How to Meet a Beatle (part 1)

Those of you who get upset over this being a "stalker blog" might want to skip this article.   In 1965 for BEAT magazine, Sandra Lowell basically wrote three articles could have been called "How to stalk the Beatles" instead of "How to Meet a Beatle."    Now me being me, I think they are cute articles.  I enjoy them.  Other of you out there might disagree.  But as I have stated before, since this blog is the one that I run, I am going to post what I like and since I like these articles, I will be posting all three of them.  Here is the first one.

How to Meet the Beatles (Part 1)

By Sondra Lowell

You can meet the Beatles when they come here, get their autographs, even sit and talk with them.  Getting into a Beatle press conference or even a Beatle party isn’t nearly as difficult as getting into, for instance, Fort Knox.  Of course, you have to be awfully lucky, but sometimes you can help luck along with careful planning.  It you really want to meet them, there are all sorts of things you should be doing right now.

One thing you can do is study.  Of course, the only way to get an “A” is to end up face to face with a Beatle, and knowing a lot about algebra and history won’t do you a bit of good.  But reading and rereading your old movie magazines can be very helpful.  It might help to read a few spying manuals, too and maybe even a couple of books on voodoo or teleportation – that means traveling by mind waves or something.

Anyway, if another girl got to them in a certain way that might just end up begin the way you can meet them.  Or somebody else’s schemes might give you ideas for your own.

I read one story where a girl was invited to a big party at the Bel-Air hideout in Southern California last year (and alone!) with the Beatles because Paul shook hands with her at a charity function and liked her.  That story probably won’t help you at all.  Too far-fetched.

The one about Pat Boone’s kids meeting them in Las Vegas or Burt Lancaster’s having them over for an evening aren’t of much use either – unless your father is a movie star  Well, maybe your parents are active in some big charity and you can suggest the invite the Beatles to a fund-raising affair.

Or, if your home is large and secluded, you can ask the group to stay with you.  But that’s pretty impossible too.

Not that you shouldn’t’ think up impossible brainstorms.  Even if they’re absolutely wacky and could never happen, it doesn’t hurt to try.  Last year five girls from Phoenix dreamed up something that couldn’t work in a million years.  They started getting ready for the Beatles in February, contacting the mayor of their town and doing a hundred billion other things so that when the Beatles came they girl could present them with a key to the city.

Well the Beatles never even got to Phoenix so the girls went to Los Vegas hoping against hope to give them the  key there.  The Beatles press agent had been notified, but hadn’t told them yes or no.

Then, during the performance a few minutes before the boys went on, Derek Taylor came out to the girls in the audience and brought them backstage.  He’d taken a vote of the Beatles, who agreed to see the girls.  You can imagine how they felt.  Ringo was lying down at first, but he got up and talked to the, and along with the other Beatles, answered all of their questions.

Each girl shook hands with each Beatles about five times and every girl got autographs of every Beatles on both her white gloves.  The girls were especially delighted because they hadn’t realized such big stars would be so nice and polite.

See what you can do if you really try?  Not a single reporter was allowed inside the dressing room and yet these teenagers made it.  Afterward they got another treat.  The Beatles asked where they were sitting and then waved to them from the stage.

Oh, there are hundreds, even thousands of ways to meet the lads.  Some girls bumped into t hem accidentally last year.  Some caught up with their limousine in a race down the freeway.  As the Beatles scrambled into an elevator in one city, a girl was almost pushed in with them by the crowd. Paul picked her up and set her down outside the elevator.  Granted, it would have been more exciting if he’d put her down inside the elevator, but when has he picked you up lately?

In most Beatle-meeting schemes, you’re going to have to depend on luck, no matter how good your idea is.  So figure out what things might happen that could help you.  But don’t’ waste your time waiting for the impossible.

Here are a couple of hints that we learned last year:

1.        There’s a rule against sticking heads out Beatle windows, and it’s hardly ever broken.

2.       It’s awfully doubtful that you’ll find a Beatle in a hotel swimming pool even in the middle of the night or traipsing around outside their hide-out even in disguise.  I heard about Ringo combing his hair back and walking through an Atlantic City hotel unrecognized, but it’s too hard to believe. Who could mistake a face like that?  No, when they go anywhere it’s freight elevators and limousines and anything else that’s sneaky.

Next week I’ll tell you how to meet them the way I did, at one of their parties.

The article sure did not warn of the dangers of trying to meet the Beatles.  I hope this girl was alright and was able to see the Beatles concert the next day.