The First Ed Sullivan Show
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| First Ed Sullivan appearance - public domain |
The Beatles fly from London Heathrow to New York on 7 February, 1964 More than 10,000 girls are waiting - a major news event.
Two days later The Beatles first live appearance in America is a sensation. A record breaking 73 million watch The Ed Sullivan Show at 8.00 PM on Feb 9 1964.
The crowd scream through all the other acts and go ballistic when their idols come on stage. The Beatles are nervous and play badly. Above the screaming, you can only hear Paul McCartney singing. The sound mix is poor and there appears to be an issue John Lennon's microphone..
Nobody cares.The Beatles first appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show breaks all television viewing records. As Ian Macdonald puts it, The Beatles 'energy and invention lifted America out of its gloom… High on gratitude, the country cast itself at the Beatles' feet.'
