February 9, 1964: The Beatles perform on The Ed Sullivan Show. John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Richard Starkey aka Ringo Starr were a rock and roll band out of Liverpool, England. They were major players in the British Invasion, as the media termed the influx of UK musicians entertaining the eager listeners spread across the US. Dusty Springfield was one of the first to cross the ocean to amuse American teens. Many solo artists and bands crossed the Atlantic and conquered the US musical landscape.
The Ed Sullivan Show aired on Sunday evenings. The variety show brought both new and time-tested acts into America's living rooms from June 20, 1948 until June 6, 1971. The hour long program also had recurring characters such as Topo Gigio – a little Italian mouse. Even though Ed began his show during a time of segregation, he freely opened the venue to African-American entertainers. Some southern-based sponsors suggested he rethink his scheduling plans. Viewers were treated to a panoply of black entertainers such as Nat King Cole, Aretha Franklin, and The Jackson 5.
Edward Vincent Sullivan was born in New York City in 1901. His first career was in boxing and he then moved to writing about sports for a newspaper. He next moved into a spot vacated by Walter Winchell and wrote theater reviews as well as local gossip items. Sullivan began doing spots on radio and with that position became a star maker. In 1948, he was offered a chance to do his show on television. Originally called Toast of the Town, the show became a CBS hit. Sullivan himself had little acting ability and his stone-faced, deadpan delivery was often ridiculed.
The most frequent guests on the show were a Canadian comedy duo, Wayne and Shuster, who made 67 appearances. When music groups performed on The Ed Sullivan Show, they were required to perform live rather than the usual lip-syncing of their recordings. Sullivan refused to host Elvis Presley in early 1956. Ed regretted being scooped even though Elvis eventually did perform on the show. The next really big thing was going to be Ed's scoop. So he hosted The Beatles and more than 73 million Americans (about half the population) tuned in to watch the Fab Four perform five numbers – live.
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"Ed Sullivan will be around as long as someone else has talent." - Fred Allen
"These are women who, when I was growing up, made a difference for me, ... The first time I saw Diana Ross and the Supremes on the 'Ed Sullivan Show,' it changed my life." - Oprah Winfrey
"See, I was nine years old when I saw Elvis on 'Ed Sullivan', and I had to get a guitar the next day. I stood in front of my mirror with that guitar on. . . and I knew then that's what had been missing." - Bruce Springsteen
"The most important thing [during the first ten years of the program] is that we've put on everything but bigotry. When the show first started in '48, I had a meeting with the sponsors. There were some Southern dealers present and they asked if I intended to put on Negroes. I said yes. They said I shouldn't, but I convinced them I wasn't going to change my mind. And you know something? We've gone over very well in the South. Never had a bit of trouble." – Ed Sullivan
Comments
Great clip! and fun information
Love this article, and the video. Of course, I remember that show live. I was born in Liverpool, which suddenly became a big deal. Do you notice that they sound American when they sing, and Liverpudlian when they speak? I wrote an article on Associated Content about Liverpudlian slang.
Great video! I wasn't quite born yet (not for another 22 years) so it's fun to be able to see that.
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