Improvement: At the bottom of the page is the original idea. Problem is, it's never going to happen. This method might actually work without costing anything. You would have several "scripts" on the back of each ticket. Each script would look like this:

1---2---3---4---5---6---7---8---9---

up dn up dn dn dn up up dn --- etc.

Each script would be custom made for that seat and as tickets are already individually printed with their unique seat assignment designation anyway, it wouldn't cost very much extra to add this. The script would specify what that person (pixel) should do for that particular time in the sequence. The announcer says "Ready to do People-Tron sequence number 3? - Ready...set... One...two...three...four..."

You would look at your ticket as the announcer read which number in the sequence you were at and either sit or stand according to what your ticket says. Then everybody could see what they spelled and or shaped out on the jumbotron.

You'd have 4 or 5 sequences on the back of your ticket to spell out or shape out various things throughout the event. People screwing it up would be part of the fun. I'm picturing lots of adults giggling/swearing like idiots for missing their cue, kind of like musical chairs.

(Original idea) Inspired by "the wave" that was once popular at sports stadiums, vibrating plates under the fan's feet would signal each spectator to stand up and sit down on cue so you could have them spell out intricate representations of words or pictures. Nobody would know what it was they were standing up for till they saw it on the jumbo tv. The folks watching at home or from the other side of the stadium could be endlessly entertained by some smartass in the control booth making people stand up to make rude pictures or spell dirty limericks about the visiting team.
-- doctorremulac3, May 30 2005

you'd have to seat them by colour, surely.
-- po, May 31 2005


I wonder if the indication could be done with three LEDs on the back of the seat in front?

The programme could have three coloured pages in it. Hold up the same colour as the LED.
-- Ling, May 31 2005


An even simpler version would just have each ticket printed with: "stand up" or "sit down". At some lull in the activities, the announcer would tell everybody to do whatever their ticket says and everyone would get to see the suprise message or picture.
-- doctorremulac3, Jun 01 2005


I'm sure I've heard of this, at least for a stadium that had big colored cards to hold up and some sort of instruction for which colored side to show. I don't watch sports, so I have no idea where, when or even if.
-- baconbrain, Jun 01 2005


Moscow, 1980 Olympics
-- coprocephalous, Jun 01 2005


Well, this one moves in the first incarnation, and in the second, it's practically free.
-- doctorremulac3, Jun 01 2005


Just have Pixar write a routine to screen capture the audience, digitize it, and animate accordingly. Humans would never have built the pyramids without help from the aliens!
-- Soterios, Jun 01 2005


I could swear that I had a "picture in picture" idea or annotation posted on this -- where you could see highlights of the other game by looking at the other side of the stadium. It was on one of the extra large jelly bean screen ideas -- but can't find it.
-- theircompetitor, Jun 01 2005



random, halfbakery