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John Capps passes away after 52 years of service as Bulls security

John Capps was there when it all began for the Bulls in 1966, ready as he would be for the next 52 years to clear the way for the running—or walking, or riding, actually back then—of the Bulls. It was Chicago police officer Capps, a Marine veteran, who got the assignment that fall day in 1966 to clear the way for the parade up Michigan Avenue for the new NBA franchise in Chicago, the Bulls.

But instead of all the floats, baton twirlers and bands, it was owner Dick Klein, coach Johnny Kerr, marketing director Jerry Colangelo, all wearing suits and cowboy hats, and a live bull in a cage in a two-vehicle procession.