commissioner Pete Rozelle refused to lift the blackout, despite a plea from Attorney General Richard Kleindienst, who then suggested that the U.S. Congress re-evaluate the NFL's antitrust exemption. Rozelle agreed to lift the blackout for Super Bowl VII on an "experimental basis," but Congress intervened before the 1973 season anyway, passing Public Law 93-107; it eliminated the blackout of games in the home market so long as the game was sold out by 72 hours before kickoff. With the new rule, the NFL recorded over one million no-shows by ticketholders to regular season games in 1973. References NFL Record and Fact Book () NFL History 1971–1980 (Last accessed December 4, 2005) Total Football: The Official Encyclopedia of the National Football League () 1973 National Football League