52 years ago, an orphan girl beat Raiders, NBC, NFL

The Oakland Raiders were pretty good during the ’60s. But 52 years ago a 5-year-old orphan girl beat them — as well as the New York Jets, the NFL, the American Football League and network TV in general — in a game that changed the way we watch pro football today.

It was Nov. 17, 1968, and the Raiders were playing their rival New York Jets in a 4 p.m. (Eastern) Sunday game on NBC, which televised AFL games in those pre-NFL/AFL merger years.

With just over a minute remaining, the Jets seemed headed for the win. But, amazingly, the Raiders scored two touchdowns in the final minute to win 43-32.

It was a stunning finish that’s still considered one of the NFL’s best comebacks. Problem was, viewers back East never saw it because at 7 p.m. Eastern time — before the Raiders’ winning touchdowns — NBC cut away from the game for a scheduled broadcast of “Heidi,” a movie based on the classic children’s book that the network hoped would draw nice ratings during November sweeps.

Some fans who saw the cutaway may have assumed the Jets had won the game, not learning about the Raiders’ comeback until later, or even the next day. Others, who found themselves suddenly looking at the Alps instead of Oakland Coliseum, angrily flooded NBC’s switchboards.

NBC President Julian Goodman apologized to fans, calling the network’s decision to cut away from the game before it was over a “forgivable error committed by humans who were concerned” about children who wanted to watch “Heidi.”

Whatever.

But the game — now commonly referred to as the “Heidi Bowl” or “Heidi Game” — has become a staple of American pop culture. Here are a few facts associated with the game:

■ Not far into the movie, NBC ran a notice on the screen with the final score. But, because it came on screen during an emotional scene involving Heidi’s paralyzed cousin, even that succeeded in only angering another group of viewers: “Heidi” fans.

■ News of NBC’s fumble was all over the newspapers the next day, reported in terms that were snarky before snark even was a thing. Notable among the legion of media mockers was NBC’s own David Brinkley, who reported on it during the next day’s nightly news with his signature brand of bemused drollery.

■ Thanks to Heidi, viewers today can be assured of watching most, if not all, pro football games to their conclusion. The NFL includes clauses in its network contracts to that effect and, more informally, no network ever wants to become the perpetrator of Heidi Game 2.0.

■ Finally, the star of “Heidi” was a young actress named Jennifer Edwards, the daughter of director Blake Edwards (the Pink Panther films, “10” and many others) and the step-daughter of actress Julie Andrews. Edwards told TV Guide in 2005: “My gravestone is gonna say, ‘She was a great moment in sports.’ ”

Contact John Przybys at jprzybys@reviewjournal.com. Follow @JJPrzybyson Twitter.