On the streets of New York

 

October 16, 2001 --   Paul McCartney was back in New York City for the first time after 9/11 and he hit the streets in preparation for the Concert for New York.  

Funny Fish

The Beatles were given these strange dolphins -- fish -- whatever they are from Florida and the World's Fair during their New York press conference in 1964.   I think the look on their faces and how they hold them are too funny. 

Teens Interview Mary Hopkin

Here is a nice fan story about meeting Apple artist, Mary Hopkin.  It was from the November 1969 issue of Datebook magazine as part of their "Teens Interview" column.   

Photos were taken by Marianne Nicoletti

Teen Interview with Mary Hopkin
by Ingrid Annoust Lancelot (Brox, NY)

Mary Hopkin exits from backstage of the Ed Sullivan Theatre in all ebullience.  Her eyes are liquid sapphires; her teeth are of sparkling ivory; her lips, red, soft and shiny bedazzle her perpetual smile.  Her hair, longish and poetic, gloriously contours her pearly face with the radiance of flaxen gold.  She is petite, almost delicate and hauntingly reminiscent of a porcelain figurine.

Like bees around the fairest orange blossom, the crowd swarms around the legend form Pontardawe for a glance, a touch, and perhaps an autograph.  She is graciously obliging, blushing now and then at compliments.  This fact has not been overrated.  Blushing just happens naturally with Mary Hopkin.  Cameras flash here and there as Mary gracefully evades the embrace of an old man.   she is courteous to all, taking great pain to sign each and every piece of paper.  She is not enerved or impatient.  One gets the impression that she understands how much this means to a far:  she's been through it herself.  All around her are delightfully amazed, "How beautiful she is!" exclaims a middle-aged woman.  "She's cool!" acquiesces a long hair fellow.  Someone tells her how great she was on the show.  "Oh, really?  Thank you!" replies Mary as she signs another autograph.  She is doing well considering the fact that her arms are laden with her guitar and valise.

Meanwhile, her manager, Stanley Sharrington, tries to call her attention to the fact that almost half an hour as gone by and she has a busy schedule to keep.  So Mary Hopkin attempts to slip by unnoticed; but then, a group of hippies spot her and have something terribly important to tell her.  She is delayed once more.  Finally, her manager invites them to the hotel.  There is no big limousine waiting, no security.  Mary Hopkin carries her instrument herself and walks up Broadway and Seventh Avenue in the most natural manner.  There is no sophistication about her.  She is not a put on.  Mary Hopkin is for real.

A few days pass by and Mary Hopkin begins her engagement at the Royal Box of the Americans.  She finds the atmosphere of the club a bit frightening.  "They're right on top of you... I'd rather just be sitting in the audience and have someone say, 'Oh, come on, Mary, sing something!'"

Mary Hopkin insists that she still is the same ordinary girl she was before it all happened.  It all began when a mysterious telegram arrived from London asking Mary Hopkin to call a Peter  Brown, collect.  He turned out to have been Paul McCartney, after all, asking her to come to London to record.  The rest, of course, is history.  The fact that she is everybody's darling is somewhat of a surprise to her.  "I don't deserve it...I'm just an ordinary girl who likes singing."

The only thing ordinary about Mary Hopkin is perhaps her childhood.  At fourteen, she received her first guitar from her grandmother, took an interest in folk music and made a fifty-mile journey every Saturday to take singing lessons in Swansea.  She later became the vocalist of a trio of neighborhood boys.  ("I wanted to save enough money for a trip to Scandinavia.") When the trio broke up, they urged her to go on her own, and she did continuing to play in the Working Men's clubs in Cardiff, a Welsh town, risking expulsion from high school.   She left in her last year, anyway, because with an Apple contract in hand, the dull facts and figures of music and English classes we no longer relevant to her future.  "I never go the beauty of them," she explains.

So time runs short and the rest of the interview cannot possibly be scheduled.  The Hopkin family arrives to New York on Friday, June 13, and of course, Mary's time is taken up showing them the town.  In the faint hope of continuing the interview in spite of all, you present yourself on the floor of the Hopkin suite at 11:30 pm on Tuesday evening.  They are all out.  Just when you are about to give up hope, the elevator door opens to reveal Stanley Sharrington and Carol Hopkin, apparently coming from a festivity of some sort.  He recognizes you and greets you, apologizing you and greets you, apologizing for any inconvience you might have had.


Carol Hopkin looks on with an air of bewilderment.  After introductions, she excuses herself, "I have some packing to do..."  you ask her if she would like to pose for a picture.  She politely refuses.  "I'd rather not.  Mary's the one with all the talent.  I don't even sing!"

One cannot notice the quite composure about her, too.  She exits.  Mr. Sharrington explains that Mary went to a show, but that she should be up any minute -- and then excuses himself too; he has some packing to do.  Finally, Miss Hopkin appears.  She smiles.  you know that she is tired and to force an interview on her now would be a crime.  She appreciates the fact that you don't and invites you to interview her on the way to the airport.  To disturb her so early the next morning is out of the question.  So she promises the interview in September when she returns to New York after having toured South America and Japan.  you thank her and say goodnight.  you wish her the best.  But then, what else could you wish Mary Hopkin?

Luckiest baby of the week winner

photos by  Sebastian Alappat

Congratulations goes to Arya who wins the luckiest baby contest for this week.   Her prize is hearing all about how she grabbed Paul McCartney's finger and how he made her laugh for the rest of her life.

If these photos don't just melt your heart---then go visit another blog for awhile.

War is over outtake

Photo by Iain Macmillan

This is an interesting outtake of the cover of the Happy X-mas (War is Over) single.   But it didn't make it because---well look at the little girl sitting on Yoko's lap.   I have seen that look in my students over the years---she is excited or upset about something and it is not a pretty look for an album cover.

I didn't realize that this photo shoot was by Iain Macmillan, the guy who shot the Abbey Road album cover.

Their day off

August 22, 1966 was labeled as a "day off" for the Beatles, but it really wasn't a day off at all.   They had two press conferences scheduled on this day.   The first was a regular press conference for the press and the second one was a new idea that the Beatles came up with along with one of the New York radio stations.    They decided to have what was called a "Junior" press conference after the regular one.    150 fans (50 from a contest with the radio station and 100 picked from the New York fan club) were invited to come and ask the Beatles questions.     Things were a little wild and there was some screaming, but overall the Beatles enjoyed the atmosphere of the Junior press conference and a chance to talk to their fans.    A few fans asked questions like "do you know so and so??"  But most asked pretty good questions that the press folks wouldn't have thought of.


And do you know what Brian Epstein did on this day 50 years ago?  Yes, he was at the press conference, but he also was on the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson!    I found this out when I was doing research for my book.    Brian was interviewed all by himself and as far as we know, no audio, video or even photographs exist.     We wouldn't have even know that this happened if it wasn't for a major Brian Epstein fan that wrote about it in her diary!  


Since the Beatles wore the same thing during both press conferences, it is impossible to tell from which part of the press conference the photos are from.

Fans crowd around the Warwick

Among the fans that were around the Warwick hoping to see the Beatles 50 years ago today includes Bonnie with her wonderful "Sprout of a new generation" painting of Paul McCartney.    

Out on a ledge

On this blog we have seen Beatle fans do some pretty crazy things:   try to mail themselves in a box to the Beatles, run away from the United States to England to meet the Beatles, rent a helicopter that flew over the house where the Beatles were staying...etc.    But these two girls in New York took things a little too far if you ask me.   Someone could have gotten hurt or even died by this stunt.  While I am sure it sounded like an amazing idea to the teenage girls, in reality it wasn't wise at all.

Beatle fans threaten death leap

AP (New York)

Two girls threatened for 30 minutes Monday to jump from the 21st floor of the Americana Hotel "unless we get to see the Beatles."

A policeman got on his knees and persuaded them to come away.

One girl broke into tears and helped the other away from the ledge, witnesses said.

The girls then started combing their hair and checking their makeup as policemen rushed to grab them.

All the time the British rock n roll group was in the Hotel Warwick about a block away.  There was no indication that they knew what was happening.

Two women from Atlanta watched the episode from their 21st floor room, which overlooked the roof of the setback.

A steel railing runs around the roof, about two feet from the ledge.

Billie Stewart and Mrs. Warren Moody said police tried for 30 minutes to talk the girls into leaving the ledge, where they sat with their legs dangling over 54th Street.

One of the policemen finally got on his knees and begged, the women said.

One of the teenage girls with tears in her eyes, crawled under the railing and onto the roof.   The girl said something to her friend, then helped her from the ledge.

The Beatles arrived early Monday from St. Louis.  They will perform in Shea Stadium tonight.

Police kept a strong contingent around the Warwick, keeping teenage fans a block away.

The girls identified themselves to police as Carol Hopkins, 17 and Susan Richmond, 15, both of Staten Island.

They were taken in an ambulance to Roosevelt Hospital for observation.

Patrolman Richard Powers, 39, said he got to within eight feet of the girls during twenty minutes of trying to persuade them to leave the ledge.

He said the girls kept repeating that they had a letter for one of the Beatles and would stay on the ledge until they got a promise they could deliver it.

Powers said his partner, Patrick O'Connor, promised the girls that he would deliver the letter, but this did not work.

Then from his knees, patrolman Powers reached the girls when he said, "It would break my heart if my daughter was out here like this.  I have a daughter your age."  One of the girls broke into tears and climbed inside the railing and helped her friend to come inside.

Paul was asked about this at the press conference later that same day and here is what he said:

Q: I have a question for Paul. I don't know if you know about it yet, but two young ladies threatened to jump to their death from the 22nd floor of the hotel here in Manhattan if they could see you. How do you feel about young girls acting this way?

McCartney: If they could see me?

Q: They wanted to see you - If you would come over they wouldn't jump. The police finally rescued them. They threatened to jump unless you came over.

McCartney: Good God, you know. Phew! I don't understand it. I don't know. Erm, silly, that. I'll see 'em, you know.

Packing the boot

March of Dimes event

Same Beatlemania for a higher price

The tickets might have been more expensive and the venue might have held less people, but the fans who were at the Paramount show displayed the same symptoms of Beatlemania that the rest of the United States displayed during this tour!

Here is what one fan, named Mary said in her diary when she got home from this concert

Oh God - they were beautiful - I'm still shaking for hysteria. There really different then there pictures. Paul's hair is black and wavy. George's hair is reddish brown, and very straight. Ringo's hair is a silver brown and John's hair is very light brown and boy do they have lots of it too. There really so beautiful.

I'll never forget this day as long as I live. I'll never forget their faces. I'll never forget Ringo - I cried my eyes out for I knew I'd never meet him. I love Ringo so much I could die! I'll never forget this day, never!

Beatles and fans meet social set

Beatles and fans meet Social Set
By Gay Talsese
The New York Times
September 21, 1964


Coolly elegant women in mink coats and pearls together with men in black tie and in no need of a haircut found themselves in the Paramount Theater last night sitting amid 3,600 hysterical teenagers, who should, perhaps been home in bed or doing their homework.

But the Beatles were at the Paramount, the show was for charity and all was tolerated.  It took 240 policemen to keep things tolerable, however, as teenager girls, even five hours before the 8:30pm show  began, lined 7th Avenue and West 43rd and 44th streets causing traffic jams and confusion in the Times Square area.

The screaming and squeeled at everything, these hundred and hundred of girls between 13 and 18, some wearing "Ringo for President" buttons or carrying banners that read, "Beatles please stay here 4-ever!"

At 8:30 pm when the theater darkened, the girls inside shrieked and cheered.  When a shaft of light flashed onto the bandstand, the shrieked and cheered even louder.    When the announcer just mentioned the word "Beatles" - even though they would not be on until 10:45pm- the whole house reverberated with the jumping, thumping, flailing, shrieking crowd of young people.

Anyone over the age of 21 yesterday felt ready for Social Security.

The included, in addition to the policemen and the Beatles' chauffeur, many of the adults who put on the $75,000 benefit for Retarded Infants Service, inc. and United Cerebral Palsy of New York.

It was an incongruous sight last night, one that brought together the chic and the shriek sets.  The latter sat mostly in seats ranging from $5 to $25 each; the former sat mostly in seats costing $50 (380 were sold) to $100 (224 were sold).

The Beatles, when they got on stage, shortly after 10pm, sang for 25 minutes, strumming out tunes that nobody could hear.   They sang 10 numbers, but as they did, teenagers rose to their feet and jumped and twisted in the aisles; others tossed jelly beans, slices of bread or rolls of toilet tissue towards the stage.

Flashbulbs illuminated the theater, from the orchestra up to the remote reaches of the upper balcony, and policemen stood elbow to elbow in front of the high stage, neither frowning or smiling, just looking tired.

For everybody, The Beatles and their fans, it was a long hard day and night.

The Beatles, who had been in Dallas, and stopped over in the Ozarks yesterday, landed in a remote cargo area to avoid the mobs at Kennedy airport.   Then, at 5:30pm, they left by helicopter for Manhattan.

At that time there were 4,000 teenagers squashed behind police barricades along 43rd street and seventh Avenue  near the theater.

Unwisely, they assumed that these spots would give them a view of The Beatles' entrance.  But at 6:10, The Beatles chauffeur, Louis Savarese slyly slipped the rented Cadillac through West 44th street, sliding up the sidewalk just beyond Sardi's.

Then, as a few dozen teenagers spotted the British mopheads, and came running and howling towards the car, 40 policemen ringed the singers .  The best the girls could do was smear fingerprints over the car and rock it back and forth a bit.  By then, however, the Beatles were safely indoors.

Many girls---there were relatively few boys  at the Parmount last night -- were in obvious pain at having missed the Beatles' entrance:  a few of them began to weep.   Others just howled louder than before.

By 8pm, the theater was filled. The pre-Beatles show included songs by Steve Lawrence and Edie Gorme, Leslie Uggums and the Tokens, Bobby Goldsboro, the Shangra-la's, the Brothers four, Jackie DeShannon, and Nancy Ames.   All of them worked without fees, as did the Beatles.

Following their performance, the Beatles were honored with a presentation of a scroll by Leonard H. Goldenson, chairman of the United Cerebral Palsy Association.  It read:

"To Jack Lennon, George Harrison, Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr who, as the Beatles, have brought an excitement to the entertainment capitals of the world and who, as individuals, have given their time and talent to bring help and hope to the handicapped children of America."

After the 10th number, the Beatles ran off the stage and left the building at 10:45pm, before the crowd inside could get to them.

The chic set was not interested in chasing them, for they-- who had either $50 or $100 tickets had a champagne party in the downstairs lobby to attend.

In seven limousines, and 14 members of their entourage,   sped to the Riveria Idlewild hotel for a night of rest before flying back to England today.

Only two people were in the lobby when the Beatles arrived, neither of them Beatlemaniacs.  They were reading newspapers and went back to them when the Beatles disappeared up the elevator. 

Reading at the press conference

Anyone know what Paul is reading here??   It sort of looks like a script of some sort.

John in a coon skin cap

In February of 1975, not only was John back with Yoko at the Dakota (or as John put it 'our separation was a failure'), but he was also was hitting the circuit to promote the Rock n Roll album.    On February 13 he found himself at WNEW in New York on air with Scott Muni.   You can hear John on the radio that day right here.   
The two photos from the radio station come from the book "ticket to ride" by Denny Somach and the one with the fans is from the March/April 1975 issue of  "the Write thing."     Michael Stanikowits wrote a short paragraph about meeting John after the radio show for The Write Thing.  Here is what he said:

Guess what?  Karen and myself met John again outside Yoko's apartment (Feb 13).  He gave an interview on the radio, and of course we went down there.  He was dropped off by a limo by himself and we jumped out of the car and talked and took pics of him.  We have one of John, Karen and myself, taken by another friend.  He looked really fine - wearing a Davy Crockett type of hat and jeans and all.  We told him of June 12th (the write-in campaign) also.

Rushing by

John rushes by a fan to get into the Delmonico Hotel in New York in 1964. 

New York Peace

Angela McGowan

When did someone steal an item off of a Beatle and ended up getting a kiss from one? During the 1964 North American Tour. In a crowd of fans, Ringo's prized St. Christopher Medal gets ripped off his neck by a fan named Angela McGowan. Ringo asks for WABC radio to help get his necklace back, saying that the fan who returns the necklace will get to meet him and get a kiss. I guess Angela decided that meeting a Beatle was a bigger deal than having a stolen Beatle necklace, because she fessed up and got to meet more than just Ringo. This short article first was published in the Long Island Press.

Girl Trades Beatle Kiss for Medal

A teen-aged Manhattan girl who inadvertently stole Ringo Starr's religious medal returned it yesterday and her reward was paid off in kisses.

"I've had it a long time," Starr said as he retrieved his St. Christopher medal from Angie McGowan, 16. The medal is a Catholic religious symbol denoting protection form danger while traveling.

"My auntie gave it to me, " Starr explained. "It's very small, but it means a lot to me."

Angie said she was trying to steal a kiss from Ringo in an early morning crush, was jolted back by the crowd and came away with the medal.

When Starr proffered a kiss of gratitude on Angie's cheek, photographers prevailed upon him to repeat it a score of times. Angie acquiesced gracefully.

The Beatle Paul McCartney happened into the room and added his own kiss on Angie's cheek.

"It was just wonderful," sighed the blissful teenager. "Gee, I wish I could have met the other two."

John and Paul announce Apple Corps in NYC May 1968