In 1964, Beatlemania officially reached America. On February 7, 1964, the Fab Four – John Lennon, Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr and George Harrison – boarded the Pan Am Flight 101 at Heathrow Airport in London. An estimated 4000 fans congratulate them on their first trip to America. When they landed at New York's JFK Airport a few hours later, another 4,000 (screaming) fans were waiting for them. But that was nothing compared to the number of people who would see on February 9, 1964, the The Ed Sullivan Show of the legendary Rocker. On the 55th anniversary of this historic television event, there were 10 things you may not know about the show.
The band did not come cheap …
Similar to The Tonight Show today, asked to appear the Ed Sullivan Show in the 1960s was a great honor and established artist in the 1960s. The advertising produced by a performance on the show was enough for most talents to say yes. The Beatles, however, would only agree if the show covers their travel expenses and pays them $ 10,000 (which would be just over $ 80,000 in 2019 dollars). Sullivan and its producers agreed, but only if the Beatles committed to three gigs. They had a deal.
. 2 … but they were ultimately a relatively cheap deal.
Although billing travel expenses and an entry fee for The Ed Sullivan Show was not the norm, it was a big part of the program and a testament to Beatlemania's success in America in Great Britain. It is estimated that nearly 74 million people – 40 percent of the country's population at that time – watched the Beatles live.
. 3 Technically, it was not the band's American television debut.
While the Ed Sullivan Show was the first time the Beatles had performed live on American television, it was not the first time they had appeared on American television. On November 18, 1963, NBC's The Huntley Brinkley Report aired a breathtaking four-minute section on Beatlemania – the madness that swept England away. Just days later, on November 22 CBS Morning News conducted a five-minute section on the band's popularity overseas. The segment was due to resend that evening, but the message was suspended because of the murder of JFK. Walter Cronkite finally re-sent it on December 10, 1963 as part of CBS Evening News .
. 4 More than 700 people were able to experience it live.
While more than a third of the American population experienced music history the night the Beatles appeared, the Ed Sullivan Show appeared See how everything goes live as part of the show's audience. And when we say "very happy," we mean it seriously: the program received a record 50,000 tickets for the show.
. 5 Many people linked Beatlemania to the murder of JFK.
In terms of timing, the assassination of President John F. Kennedy and the rise of Beatlemania in America were closely linked. While many people decided that the band's popularity was partly due to the death of the president – that Americans needed something positive and positive – others believe that this is purely coincidental. In 2013, Slate debated (and largely debunked) the questionable links between Camelot's demise and Liverpool's rise.
. 6 The Beatles were not the only performers of the evening.
Remember Charlie Brill and Mitzi McCall? No? No problem. Also, the majority of the 74 million people who watched the Ed Sullivan Show that night. Brill & McCall were the unfortunate act that had to pursue the groundbreaking, industry-changing performance of the Fab Four. The married sketch-comedy duo was pretty bombarded, as the audience was quite distracted. In 2014, a couple – celebrating its 59th anniversary this year – talked about this notorious night with CBS.
"Things went bad for us," McCall laughed. "It was awful."
"We made a sketch," Brill added. "We could not hear each other. Because of the screaming.
Although the look of her career did not mean much to ultimately advance her career, it was "an honor" to be part of it. " We were there when the world changed. "She said
7. That night was also one of the Monkees.
Davy Jones was also in The Ed Sullivan Show that night, but not part of the Monkees Jones was He played with the cast of Broadways Oliver! Jones played the Artful Dodger, first in London, then in New York, and was eventually nominated for a Tony for the role. [Nothecrimerate
You've heard the old saying that the crime rate in the US dropped dramatically during the Beatles' show on the show, obviously the whole nation was like that from the Liverpool guys That's a nice story, but according to Snope, that's not true.
The rumor started when Bill Gold, a Washington Post reporter, snarkily remarked that the Beatles were present that evening, that nowhere hubcaps were stolen. It should be concluded that the Beatles appealed to the kind of degenerate who would do such a thing, but the meaning was twisted and reprinted by Newsweek . Gold wrote a witty retreat on February 21, 1964: "This week from Newsweek my report is quoted by BF Henry as saying that there is a good thing about the Beatles – during the hour, there was no stolen hubcap in America in Ed Sullivan's show. "
I must inform Newsweek with a heavy heart that this report was wrong. 307 E. Groveton St., Alexandria , had parked his car on the church grounds during this hour – and all four of his hubcaps were stolen.
The Washington Post regrets the mistake and District Liners Fellenz regrets that somewhere in Alexandria lives a hipster, the too poor to own a TV. "
9. The "very nice" telegram from Elvis Presley was not from Elvis Presley.
Was not it nice that Elvis Presley started the American "debut" of the Beatles with a personal telegram? Just before John, Paul, George and Ringo entered the stage, Ed Sullivan announced that he had received a "very nice" telegram from The King and wished the Fab Four "tremendous success". Elvis was known to be jealous of the Beatles. His manager, Colonel Tom Parker, was responsible for the note and only sent it because he thought Elvis would look good. (Apparently the contempt was mutual, and when the band received the telegram prior to their performance, Harrison allegedly mockingly asked, "Elvis who?")
10. Sullivan's musical director was not impressed.
The crowd (and a third of America) may have gone mad when the Beatles performed, but Ray Bloch – the music director of the Ed Sullivan Show – was not so impressed. Asked for a comment by a reporter for The New York Times he was blunt: "The only thing that's different is the hair, as far as I can see, I'll give 'em a year."