Jim Fiduccia recently posted an GREAT answer about some questionable aspects of nhe 1973 corps program:

Seems I may have inadvertently started another controversy by asking a simple question and putting Bob right in the middle. I think that both things were subject to penalty.

Even though field judging had ceased, it seems to me that the penalty judge continued assessing flag penalties until the Corps was completely off the field. I distinctly remember the 1976 Imps getting a penalty because the flag squad didn,t go around the corner flag before leaving the field at West Chicago and trooping the line in front of the stands.

As far as the soprano in the stands, I would point out that, tecnically, he was over the front side line at the start of the show. It is my understanding that the only person who could be over that line was the drum major and no one else.
I,m sure Donna that the guard in particular had to be extremely careful in picking up rifles, etc so that they didn,t step over the line. His being over the front line should have caused the penalty to be assessed and how he entered the field becoming a non-factor.

There is no doubt that both parts of the show added a great deal to the performance and if they skirted the line of legality, it sure enhanced the general effect.

As far as who was responsible, I would assume that the whole thing was a collective effort and that the whole management and instructional staff were aware of the inherent risks and considered them worth taking.

Larry, I completely agree about the disrespect for the flag by cutting off stripes. The same result could have been achieved by using a Spirit of 76 flag. I understood Henry to tell me that they did exactly that later in the season, but I don't know that for a fact.

Dave, you maybe right that they were within the rules and stretched them to their advantage, but I have serious reservations even though they seem to have gotten away with it.
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What other comments are there on this?

What did you do in the Corps? drummer

What years were you a Corps member? 1958-63

I don't ever remember changing to Spirit of 76 flags. I know we still had the same ones at the State Fair, and that was right before the Nationals trip. In fact, that's where the effect was the best, because it was dark back in the corner where the guard changed flags, and they reentered from there - with a mostly Veteran crowd - and the place went nuts!

This was a time when most drum corps were stretching the limits in many ways, which was a big reason for the advent of DCI in the first place. Maybe for that reason things were overlooked at times.

What did you do in the Corps? Snare; Drum Major; Drum Instructor/Arranger

What years were you a Corps member? 1970-73; 78-79

The solo in the stands was cleared with the judges with two stipulations. The soloist had one minute to get back on the field after completing the solo (which sometimes required running). The soloist was required to enter the field via the end zone starting line. I don't remember if there was a time limit on the solo.

What did you do in the Corps? Soprano

Craig, thanks for the clarification. That makes sense. In those days, a lot of corps lined up in "new ways" .. on the sidelines, etc. But, all members had to cross the starting line within a certain time. One minute sounds logical.

To my knowledge, the Imperials were the only corps which had a playing member THAT far away. I never saw it done, but it must have been an interesting effect.

What did you do in the Corps? drummer

What years were you a Corps member? 1958-63

I heard rumors that the Skyliners did something similar but this was never confirmed. Listening to the judge’s audio critique after the show illustrated how surprised they were. The startled bugle judge fumbling for words stated, "The Imperials are back". The audience did a 180 from watching the corps on the starting line to see who was playing at the top of the stands.

What did you do in the Corps? soprano

Jeff,

Correct on both counts! But we only did the introduction to that song. It then lead into "Goodbye Columbus", which was the theme to a movie starring Ali McGraw (never saw the film myself).

What did you do in the Corps? Snare; Drum Major; Drum Instructor/Arranger

What years were you a Corps member? 1970-73; 78-79