No Beat in Beatles for Teen Reporter

Sharon Robbins and John Lennon  photo by Robert J. Quinlan

No Beat in Beatles For Teen Reporter
By Sharon Robbins
The Plain Dealer-- September 16, 1964


Editor's note:  Sharon Robbins won the Plain Dealer's contest to select a local teenager as the PD Beatles reporter.  She is a secretary at the Downtown YMCA.  Here is here report, gathered at the Beatles' news conference last night at Hotel Sheraton -- Cleveland.

I took 15 color photos of the Beatles yesterday at their news conference for teenagers, but I didn't get to ask a single question!

The scene was a room on the parlor floor of Hotel Sheraton- Cleveland.

Jan Mellow, The Plain Dealer's professional Beatles reporter, wasn't allowed to attend this news conference because it was closed to adults.

But Bob Quinlan, PD photographer, was let in to take my pictures with the Beatles -- or one of them at least.

I almost didn't get into the news conference myself.  It was arranged so winners in the WHK contest could talk to the Beatles.   Some WHK person had my name on a list but he couldn't seem to find it.

We waited for the disk jockeys who were running the conference.  One of them remembered me and I got in!

We were told that the first person who sighed --- let alone screamed -- would be put out of the room.  So we were very quiet.

Then the Beatles arrived, shook hands with everyone, sat down on four chairs right in front of us, and the questioning began.

Another Englishman -- I don't know his name, asked some questions.  you couldn't ask your own questions directly to the Beatles.  They had to go through this other man.  It wasn't very fair!

The questioning lasted for three or four minutes.  Then we were told, "That's all girls," and cleared out of the room.  So it wasn't much of a news conference after all.  But I did get to take close up pictures.  And I'm sure they'll turn out good.

And I WAS in the same room with the Beatles--for a little while.