Although heavily popular in Britain by 1963, The Beatles had not made a significant splash in American culture yet. However, soon thereafter, a nation already captivated by bands like The Beach Boys would be introdued to a phenomenon that ultimately whetted the musical appettite of Americans across the country. While the band did not formally leave Britain until February 7, 1964 -- a departure famously marked by the sight and sound of four million adoring fans gathered at the Heathrow Airport -- their premiere on American television predated this exit from the U.K. Contrary to popular belief, The Beatles' seminal appearance on the legendary The Ed Sullivan Show was not their first time hitting TV screens across the United States. Indeed, The Beatles' premiere on American television was in an interview with another consequential figure in TV history, Walter Cronkite. "We were offered a piece [on The Beatles] from the London Bureau," Cronkite recounted prior to his passing, "and so we put it on the air one night and we were hardly off the air yet and Ed [Sullivan] was on the phone with me and he said to me, 'Walter, tell me about those kids! What do you call them? The Bugs or something?'" Cronkite, the longtime revered anchor of CBS Evening News, conceded that the fact that The Beatles were interviewed on his program prior to Sullivan's show is a "little known fact. " On December 10, 1963, The Beatles were interviewed in a piece from London on CBS Evening News regarding their music, massive popularity in England, and even their hairdos. Opening with a clip of the group performing the hit "She Loves You," this piece on The Beatles depicted John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr as "Britain's latest musical and...sociological phenomenon." The CBS News journalist covering the story told viewers that the musical sensation attracted "thousands of teenagers in every city stand[ing] in line for tickets." In a telling harbringer of soon-to-be American Beatlemania, the piece told viewers of "adoring fans" and "girls fainting when tickets" were sold out in Britain. In the interview that followed, The Beatles provided stereotypically cunning and tight-lipped answers to a reporter's questions. For instance, when asked to explain The Beatles' popularity, McCartney jokingly insisted it can be attriubuted to their "haircuts" and suggested that it was "to stupid to worry about" fans becoming "tired" of their music. Soon thereafter, Ed Sullivan reached a handshake agreement with Beatles manager Brian Epstein at the Hotel Delmonico in New York to have The Beatles play for $10,000 on his show-- an occurrence that Cronkite said he hopes he gets some "credit" for in the annals of music history.
Despite Walter Cronkite's desire for 'credit,' it is still widely believed that the first time The Beatles appeared on American television screens was in their appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show. Nevertheless, Sullivan did help popularize The Beatles as his show was a cultural staple that provided a uniquely opportune platform for musical giants like Elvis Presley and Buddy Holly in the 1950's. While not their first time on American TV, The Beatles' three consecutive visits to Sullivan's stage marked the group's first live American TV appearance and was the first time their music has been exposed to a significantly large U.S. audience: 73 million viewers, record viewership at the time. Coming on the heels of their arrival in the United States merely days earlier, the February 9, 1964 visit on The Ed Sullivan Show included the performance of such hits like "I Want to Hold Your Hand," a song already topping U.S. record charts. Leaked to U.S. radio audiences against the wishes of Capitol Records in December 1963, "I Want to Hold Your Hand" catapulted to almost overnight success, selling 250,000 copies within three days and attaining the #1 position on the Billboard by late January 1964. Other than "I Want to Hold Your Hand," other songs included in the three consecutive Beatles appearances on Sullivan's show were "I Saw Her Standing There," "She Loves You," "Please Please Me," and "All My Loving," among others. These tunes rocked Sullivan's live and at-home audience. In his studio, Sullivan -- slightly annoyed by shrieking girls -- urged fans to "keep quiet" and was forced to keep seating limited to a 700-seat capacity in spite of 50,000 requests for seats, including from ex-Tonight Show host Jack Parr and Cronkite. At home, Americans would grow accustomed to a band they began to fall in love with by 1964 so much so that when The Beatles appeared on Sullivan's show a year later, in the fall of 1965, that broadcast earned Sullivan a 60 percent share of the entire nighttime TV audience. Ultimately, these audiences and the embrace of The Beatles that they displayed was undeniably aided by both Walter Cronkite and Ed Sullivan in familiarizing Americans with the British band's music and style. SOURCES:
1. Wikipedia - 'The Ed Sullivan Show,' http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Ed_Sullivan_Show
2. The Official Ed Sullivan Site: Classic Entertainment for a New Generation - The Ed Sullivan Show - The Beatles, http://www.edsullivan.com/artists/the-beatles/
3. CBS News.com - CBS Evening News with Katie Couric - Walter Cronkite: 1916-2009, "The Beatles' First Time on American TV," http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/07/18/eveningnews/main5172519.shtml
4. YouTube - 'The Beatles, first time on U.S. TV", http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G6j5bve7O5E
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7 comments:
Great job, Omeed! It was so interesting to learn about the Beatles' first performance on the Ed Sullivan show. I can't believe that the Beatles played for $10,000! You did a great job describing the first real performance in America by the Beatles. Good job!
I agree with Olivia. You did an excellent job and I learned a lot. I always assumed that the Beatles epic appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show was their first television performance ever. However, you stated that was merely their first LIVE performance; I didn't know that fact previous to reading this blog entry. So, it was obviously well researched. Good Job!
I love your detail in your blog Omeed. I know sometimes you may ramble on, but your post really kept me interested! I wish I got paid $10,000 for a playing, ha! I learn so much reading your blogs, and love how you blend everything together to keep the flow. I never knew where or when The Beatles first performance was and that alone caught my eye! Great Job Omeedy!
Mr. President great job on this blog! The detail you put in your blog is great and shows your interest. How the Beatles came over and started getting television time was wild and for the amounts of money they were playing for! Sick blog and was interesting because this deals with our history of television and of music!
Good job, Omeed!This is a very interesting and informative blog. After reading this blog, it helped me to know more about The Beatles. Also,the information is a lot, so it is very useful.
Omeed, this is so interesting! I really associated the Beatles' American television career with the "The Ed Sullivan Show" until reading this blog post. I think it is so cool how the Beatles became so popular so quickly. I also think that it is helpful to know how much they got paid in comparison to how much people get paid today. I am sure that it is the equivalent of what highly regarded musicians are paid to play at shows and concerts today. Nice job!
Very interesting info, Omeed. Esp. the part about Cronkite. Please try to include hyperlinks in the body of the blog post.
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