Beatles all Wet

Beatles All Wet—But they’ll be back noon today

The Cincinnati Enquirer

August 21, 1966

A steady rain washed out an appearance at the Cincinnati Red’s Crosley Field Saturday night by the Beatles, the shaggy-haired English singing group, but promoters said the show will go on at noon today.

Police had estimated there were about 10,000 Beatles fans on hand it is appeared most of them had stayed until the show was called off almost two hours after its scheduled starting time.

The ball park will seat about 30,000 including the bleacher area.

Dino Santangeio, promoter of the show, said the rain had caused condensation in the electrical equipment used by the singers and that use of it might be dangerous.   He said the singers had agreed to change their travel plans and would stay over to put their show on today.

The singers were at the ballpark but never made an appearance before the crowd which appeared to be largely teenaged girls.

About 150 policemen also were on hand to hold back the usual squealing admirers of the singers.  Workers at the park and a lot of youngsters climbed on a grating to give them a view of a ramp leading to a dressing room used by the Beatles, but no one was hurt.

Police said the crowd generally was well behaved during the long waiting period.  The first delay was to erect a tarpaulin cover over the stage. 

The rain started about a hour and a half before the show as to have started.  For a time, there was considerable thunder and lightning and then it settled into just a steady rain.

Beatles’ fans, some of whom came from Florida, looked in vain late last night for officials who could refund their money after the singing group’s performance was rained out Saturday.

“How can I (go to today’s performance),” one girl said, “I’m going to church tomorrow.”

Although officials estimated the crowd at 20,000, experienced guards placed the figure at 15,000.  People were standing around the ticket windows trying to find someone who could refund their money.  No officials appeared anywhere.

Police blocked on staircase, but it was believed that no officials were there. 

Traffic police officials reported that any street within a half-mile radius of Crosley Field was jammed with cars.  Teen congestion plagued police, too. “We try to keep kids from packing on that one corner in front of the stadium but what we try to do and what happens are two different things,” one official said.