Bill Bissell

A band director, Bissell spent 24 years at the University of Washington leading the Washington Husky Marching Band. "A lot of the home-field advantage we enjoyed at Husky Stadium was attributable to the crowd spirit Bill was able to build through the band," said Husky head coach Jim Lambright. The band's gags were legendary, such as when the new uniforms arrived. As the band played "The Stripper", the members changed from the old uniforms to the new -- right on the field. The radio announcer calling the game was so astounded that "There was about a minute-and-a-half of dead air while he watched the band taking off its clothes," remembers assistant band director Don Sabo. But Bissell's biggest impact went beyond the Husky's field: in 1981, he and Husky yell leader Robb Weller created the "Wave", the visual fan cheer that spreads around the stadium -- and spread all over the country and the world. Bissell died December 20 from unknown causes. He was 70. From This is True for 16 December 2001 Suggestions for further reading: Major Crush by Echols, Jennifer Amazon Price: Customer Review: My oldest son is not a big reader for pleasure (and certainly not romance books), but Jennifer told us about this book and I got it for him. He could not put it down. That was the fastest I have ever seen him read any book. Some of the appeal may ...   Olivia Forms a Band by Ian Falconer Amazon Price: $12.91 Customer Review: We own a few of the Olivia books and love them all. The books are colorful and the drawings are interesting. Not only does my daughter love them but we love them also!!   The Dynamic Marching Band by Wayne Markworth Amazon Price: $42.70 Customer Review: Anyone who knows Mr Markworth knows that he is a master of his craft (running a high school band program). Growing up in Ohio and going to Miami University, I have seen his groups perform (as well as rehearse) numerous times and it is always an outs...   Froggy Plays in the Band by Jonathan London Amazon Price: $5.99 Customer Review: None of the books in the FROGGY series is a disappointment. My five year old daughter has fallen in love with all of the adventures of Froggy, his parents, and friends. The books are just the right length for you and your child to share a nice bedtim...   The Complete Marching Band Resource Manual: Techniques and Materials for Teac... by Wayne Bailey Amazon Price: $38.25 Customer Review: This is a very helpful resource to someone putting a marching band program together. The authors share positive philosophies such as setting things up so your band can continually succeed, breaking down the show into conquerable pieces, etc. They p...   Newsfeed display by CaRP

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