up Beatlemania. I guarantee you that had the rams let the marching band play Beatles songs in the middle of beatlemania instead of Lawrence of Arabia, it would’ve made it even worse and even more tasteless

Hey, Since you'd be the guy to give the nuanced well researched look on this, Can you give an objective look on Scott Mitchell's QB run with The Lions? Since the Barry Sanders Documentary and Mitchell now saying he was thrown under the bus as a scapegoat.

Pete Rozelle didn't just regret his decision years later. He regretted it almost immediately. He got his clocked cleaned physically by a fan at the game on the Sunday after the assassination. And as far as I know he took it like a man. It was a story recounted countless times in the immediate aftermath of 9/11 which is why I remember it

It would have made sense to have the hs band play the national anthem, so their trip was not in vain. Then keep the halftime show music-less as Roselle ordered.

This video also has a context link on it from Encyclopedia Brittanica. JG9, did you put that on?

Why not move it to another week

Nobody remembers what they were doing or where they were at on November 24th 1963.

The Cowboys were playing in Cleveland on the 24 November 1963. I've read stories about some of the Dallas players being afraid to take the field due to the hostility of the fans.

To sidetrack things a bit I like to hear how the Rams at Cards game in most of ARZ got blacked out for the first time since the 1980’s or 1990’s?

I’ll probably be blasted for saying this…but context is in order here. Many college football games were played the day AFTER the assassination, esp. in the South. And while the NY Philharmonic cut short their concert on the day of JFK getting killed, they went through w/a tribute concert on Nov. 24. This idea that the NFL was acting as a tone deaf, lone wolf by offering entertainment during this time…is flat out FALSE! And finally, while Rozelle pondered whether to go through with the 11/24 schedule, it was none other than JFK press secretary Pierre Salinger, encouraging him to play the games, to offer the public a diversion from the tragedy.

Considering that most of the owners at the time were either lifelong or former intelligence officers or agents, the planners of the assassination were at the Cowboy's owners family home the night before, including the father and brother of the founder of the AFL who also had a meeting with Jack Ruby in their office days beforehand. On the non conspiratorial business side, once the AFL said they weren't playing, the NFL realized that they had an entire nation as a captive audience as they would be the only ones outside of the Dallas municipal jail offering anything of interest to the millions of people who had been watching news reports since Friday afternoon, they were going to be the only show in all the towns. The Rams had just the year before been repurchased by Dan Reeves in an NFL mandated auction due to the three main shareholders inability to resolve their personal grudges. Reeves had previously sold 2/3 ownership out of desperation due to mounting losses which first drove him to move the team from Cleveland to Los Angeles originally. The team was still struggling to make money and now Reeves had paid more to repurchase his shares than he had sold them for, and outbid his former partners $7.1m to $6.1m showing the sizable difference in value the sides shared and to even afford that he had to raise funds by promising investors stake in 49% of the team if his bid was successful. So in other words, Reeves and the Rams needed the cash and there was no way that they were canceling a home game against Johnny Unitas and the Colts who were sure to draw a crowd, and considering the timing, I would say pulling an attendance of over 48,000 when the season average was 38,000 justified the decision. Regularly drawing crowds double that size just a few years earlier the downturn of the teams on field performance led to a very stereotypically Los Angeles attendance crash and the massive LA Colosseum was now hosting games with 70% empty seats which we all know does not play well in hollywood. Oh, and speaking of hollywood, who were most of the investors that now owned half of the Rams? Hollywood investors. What movie had been released the year before and won 7 oscars? Lawrence of Arabia. The movie was so popular that at the time of this game, a year after its release the film was still being screened to such demand that tickets had to be pre reserved. In other words, Lawrence was kind of a big deal, especially in Los Angeles. So to go back to my original point, the NFL seeing a big weekend to themselves with the AFL halting play, and especially the struggling Rams were not going to cancel games also faced an additional dilemma that the AFL did not. Delay the season and hold the championship for the first time in January. At the time the host was determined on a rotating basis between divisions. In 1963 the West was to host both games which was fine for the AFL since at the time San Diego and Oakland were well ahead and virtually assured of hosting that game. The NFL on the other hand, was staring at a near certainty that they would be holding their championship game in either Chicago or Green Bay. So for the AFL sure, no problem, we have no issues pushing the season back with San Diego not only not being a problem, but a bonus for potential fans from Boston or Buffalo looking for a new years vacation option. The NFL had no such sunny option since we know how the Rams season was going, and the only other possible warmish, to everyone back east that is, chance was San Francisco. The 2 win 49er's did not help the scenario. So faced with cold and windy or cold and even colder, pushing back the NFL season was not really much of an option but an idea was sparked due to the television blackout. To get around local blackout restrictions for the Championship game being held in Chicago, as well as make up for the extra attendence executives had hoped for by hosting the game at the much larger Soldier Field later in the day which was shut down by George Halas keeping the game at the smaller wrigley field and forced into an earlier start time due to the lack of lights the league decided to offer a new alternative to fans who wanted to see the game without sitting in the upper deck of an already old and decrepit baseball stadium when it was 10 degrees outside. Closed circuit viewing at indoor arenas around the city. 26,000 plus showed up at 4 locations to partake in the nfl's first foray into pay-per-view. As for the games, well the well rested Chargers decimated the Patriots in front of a home crowd that looked as though noone had told San Diego that the season had not in fact ended weeks earlier. The NFL had the opposite result as they not only circumvented blackout restrictions in the nations second largest market at the time with the closed circut events, but the league offices dream matchup between Chicago and New York did not dissapoint as the Bears knocked Y.A. Tittle out of the game on two seperate occasions only for him to heroicly reenter the game minutes later due to the magic of cortisone, novicane and lots of tape. Unfortunatly for the giants, they may have been better off with a quarterback who was not made of steel and gunpowder as the bears intercepted 5 passes with the final one coming in the end zone with 10 seconds to play, preserving a hard fought and brutal defensive battle 14-10 on a frozen baseball field. This assuredly was not a day where even Ernie Banks would have said, let's play two. Also, since an hour before the first kickoffs of the day Lee Harvey Oswald was shot by Jack Ruby I don't think anyone who was not in attendance really cared what was going on at these non televised games. And those who were obviously were not overly concerned with anything outside the stadium.

“The episode of Band Geeks”. Band Geeks was the name of the episode

I bet it's no surprise on why the game between the Colts and the Rams at LA was like not in full capacity (which would not be televised locally in the LA area under blackout rules), due to the unfortunate assassination of JFK. Which would almost be similar to what occured in San Francisco about a decade and a half later when their own mayor was shot and been unalived, yet the NFL still went to keep going with their game between the 49ers and the then-defending SB champ Steelers at Candlestick Park. But regardless, whether the league would acknowledge or not about any tragic incident, they went the apathetic move from a business standpoint and kept going with the games as planned, without any question asked at all.

6:34-6:41 Look at all of those Empty Seats for that game?

Who is Vanessa Carlin?

With 9 11 sport in America was on hold for over a week and half. So no repeat of this reoccurring . Also to have 2 videos on the same subject shows how this changed the climate❤ in America 👍🙈🙉🙊

How about the Cowboys vs Browns game at the same time in 1963

This is very similar to what happened in the Premier League in 1997 a few days after Princess Diana was killed in a car crash in Paris. Unlike many of the UK's sporting leagues who flat out cancelled all games/races, the Premier League decided to carry on with that weekend's matches mainly because like this they wanted to give people a distraction & sense of normalcy. As a way of honoring Princess Diana & to acknowledge what happened, before every match that weekend, there would be a moment of silence followed by a minute's applause and a lot of what JG9 mentioned about festivities would apply here as well especially when it came to music during warm ups. However during the Man United-Derby County match, Man United decided to play pop music during not only the pre game warm ups but also at halftime as a way of "getting the supporters hyped for the match" even though the Premier League explicitly told them not to. There may be another reason why this happened as Man United at the time were owned by Rupert Murdoch who also owned the Sun newspaper. The Sun & the Royal Family were engaged in a bitter feud at the time over how the Sun covered them & Princess Diana's death only escalated things. The playing of the pop music by Man United was seen by many as not only as very disrespectful but also Rupert Murdoch's way of giving the middle finger to the Royal Family. Man United were fined 100,000 pounds each by both the Premier League & the English FA for playing the pop music. To further show how angry people in the UK were about this, there were even some in the UK government that wanted to throw Rupert Murdoch in prison for this stunt & for Sky Sports/News (a Rupert Murdoch owned station) to be taken off the air. This is easily one of the worst moments in Man United's history.

Can't be too surprised honestly because California is one of if not the most liberal states in the country and the Democratic Party (JFK's party) was the conservatives (fascists) at the time. Honestly surprised they didn't boo the moment of silence and most Californians like all liberal states were probably celebrating the assassination. I know people in very conservative (fascist) Texas and all other conservative states would celebrate a liberal president like Biden's assassination if one happened so I have to assume Californian's and New Mexican's two very liberal states celebrated Kennedy's assassination. BTW was a band in New Mexico playing there instead of Dallas, Houston, or Denver. Also why did they not fly out like normal people, because there were plenty of airplanes by the 60's. JFK was a war hero so the war film song fit him well. I don't know anything about how my home state (Massachusetts) reacted to the JFK assassination but we are the most liberal state in the country so I assume we had ticker tape parades and people spraying champagne in the streets celebrating his death. I know for a fact our whole state would have if Trump was assassinated so I assume we would have for a different conservative like JFK was assassinated.

Lions 60 year curse began that day. Thanks fords, In retrospect rozelle made an ill fated decision he took to the grave with him. Rival afl who nfl mocked and laughed at had their shit together and did not play that sunday. With no big tv $$$'s at stake and no games televised a puzzling decision. Greedy nfl/owners must have wanted some gate that day. Players said they didn't want to play that day yet played with a heavy heart. And as players got ready to play that day ruby walked unchecked into dpd to shoot/silence LHO. 'I'm just a patsy'. Today''s players are too overcome to play when a player goes down with a hang nail. Plus nfl had no problem 'postponing' games for pokes sake in '20. Even cancelled a game last season due to injury. Total nfl hypocrisy today. Totally different era now. nfl would find some way to ca$h in on jfk assassination today like they do with military/vets day which is just paid advertising for nfl who doesn't really care about america/vets as they let america haters use games to spit on america. You notice players are now walking advertizing during games as radical agendas appear in the end zones. nfl still had a soul in '63, just made a bone head decision. nfl has no soul anymore, it has been corrupted. F you nfl.

This has the vibe of Chicken Fried Ukraine

I was really hoping you went deep into a conspiracy theory then talked about football for like the last couple minutes. Lol

02:37 there’s nothing insensitive about a football game. Here’s the bottom line and it applies even until now. I mean if you think it shouldn’t have been played then it’s simple don’t watch or pay attention. Don’t get butthurt that other people thought differently and wanted to go and be distracted. I mean after all there was a reason it set attendance records and honestly I think Rozelle only considered it a mistake because people complained that were butt hurt and because of the wanted to control other peoples lives that weren’t. Because that’s what it all boils down to even to this day. People upset and wanting to control others that don’t think they way they do. It’s actually a pathetic way to think. Mad someone does something you don’t think they should. It breaks the golden rule. Doing to others what you wouldn’t want done to you.

?Army vs Navy next video?

And you are calling out rams for this? Man nfl should have never been playing that sunday. No way to prepare for the unforseen circumstances. Irony-ram rosey greir was a rfk bodyguard who tried to save bobby after shooting in la of all places six years later. '60's became very turbulant times after jfk assasination. Assasinations became rampant-the norm. Like the song said 'when a leader speaks, that leader dies'. Beatlemania began roughly six weeks later to soothe america's battered soul even though the trust of g'vmt by americans was now shit. And jfk meddling in the mob thanks to att. general bobby got jfk killed. They broke their promise to cuban mob boss santo trafficante and others to lay off the mob who helped get jfk elected. Old man joe's mob ties bought the chicago vote to put jfk over the top in election. To the surprise of many the next a m. And the dallas end including changing the route jfk took thru dallas at last minute was on texan lbj's end including letting 'mobster' ruby just walk into dpd unchecked and shoot LHO who was indeed a 'patsie'. Who stops to get a coke after shooting the president? Only a patsie does.

I don’t see the big deal

JFK would want us to play on! it's how we heal! JG9 shouldn't be a RU-vidr, he should be on a future episode of My 600 lbs Life aka My Life As A Fat Fuck!! LMAO

15:33 JG9 going WAH WAH WAH! maybe this is why won't be married and have no kids!! Attitudes like this is one reason