Roller Games

[1] In the 1960s, Roller Games experienced rapid growth, and established teams in Baltimore, Cleveland, Philadelphia, Florida, Hawaii, Canada, Mexico, Australia and Japan.

[1] Eventually, the flagship station for Thunderbirds games was changed to KCOP, with taped repeats appearing in prime time on KBSC.

[6][7] In 1973, Jerry Seltzer shut down Roller Derby and sold the promotional rights to Bill Griffiths, who immediately disbanded Roller Derby's IRDL and his own NRL, but recruited some of IRDL's star skaters to skate in an NRL successor league, the International Skating Conference (ISC), which was to focus on the Los Angeles Thunderbirds.

In 1975, Griffiths shut down Roller Games operations in the face of dwindling popularity, which some attributed to the organization's increasing emphasis on theatrics and entertainment.

The revitalized league prospered in the late 1970s and early 1980s: its home venue, the Olympic Auditorium, was sold out for matches on Saturday nights; games were aired on TV (as Roller Superstars); and skaters "Psycho" Ronnie Rains and Ralphie Valladares became minor celebrities in Los Angeles.

Along with the Los Angeles T-Birds, the other teams were now known as the Northern Devils, Western Outlaws, Golden State Bombers, Hollywood Hawks and Eastern War-Chiefs.

This version of the IRDL was broadcast on ESPN and hosted by Los Angeles radio personality Paul Greenwood with play-by-play analysis by former roller derby skaters Ted Marolf and Jess Adams.

It featured a steeply banked figure-eight track, an alligator pit, and a number of skaters who had been in the Roller Games league, as well as younger participants.

[1] In 2004, Bob Sedillo purchased the T-Birds name for use in a disastrous exposition match in Phoenix, Arizona against a team of young female skaters associated with the modern revival of the sport.

[1][14] As of December 2004, the Bob Sedillo-owned Roller Games International (RGI) league still operates a single team, the Los Angeles Thunderbirds (T-Birds).