Hard Night's Wait (1971)

 Hard Night's Wait

Newsday

July 23, 1971

Hundreds of young people, like Linda Gavaeff, waited and waited through the night at Roosevelt Field for tickets to Madison Square Garden for the return concert on August 1 by former Beatles George Harrison and Ringo Starr. And when the night was over, and all the tickets had been sold, there were still hundreds waiting. Only 70 tickets were allocated for sale at the shopping center. Sharon Durkin and Richie Walka were lucky. They waited 12 hours and walked away early yesterday with four tickets.

People Flood Ticket Office

Wire Reports

July 23, 1971

Madison Square Garden had to open its windows 10 hours early to accommodate 5,000 persons waiting to get tickets to the George Harrison benefit concert; many of them had been waiting in line since last Thursday. The box office opened at midnight Thursday, and by 8:44 a.m. 17,000 tickets were sold. The management decided to add a matinee performance for the August 1st benefit for 6 million East Pakistani refugees. A commercial ticket agency zipped through its 10,000-seat allotment in 83 minutes, starting at noon.

Night Vigil Net Youth Rock Tickets

The Herald-News

July 23, 1971

    With the determination echoed in a George Harrison hit, a group of youths camped out at Willowbrook Wednesday night so they might get tickets to see  The Sweet Lord of the Rock World.

     Tickets for former Beatle George Harrison's one-day concert at Madison Square Garden were to go on sale at 10 a.m. at Bambergers and Sears, and the kids had heard they were in short supply. Equipped with sleeping bags, blankets, and lanterns, they started arriving at the mall about 1 a.m. 

    "They were all very nice and polite to us," reported Willowbrook's security chief Justin Calatarci. "We felt sorry for them and decided that as long as they were orderly, we'd let them stay." 

     Calatarci said a total of 60 youths were scattered around the center's lot by sunrise. Some huddled on the grass, others curled up in cars. "Their only concern," he said, "was getting their tickets and going home."

     By the time the stores opened, the number of Harrison fans had swelled, and long lines at both stores' Ticketron counters kept the operators constantly moving. Within two hours, tickets priced from $4.50 to $7.50 were sold out. Bambergers reported 116 sales, and Sears, which experienced computer problems, sold 29.

     Was it worth the all-night vigil? One weary but happy young ticket holder was asked. "Hallelujah!" was her only reply.