Attention 1st generation Beatlemaniacs! Could the fans in this photo at the Cincinnati Beatles concert in 1964 been you? Did you attend a Beatles concert in 1964?? Did Beatlemania get the best of you? If so then I want to hear from you! I am wanting to write a few articles like I did for the Ed Sullivan show appearance, with the memories of fans who saw the Beatles in concert during 1964 in the continuing celebration of the 50th Anniversary of the Beatles. If you saw the Beatles in Holland, Hong Kong, Australia, New Zealand, the United States, Canada or the UK during 1964 you have a story! It is time to share your Beatles story among Beatle friends who are maniacs as much as you are!
Here are some example questions. You do not have to answer these, but if you aren't sure what to share, this will get you started.
1. Where did you see the Beatles in concert?
2. How did you get the ticket to the concert?
3. With whom did you attend the concert?
4. What did you wear to the concert?
5. Did you make a sign or hold up a banner?
6. Were you a screamer, crier, fainter, or did you just watch in awe?
7. Could you see the Beatles?
8. Could you hear the Beatles sing? Could you hear them talking between songs?
9. Did anything memorable happen during the concert? (ex: someone ran on stage, fans carried away by police, John said something really funny, Paul winked at you (or you thought it was you!) etc.)
10. Any other memories from that day? (did you see them at the airport or their hotel? Did you parents make a comment that you will never forget? Did you buy a program or picture?)
If you have any photos from that time that you would like to share, such as photos taken of the Beatles in concert, photos of you at the concert, photos of you and your friends with your tickets etc, that would be welcomed as well.
I hope some of you out there have stories to share. Please feel free to ask around. Ask your parents and grandparents, church members, neighbors, teachers, and friends. I truly believe that we need to preserve these stories for the generations to come if we want Beatlemania to continue. Thanks everyone!
It was February, 1964 and my best friend, Marsha, was on the phone reminding me to watch the Beatles on the Ed Sullivan show. I wasn’t all that interested at the time, but because all my friends were becoming involved, I went along to avoid being an outcast. I wanted to be a ballerina and liked classical music, and couldn’t quite figure out what all the hoopla was over four long-haired guys from England. Ballet classes were my escape from a very dysfunctional and abusive family, as well as a male relative who molested me on a regular basisl, and I couldn’t see distracting myself with some crazy “fad.”
ReplyDeleteYes, I stood in line at the record shop to buy a copy of “She Loves You” along with everyone else, but it wasn’t something I put on my record player every five minutes like Marsha and her sister, Margie, and all my other friends did. I was more inclined to listen to “Swan Lake.”
When “A Hard Day’s Night” came out, I went along with Marsha and friends, but was annoyed when everyone kept screaming and I couldn’t hear what was going on. Marsha talked about George being so “gorgeous,” and kept urging me to pick a favorite Beatle of my own, but I still wasn’t quite into it.
This all changed on August 23, 1964, the day we all piled in a friend’s mom’s station wagon and headed up from San Diego to the Hollywood Bowl.
I had on the requisite short skirt, diamond-knit black stockings and mini Beatle boots, so I fit right in with the crowd, but my mind still wasn’t in “Beatle Fan Mode.”
Our tickets were in the nose-bleed section, which was actually good, because the speakers were right behind us and we could hear the singing quite clear despite all the screaming. When the Beatles came on stage, the audience (all except me and the jealous boyfriends who went to the concert with their girlfriends) went crazy. A few songs into the concert, Marsha handed me a pair of binoculars and insisted that I look and pick a favorite Beatle.
I put the binoculars up to my eyes, adjusted them, and saw the Beatle on the left at the microphone. I don’t really recall what he said, but when he began singing, “Close your eyes and I’ll kiss you…tomorrow I’ll miss you…remember I’ll always be true…” I was mesmerized.
I recall sucking in and holding my breath as I watched Paul sing, and before the song was over, I was crying. It was as if a fairy had waved a wand over my head and said that this person was going to save me from the pain of my real life, and as I watched, I felt that I’d fallen in love for the first time. I was twelve years old, and knew I was probably too young for such a feeling, but at that moment, as the final notes of the song faded, I truly felt in love.
I handed the binoculars over to Margie, Marsha’s sister, but I was in such a daze, I hit her in the face and ended up giving her a black eye. She’s never let me forget it to this day.
I left the concert in a speechless state. All I could think about was Paul, and as the following days, weeks and months went by, I visited a fantasy world I’d created to be with him, where all the pain and abuse in my real life didn’t exist. He was truly the salvation of my early teenage years and I will always love him for what he did for me.
I have another story from when the Beatles came to San Diego and Marsha and I baked them a cake. I can share in more detail later.
Linda in Mount Laguna
Thank you Linda....your story is so wonderful. I am sure that many other girls used the Beatles as a way to escape from the pain of things that were going on in their lives. Thank you for being so brave and honest. I truly appreciate you sharing this with me.
DeleteThank you Linda! Reading accounts like yours is what makes me come back to this blog daily!!!
DeleteYou're so lucky!! Can't wait to hear "part 2"!!!
Saw them here in Memphis on their last tour back on August 19, 1966. Made infamous as the 'cherry bomb incident'.
ReplyDelete