Roller Derby research/Chronology

Chronology

This began as an aborted Aug 2006 effort to distill the Wikipedia article's history section down to a simple list of cited claims.

1930s

• 1935 - Seltzer's first derby
  • 57,000 laps (source: Batz)
• 1936 - attempted NY debut (source: Village Voice)
• 1938 - Damon Runyon attends Miami match, suggests developing game (source: Andrews, paraphrasing sports encyclopedist Ralph Hickok)

1940s

• 1941-1945 - League reduced to one team skating for entertainment of U.S. soldiers (source:
• 1945 - Growth resumes
• 1946 - NY Polo Grounds 12-day rainout
• 1947 - ABC TV debut
• 1947 - Leo changes his residence to Los Angeles
• late 1948 - Transcontinental Roller Derby came to New York City (source: Andrews)
• 1948-1951 - New York Times devotes serious coverage to the sport, including lineups and box scores (source: Andrews)
• 1949 - National Roller Derby League formed (source: ?)
  • Brooklyn Red Devils featured Marjorie (Midge) "Toughie" Brasuhn Monte (source: Andrews)
  • Toughie was captain from 1949-1953 (source: Andrews, quoting Toughie's obit in Sports Illustrated 23 Aug 1971)
  • New York Chiefs featured Geraldine “Gerry” Murray (source: Andrews)
• 1949 - Televised matches move to ABC (source: Village Voice)
• 1949 - NRDL playoffs sell out Madison Square Garden (source: ?)
• 1949 - Business Week article “Roller Derby—An Industry Made by Television” reports that three armories in New York City had attracted 311,000 people to the Roller Derby (source: Andrews)

1950s

• 1950 - Leo moves operations to New York (source: User:Keithcop)
• 1950 - CBS televises matches from 69th Regiment Armory in Manhattan or the 14th Street armory in Brooklyn (source: Andrews)
• 1950 - Jerry moves operations to Los Angeles (source: Rollersport)
• 195? - Brooklyn Red Devils became the Jersey Jolters (source: Andrews)
• 1954 - SF Bay Bombers established
  • as an 'expansion' team (source: KTVU)
  • as Roller Derby's 'move to San Francisco' (source: Village Voice)
  • by Leo Seltzer, who was in the Bay Area (source: Calvello)
• 1958 - Operations moved to Northern California to secure larger venues (source: Rollersport)
• 19?? - Roller Derby was very popular on TV
  • at one point it was on all three networks, several times a week (source: Batz)
  • at one point in the 1950s all three networks were vying to televise it live (source: Andrews, paraphrasing Deford in Sports Illustrated)

1960s

• 19?? - Roller Games formed
  • by skaters who chose not to move to Northern California (source: Rollersport)
  • promoted primarily as 'public exhibition form of entertainment' (source: Rollersport)

1970s

• 1970 - Nearly 20,000 watch Roller Derby at Madison Square Garden (source: Village Voice)
• 1971 - Roller Derby at commercial peak in SF Bay Area (source: Andrews)
• 1972 - Jerry Seltzer sells Bay Bombers to settle alimony suit (source: Andrews)
• 1973 - Jerry Seltzer lost television syndication rights (source: Andrews)
• 1973 - After skaters try to unionize, Jerry Seltzer sells remaining teams to an LA promoter, who incorporates them into Roller Games (source: Andrews)
• 1973 - Roller Derby operations shut down (source: Village Voice)
  • expensive travel costs due to gasoline shortage was one reason (source: Calvello)
• 1975 - Roller Games operations shut down (source: Batz)
• 1976 - Roller Derby reappears in syndication on cable TV (source: Andrews)
• 1977 - International Roller Skating League formed (source: Batz)

1980s

• 1983 - Newsweek article “Can Roller Derby Get Back on the Track?” reports on IRSL (source: Andrews)
• mid-1980s - IRSL traveling teams sell out the Pittsburgh Civic Arena (source: Batz)
• 1985 - ESPN broadcasts "Slams & Jams" Tuesday night pro wrestling / roller derby doubleheader (source: Batz)

Sources

Andrews

http://www.toad.net/~andrews/Toughie.htm
A BELATED TRIBUTE TO TOUGHIE (A Roller Derby Memoir)
Allan Roy Andrews
January 2006

Batz

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/06081/674316.stm
Roller derby is really a blast from the past
Bob Batz Jr.
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
March 22, 2006

Village Voice

http://www.villagevoice.com/news/9903,koerner,3593,3.html
This Ain't No Roller Disco
The Badass New York Enforcers Aim To Keep the Wussy Skaters In-Line
Brandan I. Koerner
January 20-26, 1999

User:Keithcop

Wikipedia contributor, probably Keith Coppage

Calvello

Ann Calvello interview (see Wikipedia article references)

Rollersport

See Wikipedia article references