Tonight Show

The whole fan aspect of how we many of us 2nd generation fans were able to view when John and Paul were on the Tonight Show in 1968 has fascinated me for years.    The mere fact that one fan had the mindset to record the interview on a reel-to-reel cassette and then another fan had the idea of recording the show with whatever camera was available at that time (without any sound no-less) and those two fans who didn't even know each other at that time, somehow ended up having their two homemade items fused together so that those of us born after 1968 were able to see and hear the show is amazing to me.  Sure, it didn't really match up very well, but it gave you the idea.    A better audio has been available in recent years, but really nothing beats my old VHS copy that has the warning of how "this tape is for true Beatle collector's only.   The quality is a C- and is only meant for fan enjoyment."   Yeah...I felt like I had made it to the top of the Beatle fan food chain when I got that tape back in the 1980's.     Come to find out, the interview itself was awful.    Oh my goodness....you have Paul and John on your show and you ask them about going to Central Park?    So anyhow, when I spotted these photos of John and Paul on the Tonight Show that were taken by a fan off a T.V. screen (who knows...maybe they were snapped from someone watching the VHS I owned) on ebay, I knew I had to snatch them up.    Sure they are  bad quality, but they are in color and they just add to the magic that makes the whole John and Paul on the Tonight Show mystery fun.   Although it sure would have been a lot easier on us all if the programs in the 1960's just kept their tapes.    Thank you Ed Sullivan for keeping your stuff!