According to recent stories, including one in the Daily Mail, the Beatles refused to play to a segregated audience at the Cow Palace in Daly City, CA., according to documents from the concert's contract that will go on sale this month. But this was by no means an isolated case.
Well-known Beatles historian Mark Lewisohn ("The Complete Beatles Chronicle," "The Beatles Recording Sessions"), currently writing a multi-volume biography of the Beatles, told us that so far in his research, the rider calling for segrated audiences was there for at least two of the group's tours -- and possibly more.
"I’ve yet to see beyond the front page of any 1964 U.S. tour contracts to see if this was a standard rider at that time, but by the time of writing my second volume I will have done so," he told us. But, he says, "I have contracts for the 1965 and 1966 tours and that rider was always there."
Nate D. Sanders Auctions in Los Angeles is auctioning the papers from the Beatles contract for the 1965 Cow Palace show. The auction ends Sept. 20. (You can see the images from that contract, provided courtesy of the auction house, in our slideshow at left.)
The Cow Palace contract provided for the Beatles to be paid $40,000 guaranteed against 65% of the gross receipts over $77,000 to be paid in installments on April 11, July 30 and Aug. 30, 1965. Ticket prices were set between $4.50 and $6.50. A security force of 150 police officers was required, as was a fence or barrier behind the stage if fans were sitting behind the Beatles "to prevent any of the audience from climbing over."
Two spotlights and a "first-class" sound engineer was required for the show, as was a platform for Ringo Starr's drums. The contract also demanded "clean and adequate dressing rooms facilities for the entire cast," a press conference be held before the concert on the day of the show and an emcee for the show. It also required two chauffeur-driven limousines to pick the Beatles up at the airport.
The rider mentioning segregation was very short and specific. "Artists will not be required to perform before a segregated audience," the contract states concisely.
That that the Beatles opposed segregation really shouldn't be a total surprise. A tape reel auctioned last year included the Beatles discussing several subjects, including segregation. At a time in the '60s when segregation was prevalent in certain areas of the country, the Beatles had the fortitude to speak out.
Here's the full description of what the Nate D. Sanders Auction website will be auctioning:
CONTRACT SIGNEDVery rare Beatles contract and rider dated 24 March 1965 for a concert to be given on 31 August 1965 at the Cow Palace in San Francisco, California. The concert was part of the Beatles' coast-to-coast tour on their third major visit to the U.S., shortly after the release of "Help!" This interesting contract, between The Beatles' management company Nems Enterprises, Inc. and Paul Catalana, calls for $40,000 "guaranteed against 65% of the gross box office receipts over $77,000." The rider requires the venue to provide the Beatles with no less than 150 uniformed police officers for protection and a special drumming platform for Ringo, among other stipulations, such as the modest requirements for their trailer: "This trailer is to have electricity and water. In all dressing rooms for The Beatles, the purchaser must provide four cots, mirrors, an ice cooler, portable TV set and clean towels." The rider also contains the provision that the band would "not be required to perform in front of a segregated audience." Both contract and rider are signed on behalf of The Beatles by manager Brian Epstein. Contract together with rider are four pages, each measuring 8.5" x 10", matted and framed to 22" x 28.5". Some toning to contract page and staple holes in upper left corners of pages. Near fine.
A bid of $1,331 is currently listed for the contract. More details on the auction can be found at the Nate D. Sanders Auction website.
(Thanks to Mark Lewisohn and the Nate D. Sanders website.)
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