Say what? Argos Ticket Sales Currently at 15K

[Ron]

I think the theory is that the blackouts led to their parents leaving the CFL for the NFL and by association, they followed what their parents followed in terms of viewing and opinion.

I still have never bought into it. I instead believe that NFL TV revenue became so big in '83 that the salary differences between the 2 leagues became so big that many began looking at the CFL as minor league. Too many people believe that money is the be all and end all.

The blackouts became the problem when you couldn't watch an Argo home game ... yet you could watch a Jays, Leafs home game all the time. That made the Argos disconnect from the new reality. That lost the Argos a ton of fans at the time. Even today ... the Jays get better and fans start rushing to the Dome because they see how much fun it was down there on TV. If the Jays blacked out home games they'd never have had all the sold out games they finished the year with.

The real issue the Argos have always had was taking their foot off the gas when they had momentum. It's not like they haven't had good crowds at the Dome over the years ... they just never had the commitment from ownership to keep building when they got those crowds.

[AngeloV]

The blackouts became the problem when you couldn't watch an Argo home game ... yet you could watch a Jays, Leafs home game all the time. That made the Argos disconnect from the new reality. That lost the Argos a ton of fans at the time. Even today ... the Jays get better and fans start rushing to the Dome because they see how much fun it was down there on TV. If the Jays blacked out home games they'd never have had all the sold out games they finished the year with.

The real issue the Argos have always had was taking their foot off the gas when they had momentum. It's not like they haven't had good crowds at the Dome over the years ... they just never had the commitment from ownership to keep building when they got those crowds.

During the blackout era, the Jays were only on TV 2 or 3 times a week. It wasn't until TSN started in 1985 (actually Sep 1984, but the majority of the baseball season was over that year) that the Jays started having a majority of their games on TV, and from 87 on, the Argos stopped blacking out home games.

I will agree with the 2nd part of your post though. They have not known how to take advantage of the times when they did get decent crowds.

[Gill The Thrill]

They only removed blackouts for 2 home games in 1987. I remember the last home game against Winnipeg being blacked out, a 20-18 victory on a last play Lance Chomyc FG, and a 33-14 win at the CNE vs the BC Lions which ended up being Don Matthews last game as coach of the Leos as he was subsequently dismissed in the coming days after that loss. I believe that occurred on the same weekend as the first week of an NFL strike which lasted 3 weeks. The NFL went with replacement players and that Argo home game vs BC was on a Sunday afternoon against the NFL. Being as it was the replacement players, the Argo/Lions game was by far the most professionally played game on TV that afternoon.

In 1988, I believe CFN also lifted a blackout against the Bombers again, and that powerful Argo team beat them badly 43-16. That Argo win was in vain as they would lose to that same Bombers team in the last played football game at CNE stadium during the Eastern final about 3 weeks later.

When Harry Ornest bought the team he immediately choose to end lifting of any blackouts for the 1989 season. 1990 saw TSN lift at least one blackout as I remember the Argos clobbering Saskatchewan 59-15 on a Saturday night against HNIC.

It wasn't until 1991 that all blackouts were lifted under the ownership of McNall, Gretzky and Candy, and they did the same in 1992. I remember an odd home game vs Hamilton in 1993 that wasn't televised not because of a local blackout, but because it wasn't being televised at all. Remember those days, when the CFL didn't televise every game, or the days when the CBC would only carry games starting from Labour Day.

[paulwoods13]

I remember an odd home game vs Hamilton in 1993 that wasn't televised not because of a local blackout, but because it wasn't being televised at all. Remember those days, when the CFL didn't televise every game, or the days when the CBC would only carry games starting from Labour Day.

Every game being televised happened no earlier than 1997. The 1996 Argo home opener against Hamilton (Hamilton with Dunigan won in a shootout against Toronto with Flutie) was untelevised.

[AngeloV]

Every game being televised happened no earlier than 1997. The 1996 Argo home opener against Hamilton (Hamilton with Dunigan won in a shootout against Toronto with Flutie) was untelevised.

Untelevised or blacked out?

[paulwoods13]

Untelevised or blacked out?

Untelevised.

Seventeen out of 90 games that year were not televised:

https://stats.cfldb.ca/league/cfl/schedule/1996/

And two of the televised games were pay-per-view.

Twelve games untelevised in 1997. No record on CFLDB for television schedule in 1998.

[Argo57]

Every game being televised happened no earlier than 1997. The 1996 Argo home opener against Hamilton (Hamilton with Dunigan won in a shootout against Toronto with Flutie) was untelevised.

I remember listening to that game on the radio thinking Hamilton was going to be a force that season but Dunigan's concussion woes derailed that.

[AngeloV]

Untelevised.

Seventeen out of 90 games that year were not televised:

https://stats.cfldb.ca/league/cfl/schedule/1996/

And two of the televised games were pay-per-view.

Twelve games untelevised in 1997. No record on CFLDB for television schedule in 1998.

Yes, I remember ordering the Argos game in Winnipeg on PPV. I think the price was $6.95

[ArgoRavi]

Yes, I remember ordering the Argos game in Winnipeg on PPV. I think the price was $6.95

I remember watching that game with the scrambled signal and listening to Bryan Hall calling it.

BTW, to Paul's point, there were untelevised CFL games into the 2000s. I recall a key Toronto/Edmonton Saturday night game in 2004 being untelevised. It was 2005 at the earliest when untelevised games stopped happening.

[argolio]

During the blackout era, the Jays were only on TV 2 or 3 times a week. It wasn't until TSN started in 1985 (actually Sep 1984, but the majority of the baseball season was over that year) that the Jays started having a majority of their games on TV, and from 87 on, the Argos stopped blacking out home games.

As the '85 baseball season progressed, by Aug/Sept it seemed like there was a new announcement about added TV games almost every day. The Toronto sports landscape changed in those months, and for me 1985 is the turning point in how the Argos have been perceived in this market. We've been fighting against it ever since.

[Will]

I remember watching that game with the scrambled signal and listening to Bryan Hall calling it.

BTW, to Paul's point, there were untelevised CFL games into the 2000s. I recall a key Toronto/Edmonton Saturday night game in 2004 being untelevised. It was 2005 at the earliest when untelevised games stopped happening.

Hadn't that game been moved or something?

[argos1873]

Yes, I remember ordering the Argos game in Winnipeg on PPV. I think the price was $6.95

Which PPV channel carried CFL games? I have no recollection of this.

I remember watching that game with the scrambled signal and listening to Bryan Hall calling it.

Ha! I remember watching other things through the scrambled signal back in those days.

[argos1873]

BTW, to Paul's point, there were untelevised CFL games into the 2000s. I recall a key Toronto/Edmonton Saturday night game in 2004 being untelevised. It was 2005 at the earliest when untelevised games stopped happening.

Hadn't that game been moved or something?

Possibly you are right, as there was a 7PM Eastern Winnipeg @ Montreal game that same evening and the Toronto @ Edmonton game was a 9:30PM Eastern start. Either the game was never intended to be televised, or it was moved as you suggest, as the games would have overlapped. I can't find any info regarding why it would have been moved though.

[ArgoRavi]

Hadn't that game been moved or something?

There was talk about moving the game to another time and date due to it being a Jewish holiday (Yom Kippur, I believe). The Argos' owners complained about when the game was being played but it was not moved IIRC.

[paulwoods13]

Which PPV channel carried CFL games? I have no recollection of this.

I don't think it was a specific channel, just a few games put up as an experiment. I also watched the Tor @ Wpg game on PPV. Bryan Hall did play-by-play with his Eskimo radio sidekick, John Farlinger, on colour.

[AngeloV]

Which PPV channel carried CFL games? I have no recollection of this.

Back then all PPV events were on Viewers Choice Canada.

[Will]

There was talk about moving the game to another time and date due to it being a Jewish holiday (Yom Kippur, I believe). The Argos' owners complained about when the game was being played but it was not moved IIRC.

I thought it was moved, but that's neither here or there.

I assume Cynamon and Sokolowski are Jewish, but so was the Argos starting NT that year, Noah Cantor.

[Tobythor]

Hadn't that game been moved or something?

Was that the game that was moved because of the blackout?

[Ballstothewall]

CFL News ‏@CFL_News
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[Will]

Was that the game that was moved because of the blackout?

Blackout was in August, 2003.