Anaheim Scouts

The Anaheim Scouts, formed in 1958, was a junior marching and maneuvering corps based in Anaheim, California. They were sponsored by the Explorer Scouts Troop 72, American Legion Post 72, VFW Post 3173, and the Elks Lodge 1345.

The corps’ colors were green and red.

In 1963 the Scouts split into two corps, the Velvet Knights and the Anaheim Kingsmen, which see.

[Encyclopedia of Drum and Bugle Corps, 1966, inter alia]
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The Anaheim Scouts Through 1963

Around 1962, in the ancient days of southern California drum corps, Messrs. Zig Kanstul, Joe Lintz and Bill Cadek stumbled across a Boy Scout troop, Anaheim Troop 72. This wasn't just any Boy Scout troop. This one had a primitive drum and bugle corps as a sideline to its knot tying and other camping activities. Of course, this wasn't just any primitive drum and bugle corps, either. Mr. John Walters started it with the organizational support of Mr. Maurice Williams, the troop's scoutmaster. Walters was a former Lakewood Ambassador instructor, whose sons happened to belong to Troop 72.

Wearing standard khaki scout uniforms festooned with war-surplus braids and leggings, the little corps of elementary and middle-school kids had been stomping, beating and blasting its way around southern California's community parade circuit since the very late 1950's. Kanstul, Lintz and Cadek were incredible visionaries – or, perhaps, they were just having an incredible collective hallucination – to have seen any potential in this organization. As we know now, though, they really did know their stuff and history was in the making.

The next year was an amazing transformational time. Proper instruments were purchased. Uniforms were changed to the slightly more attractive Explorer Scout version, a la Madison and Racine Scouts. Zig taught the drummers to drum real rudiments, while Joe taught the horns to play real polyphonic music . . . from sight-read scores no less. And, together with Bill they created an organization that could grow and sustain a competitive drum corps.

With the structure in place, the three set out to recruit new, more experienced members. After all, they couldn't expect a bunch of little elementary and middle school kids to take on the then powerhouse likes of the Japanese Scouts, Hawks, Cathay and Senoritas without some heavy hitters of their own. The easiest recruiting targets were the strong Anaheim High School band and the nearby Lakewood Ambassadors, the well-respected corps founded by a true grand dad of southern California drum corps, Bill Francis. Two of the more notable catches were the Ambassador's former drum major, Don Arnette, and the well-known drill instructor, Joe O'Day. A Girl Scout color guard was added to handle the pageantry chores. Don Arnette's wife, an interesting story in itself, took over as color guard captain. With a name change from the Troop 72 Drum and Bugle Corps to the Anaheim Scouts, the corps was ready to take the competition field for the first time in the spring of 1963.

Although the inaugural season saw no championships, the Anaheim Scouts did gain the solid respect of its competitors and generated buzz of impending success in future seasons. Yes, there would be future successes beyond anything imaginable in 1963, but not the way anyone expected.

Messrs. Kanstul, Lintz and Cadek were flush with excitement from their accomplishments. However, they were even more frustrated by the meddling of the local Boy Scout Council and a group of myopic parents who would not support taking the corps to its next level of development. So, they joined-up with John Walters and left to create the Velvet Knights. In doing so, they took most of the older, accomplished and experienced musicians.

[From THE GENESIS OF THE KINGSMEN DRUM AND BUGLE CORPS
By adminkac - Posted on 25 January 2010]

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