I think if you're not from here you don't understand the magnitude of it but I think I found something that sort of sums us up as a city it's out there in the Pittsburgh airport you've both probably seen this a thousand times it's in the main terminal there's two huge statues one is of George Washington the other one is of Franco Harris everybody from Pittsburgh's like oh yeah that's normal let's go catch our flight wait a second he's the first president of United States of America he was a first round draft pick in 1972 he beat the Red Coach for God's sake like he beat the Raiders okay it's pretty well documented it was Immaculate everybody saw it the people that aren't from here they're like what the father of our nation and a guy that caught a football off somebody's helmet 40 years ago and we're like yeah it's been 40 years since Franco Harris worked what's been called The Miracle of all Miracles Bradshaw running out of the pocket looking for somebody to throw to fires it down field and there's a collision that's got that's CAU out of the air the wall is pulled in by frco Harris and the play has been a mystery ever since from out of nowhere came Franco Harris riding a white stallion heading up Franco's Italian Army and Galloping off into the sunset this is the story of a play that's lived life of its own you going to be a football player when you go away MH today is the best day of your life believe it he might be the finest quarterback produced in the last 10 years he a daylight that's all I need un fortunately for me I didn't lose my life didn't lose my job football convinced things that life is a team game rest of your life nobody can ever tell you that you couldn't do [Music] it [Music] the Immaculate Reception is a myth a miracle a cottage industry a conspiracy a crime and a detective story now the ball is clearly Beyond fuka but before it became all these things it was just a football play the last desperate hope of a team and a town that had always been destined to lose and now it is all wrapped up in this one it is fourth down still 10 to go Pittsburgh's Bal at their own 40 yd line 22 seconds left to play situation like this of course is all to the advantage of the defense R must put it in the air [Applause] back goes Bradshaw he's looking he's in trouble back there he rolls out to the right he looks he throws deep and it is batted away the hand of the first frco has he at the 25 the 20 the 15 the 10 the five the touchdown for the p I'm laying on the ground I heard the roar huge Roar it definitely was our Roar the only 5 Seconds my my I'm going you son again boy you you pulled this sucker off and I got up and started going what happened people have been asking that question ever since it was knocked away froma picked off by Franko before it landed on the ground he took it into the end zone for a touchdown and this place has gone completely BT Franco Harris crossed the goal line at approximately 3:29 p.m. Eastern Standard Time for 15 full minutes the referee Fred swaringen and his f-man crew deliberated over the play and the officials talking down along the door line are gathered down around there there was no indication whether or not it was a score because nobody saw what took place so Fred swon the head official pulled all the other officials together and Fred sworen said what happened when I turned to our sideline I saw magden going crazy and I felt like saying coach he caught the ball I had no clue about this double hit rule rule s section five article two item one the first player to touch the pass he only continues to be eligible for a in other word for for the Pittsburgh studos Second probably B is if the offensive man in that case bua had been the only one that it would have been an incomplete you could not have a double touch if h i when that hand enough if he touched the ball as soon is the second player on his team touch the ball incomplete pass that's the end of [Music] it we're still waiting to see whether or not we're going to get a extra point attemp in the history of football when a guy crosses a goal line it's either a touchdown or it's not they didn't call a touchdown they didn't know if it was a touchdown John B the coach of the Oakland Raiders is down there talking to one of the officials I went out they said get away we don't know what happened so now the referee leaves that huddle and he goes over to the Dugout on the Pittsburgh Steeler side and he gets on the phone and he makes a call to someone then he hangs up then he walks out into the middle field and says touchdown 5 or 10 minutes later and I don't the touchdown is good no question about that they said that they didn't look at replays they didn't do anything there was a question among the officials of what what the rule was on a simultaneous hit that's a hell when the godamn game has to go down to someone up and that I still don't know who we made the call to cuz I won't admit it no one knows of all the investigations and investigative reporters no one knows who that guy talk to and and what was said on that telephone call that question has never been answered to this day you go ask someone I don't know the play had lasted for just 17 seconds tens of thousands witnessed it but nobody saw it the Steelers have defeated Oakland 13-7 and an incredible finish and a play that'll be talked about for years in pro football people are still talking about it today 40 years [Applause] later coming up the Immaculate Reception and the film of it became the zuder film of of [Music] sports I don't know if I got knocked down or what but I look up and Franco's just taking out a tan Army right down the side the mythologizing of the Immaculate Reception began shortly after the final gun in Pittsburgh's locker room you remember now the ball coming to you I is it I don't know like I seen it bounce off and I just you know looked up and I just put my hands out and the Press was wild some of them were smart enough to come over and talk to Frenchie and they said well Frenchie uh can you explain what happened exactly he said well the ball bounced off my chest and I knew that that's not the right answer Frenchie didn't know the rule and he just was talking he didn't really know what happened because he got hit in the head and I grabbed him and said Frenchie no what you meant to say was after the game Frenchie came over came into the locker room and he leaned over to me and he s in my ear he said you know the ball hit me I said yeah I know the ball hit you he said yeah it did hit me but that's the way it goes and uh that's a true statement 7 Days Later the plot thickened when a new angle of the play emerged on the nationally syndicated game of the week from another angle we can see that one stroke of luck that one moment of poise that one bounce of the ball that spells the end for one team and gives another light the iconic image captured by Ernie ern's camera in the North End Zone when spliced together with the camera of Jay Gerber who' been positioned at Midfield created the enduring image of the play an image that would be replayed millions of times the Immaculate Reception and the film of it became like uh what I like to think of the zuder film of of sports so the zuder film was uh the film of the Kennedy assassination shot in D Plaza conspiracy theories being what they are and the assassination of a president being what it is that film has been analyzed and dissected and argued about more than any other you know short short piece of film in history similarly the film of the Immaculate Reception has been poured over in just the same way as the the Pruder film frame by frame image by image idea by idea to look for incontrovertible proof that the play was not legitimate folks look at it and with with every viewing they want to take a new meaning from it I mean just just think of everything that had to happen happened just so and almost every one of those just soos had to be unplanned you can see the fascination you can understand it Franco Harris's touchdown was shrouded in mystery and had an image that would become iconic but to become a play for the ages it needed a name and it was christened the KN of the game by this man in a Pittsburgh Tavern this was the sing synchronicity of universal events it was destined to happen it was going to happen we just didn't know it was going to happen growing up Catholic I remember the Feast of the Immaculate Conception and I thought damn so I climbed up on a table and like you do at an old fire hall wedding you I got a spoon and I banged on a glass I would like to uh suggest that from this day on we refer to this day is the Feast of the Immaculate Reception and the place went Bonkers or's girl girlriend Sharon laosi called Myron cop a local sports caster and he pronounced Franco's catch Immaculate that night on the 11:00 news but it took a while to catch on the team sanctioned highlight film made no mention of the name the Pittsburgh Steelers division Champions it has a nice ring none of Pittsburgh's newspapers referred to the play as the Immaculate Reception until September of 1973 and reporters outside of Pittsburgh didn't know what to call it how about that play of yours uh the one that uh enabled you to come out ahead I I didn't hear that name I don't think for at least a couple of years Pittsburgh and Oakland have a bitter rivalry Oakland got beat here and the deflection of Franco Harris remember the miraculous reception of Franco and that happened here Dan Rooney is about Family Faith and football he didn't like like the sound of Immaculate Reception I mean it sounded a little sacriligious to him most of the media in Pittsburgh stayed away from it there are commercials from a year later two years later where they talk about this tipped pass that deflect the pass in the last minute of the game put Pittsburgh in the playoffs for the first time took a while before everyone embraced for me I remember hearing it for the first time I think in the the first Super Bowl year in 74 maybe remember the Immaculate Reception I thought that was the greatest thing I'd ever heard it was a stroke of Genius once it was dubbed the Immaculate Reception it kind of took on a life of its own and you saw it everywhere the Immaculate Reception Immaculate the Immaculate Reception Franco Harris's Immaculate Reception the Immaculate Reception is the most famous play in NFL history the name is important for why we recall it today as is one of the you know greatest moments in history the Immaculate Reception as a name is a great name so to call it like the great deflection or something or you know the improbable 22 second 66 Circle option I think the name mattered a lot the catch it's nice it's in the memory of it's it's a big play but it doesn't have the pizzazz it's not marketable it you know it the immaculate reception is so appropo the reception you've given me has been so wonderful here you could almost call it an Immaculate Reception miracle and Immaculate imply larger religious Godlike implications it's very weird that we've come to think of this play as something religious people thought it was about the the Virgin birth it wasn't about it wasn't about Jesus it was about the Immaculate Conception where Mary is visited by an angel of God and therefore becomes pregnant without having been touched by sin here was the Immaculate Reception Franco had received the ball like the baby it had not been touched by Frenchie Fuko cuz if it had then the play wouldn't have been legal coming up public was de see officials deceived and we got deceived we don't call it the Immaculate Reception we call it the immaculate [Music] deception I think the Immaculate Reception definitely gained momentum in history because the Steelers then went on to win four Super Bowls in six years it becomes like the Cornerstone of this fantastic edifice that they began to [Applause] build every great myth has an origin story to it the Greek gods and in the Bible and there's always that story it's Opera right or at least you know Sports Opera that Immaculate Reception play the reason that it caught on it was proof that we weren't wrong our belief wasn't wrong that somewhere above there was a higher power that also felt that that team was worthy of winning that play if you're a stealer fan you believe in it if you're a sinner like the mam Raiders you'll never accept it so it's almost like the Bible a myth to some and a faith to others the Immaculate Reception is such a seminal part of the steel City's ident the play has become the feature attraction at Pittsburgh satellite of the Smithsonian institution this is a great moment of NFL history and American history anybody know what this is depicting the reception mat reception more than 50,000 school kids come to the History Center every year we don't indoctrinate them here at the History Center fourth and 10 22 seconds are remaining Steelers have no timeouts there's pretty much no hope of them winning this game okay Brad Shaw's ste's quarterback under Center takes a snap the actual Turf as you see the X up there that is a spot where Franco caught the ball that is a spot in American history happened right there it's one of those things that people who come to the sports museum come and rever as they would an icon or a relic we also have the shoes that Franco was wearing that day we take the same care with The Tartan Turf and Franco shoes as we would things that are on loan from the Vatican or even the Declaration of Independence the film of the Immaculate Reception plays at the History Center every 5 minutes every day of the week every day of the year you just can't help but be mesmerized by that image it's an image that made history unfortunately in our culture there's only one thing that matters is who wins the winner writes the history book the winner gets the Super Bowl trophy the winnner is the genius you have to win it's one of the Great Moments in uh National Football League history it's not a great moment in raida history the Immaculate Reception changed the Raiders forever and the silver and black erected a myth of their own we don't call it the Immaculate Reception we call it the immaculate deception you know what this is the 40th anniversary of the Immaculate deception as we call it here in o the public was deceived the officials deceived and we got deceived if you could have packaged all that anger and frustration it probably would have been nuclear it probably would have been equivalent to a nuclear bomb 40 years later emotions are still raw especially with John Madden time CL bothered me then bothers me today and will bother me until the day I die they didn't call it a touchdown the officials talked in the end zone like right down there and the referee goes over to the Dugout talks to someone on the phone 15 minutes later after the play comes out and says touchdown that's right yeah your man your man Fred S Eng Madden remains so upset he refused to be interviewed for this documentary like every Raider who experienced the play he was permanently scarred anytime something would go wrong of course they're going to think it was a conspiracy you big jerk you don't call never call one on them the Raiders were able to use it as a motivation that led to the next 10 years during which no team won more games the Super Bowl really exists for the Oakland Raiders all along they've been thinking it was somebody's crazy illusion and that all started in the seconds after the Immaculate Reception coming up swearing Jin had a problem this place has gone completely if he would have ever reversed that call that man might have [Music] died I've been the director of the Central Intelligence Agency director of the National Security Agency career military officer a career intelligence officer I've looked at this play from every possible angle I've looked at every Stitch of documentary evidence and in my professional judgment that play Immaculate Reception happened just the way it was called there are some people out there who are just far too conspiratorial come on what else are they going to say there was a vendetta against the Raiders here's what the truth and the facts of the matter are there are three infractions that were never called which leads to a conspiracy theory the story that needs to be unraveled if it ever can be is the story from Frenchie fuka did it touch him or didn't it touch him and only he knows the question Frenchie did you touch the ball maybe maybe not he was knocked into the B Jack Tatum hit him from behind into the B I saw it with my own eyes I saw Jack Tatum hit fuka right in the back I saw the Whiplash I definitely definitely hit fuka that I I think has been proven to be wrong films clearly show that the ball was off of Tatum's body not off of Frenchie's did Jack Tatum hit the ball did he did he hit the ball at all and then clearly it showed that he did not his H Franky shoulder pad and bounced off of that if you look at the tape Frenchie is like this Frenchie's hands went out like this to catch the ball there's no way with his hands stretched out it didn't hit your hands and bounce back 20 ft or whatever it did pull out the micrometer as to you know whose hand or shoulder pad or helmet touched it it's it's it's impossible to do I I would turn it on his head when you look at it again and again in no way do those films give conclusive evidence that fuga was the only one to touch the ball if Tatum hits it before after Frenchie does it's good let's be honest we never see the bottom tip of the ball we never see the bottom half of the ball and whether or not it touches the turf that's seems to be the most legitimate conspiracy theory objection and I asked Franco about it Franco's been asked about it a lot and uh Franco doesn't give a straight answer did the ball hit the ground before you plucked it out of the air I can't say time Brad through the ball it was like I lost all sense of Consciousness before I knew it I'm up and running before that everything is just just a blur Franco's good ball player don't get me wrong I'm not knocking him he knew what had happened you know he knew he he caught the ball off the ground I saw it from an angle from across the field the the tip of the ball touched the ground out he trapped it more than likely because Franco doesn't speak he probably trapped It On The Ground nobody will ever say Frenchie won't say and Franco won't say and I understand it's one of the greatest plays in the history of the sport as long as we all sit here and say well did they touch it did they trap it then that keeps it going no I saw that Franco made a great catch he got it in stride you didn't see the effect of the ground on the ball and the way Franco got it it just seems as if it it had been a continuous [Applause] plague once Franco got in the end zone then he started getting piled on and Franco is being completely bed the clock goes only five seconds left and then people started jumping out of the Sands in fact one guy broke his leg jumping out of the sand it was a total total mob scene I think if I recall you never actually see a touchdown sign humankind does not have the ability to reverse that kind of thing there is a very very TX security situation here huge discussion going on down in the end zone enraged fans caring that the touchdown might be this allowed are out on the sidelines oh it was absolute Mayhem and given the absolute I believe fear that was in the hearts of the officials I don't think they were going to change their decision I know for a fact that those officials knew that that PL was not a legal [Applause] plate a if they were the touchdown I did hear one of the officials say how much security do we have they asked the question how much security do we have they talked a little bit longer head official goes out on the field puts his hands up touchdown they allowed it allowed the touchdown there was no control it was crazy what was going on swearing J had a problem absolute ponum is raing the players are pouring out of the STS I think if he would have ever reversed that call that man might have died and all the other officials too sounds good not true our guys couldn't care less about that no absolutely not look at Gerber frame 325 that'll tell you all you need to know look at mcm's head you can't see his head cuz there's a round in my back I was clipped had the clip we totally got screwed I was I was definite clip Fred swearing and his group they had no clue what was going they were afraid to throw flags at that time in the game the Raiders are protesting something but it's to no avail if it wasn't for that clip I think I make that play and we have no Immaculate Reception no it's always been clear in my memory that it was a clean block The Head and Shoulders in front that's why I call it the Magnificent obstruction I feel like you know that's a that's a pretty good name for the block that was no Immaculate obstruction that was an Immaculate clip I do think it's puzzling that he feels like it was a a clip from behind well if you look at Gerber frame 325 you can tell that uh my head and shoulders are are plainly visible you know in front of Phil the conspiracy theories are troubling and on some level believable but are they the most likely explanation for what occurred Alman Razer is a theory that suggests that more often than not the simplest explanation for an event is probably the correct explanation very often we get very ornate trying to explain things and more often than not it's just what it is it's just what it seems to be I'll buy an aams razor on this one when we return in here rests the Immaculate Reception [Music] football once you've been declared Immaculate once you've been declared the hero in a miracle story when an event happens like that and it's frozen in history um there there is a lot of burden to trust TR to maintain the aura that surrounds it how many times have folks ask you to describe the the catch you made then quite a few times and it's still hard to answer you know what really happened every day in Franco's life from December 23rd of 1972 till today at least a dozen times a day people will ask him Franco did you really score that touchdown who touched that ball do you think it was legal do you think that the famous catch still has tension with the Raiders did it hit you immediately how important that play would be to the franchise what was your original role in the play that was called did you think the play was legal did the uh did the ball actually touch the ground did you have a special meal that day before the game we The Observers of people who do these things that turn out to be momentous things I don't think we have a very good grip on what it feels like to be them I don't think it's so easy and I think he handles it about as well as a human being can [Music] handle at first it was quite strange and quite odd seeing the statue there they told me it was going to be up there for 6 months and here it is years later and it's still up there I hear at times some Raider fans go through there and try to knock the ball out of my hand beware you better get some extra security by that statue I'm not going to miss my tackle again that thing's coming down in addition to the museum exhibits the Immaculate Reception has spawned a cottage industry a field of greenest place I've ever seen remember John MCM the tight end whose magnificent obstruction sprung Franco for the touchdown he made the play the Cornerstone of his business I had this card made up this statement uh we can't predict we can be prepared for the unexpected which is what insurance is all about people love using that name how about the iMac collection of furniture I have one it's a great chair Franco did an ad for a phone company called the Immaculate Reception the Immaculate Reception like you know phone reception Frenchie came out one time with the immaculate confection this guy came up with a great idea a candy bar the mauline confection I said what Frenchie has made a living post NFL speaking at Banquets I'm going to tell you some things that no one else knows basically who touched the ball in the mum reception and he teases You by saying you know tonight I'm going to finally tell you what happened on that play what I tell you today I'm going to deny tomorrow and he gets to the point where he's going to tell you and then he says you know what I better not I better not I want I want to keep this Immaculate and that's his payoff incom call from sh hello Roger no I'm not going to tell what happened no don't take my pension listen I'm serious I wasn't going to tell her there's one part of the Immaculate Reception that's not for sale and that's the football it belongs to Jim Baker an insurance agent who was part of the crowd that mobbed the field they kept shoving people back because you couldn't end the game on a without kicking the extra point down in front of us is a mass of humanity I headed for the gold poost because they were bringing Jella it wasn't to just run in and grab it and run I had to fight a wall for that ball word spread like wildfire Jim Baker has the ball Jim Baker has the ball Franco's Italian Army offered me birthday cakes for the rest of my life which would have been pretty long time I turned that down later on I had an offer from a prominent businessman of $150,000 in 2005 Sports Illustrated valued the football at $80,000 a figure Baker finds conservative premiums to ensure the ball for $1 million were so much money that I could not afford them the only one it was going to do it was Lloyds of London so I figured the next best thing was to protect that ball I'm going to buy a safe and I bought a big safe this bank vault is the centerpiece of my business in here rests the immaculate reception football a bank vault like this to build today would probably cost you 7 or $800,000 the safe is approximately 20t long 8T High poured concrete with a stainless steel door and it also is fireproof I get invited to a lot of celebrations with that ball we are serious about protection this football doesn't go anywhere without armed security [Music] don't test them don't try them they're licensed and they're packing heat coming up a startling Discovery the version of this play you've undoubtedly seen is from NFL film but recently we Unearthed the NBC version if you ever need to prove it in court roll that tape out it's absolutely The Smoking Gun I get a message from from Franco every the 23rd of December hello hey Phil hey where were you 39 years ago is this Franco you know what I was doing 39 years ago today Franco I was making you famous don't think he's allmighty Mr Nice Guy there's a side of him too that loves to bust the Raiders butts I can always rely on you to ruin my Christmases it's been 40 years and with each passing anniversary the Immaculate Reception only seems to grow bigger but is the truth out there and will it ever be found the man who made the plays name famous certainly thought so everybody has the film of uh the deflection my and cope had seen a film that proved exactly that that ball was above the ground the ref says it's o F it's kosher the network tapes they were never conclusive but our own television station had a cameraman at the game and I looked at his film a film that has remained practically a secret to this day I watched that over and over again and it was a legal catch you might say let me see that film I didn't pay attention to keeping films and you know television stations they have to throw out some film that's worth a jillion dollars that shot like a a lot of other great shots ended up where they kept everything that we couldn't use on a day-to-day basis in those days a great play went from one show to the next 11:00 News next day's 6 the next day's 11: it would be a needle in a hay stack what about the coach's film 2 days after the game John Madden claimed the all 22 proved Bradshaw's pass struck fua and not Tatum it too has vanished my position was on the top of the stadium at the 50 yard line I followed the ball but same time wide enough to see the players around it Chu no and the coaching staff asked see the original copy and I gave it to them and whatever they did with the film I really don't know the network broadcast of the play was also believed lost then right before the 1997 AFC Championship Game the tape mysteriously resurfaced the version of this play you've undoubtedly seen is from NFL films but recently we Unearthed the NBC version of that play here it is as called by Kirk gouty last chance for the Steelers and his pass is broken up by Tatum tipped off frco Harris has it and he's over go H grab the ball on the defle 5 Seconds to go it's absolutely The Smoking Gun if you ever want need to prove it in court roll that tape out he shoots it out Jack Tatum deflects it right into the hands of haris what else are they going to say I mean come on what else are they going to say that's coming from Pittsburgh it's propaganda look at that footage that NBC had and what you will see is infractions there's some footage to show vilip piano getting clipped there's some footage to show that the tip of the ball touched the ground there are some footage to show that Jack Tatum knocked Frenchie fuka into the bar that's what the fact of the matter is you talking about Christmas miracles here's the miracle of all miracles if the discovery of NBC's cameras could not Solve the Riddle of the Immaculate Reception what could in the late 1990s Carnegie melon professor John fetkovich became convinced the answer was science ballistically all we need are Newton's laws of motion and Newton's law of gravity to decide the question whether it was a legal play or not when I finished the analysis I was astounded there's still a space between the two two players haven't collided yet if you look carefully at the evidence on the on the film The collision between Tatum and fuka occurred after the ball already started back many of the shots show the football going past fuca's head going past fua while it's still going down field the camera is following it I needed to learn something about how fast and how far football would rebound I happened to be looking towards my wife I had this fleeting thought I could throw the ball at her as a proxy football player that thought didn't last long because I knew she wouldn't go for it I did the experiments outside throwing the football against the brick wall [Music] W the professor's hypothesis was simple if Bradshaw's pass hit fuka who was running parallel to the line of scrimmage the ball would have rebounded at roughly the same speed as from a stationary wall a higher speed would prove that the Assassin Jack Tatum had struck the ball the rebound from the brick wall was 12 ft per second less than half of the rebound on the football field a ball striking fuga could never reach the speed and distance that you saw on the field as far as I am concerned and as far as Newton is concerned that's it but as far as the Immaculate Reception goes why it's so big over time and over space I don't know the answer it turns out is the question everybody loves a mystery and that's why the Immaculate Reception will always remain unsolved if you have definitive answers then it's come to a conclusion and you forget about it and we don't want to forget about the Immaculate Reception and so it continues to be that quote mystery of how or why that propels it into the legend that it is become it would be terrible for football lore if we knew everything that we should know about the play it's so much better isn't it to have a mystery all great things are myth it's all stories handed down everything about us is myth you have a 40-year argument that's going to go on for another 40 years there's no way to prove it one way or the other I thought we got taken we should have had that football game but we didn't get it fuin knows he hit it and it should have been our game I would prefer to wait 50 years before I tow since the doors are locked and since I can deny this I don't mind telling you what happened on that play was truly immaculate