Plaza Reception

Plaza picture

Sick in Bed

I think I caught what George Harrison had 51 years ago.   Uhhh...I feel terrible.   Going to cut the updates on the blog short for tonight and get more rest.   Sorry for the sub-par updates lately, but I promise to post some great stuff when I am feeling better.

Meet the press at the Plaza

On February 10, 1964 the Beatles spent a long and tiresome day at the Plaza hotel at a press conference and then mingling with just about every DJ in the United States. 

Loved here in America....

It has been 51 years since the Beatles came to America and I am happy that we still celebrate and remember this amazing event.   We love our Beatles!

Lennon side way glance.

We Meet the Beatles

Yes these photos are flipped.  I do not have the ability to flip photos.

We meet the Beatles
By William Christopher

In a glit-and-crystal room in New York's sedate Plaza Hotel, the Beatles chose to meet the press.

Ringo on cue, the doors behind the press table opened.  Into the room spilled a photographer, a Beatle, a uniformed guard, more Beatles, the Beatles' manager.

A Beatle called, "Hello, kids."

Someone answered, "Hi."

As the Beatles sat down, a press man began.  "Here are the ground rules Raise your hand and give the name of your publication.  Left to right:  Ringo, Paul, John and George"

He continued, "Capitol...present Beatles...gold records...fastest selling releases..."

No one listened.

Photographers jockeyed for position.  The Beatles, the gold records, a Capitol man posed.

Three Beatles wore dark suits with shirts and ties, but George had a gray sport coat over a black turtleneck sweater.

The photographers had a go at the Beatles, and instantly each one took on the expression seen in pictures.  Ringo glowered, Paul grinned, John smiled, and George just looked.

The photographers were asked to stop.  Most did.  Epstein, the Beatles' manager, stood, microphone in hand and waved toward the rear.

A voice said, "Sixteen Magazine."

"You look younger," quipped a Beatle.

When the laughter died down, the voice continued, "What were you called before you used the name 'Beatles'?"

John answered in thick Liverpudlain.

"You're putting me on," the woman said.

This was denied.

She persisted, "But on the radio interview last Friday, you said 'Beatles' was the first name you used."

"Did we?" asked a Beatle.

"Liars, aren't we?" from another.

A woman asked, "George why aren't you wearing a tie and shirt?" 

"Why aren't you wearing a hat?"

John came to Geroge's defense.  "E had a sore throat.  That why e's out of uniform."

Tea and sandwiches came; so did questions.

"Ringo, will you do me an enormous favor and push back your hair?"

"Does mail come to you individually or as a group?"

"What do you think of New York?"

Someone asked to direct a question to Mr. Starr.  Epstein turned to Ringo to repeat the question.   "I just can't do it," he laughed, "...just can't call him Mr. Starr."

"Paul does the spot show where some of you hair was pulled out?"

Paul put his hand to his head, "Ah, this is a wig."

"Will you describe the Mersey sound?"

"That's a name the papers made up."

"Will you date American girls?"

"What are you doing tonight?" John asked.

"On the Sullivan Show, everyone shouted for Ringo.  Is he the usual favorite?"

Paul began, "No, it varies."  John interrupted, "I was big in Sweden."

And so the press conference went on.  They answered some questions seriously and in depth, but for the most part they were simply having a very good time. 

Golden Beatles

The Plaza frenzy

Group photos

50 Years ago today the Beatles were quite busy with a day-long press conference at the Plaza hotel.  Here are some of my favorite photos from the press reception that followed.

I wanna touch your case.....

Girls outside of the Plaza Hotel.   At least one of them got to touch a guitar case!

Plaza Days

This story I found in the February 1984 issue of Life magazine.  It had a big article that celebrated the Beatles 20th anniversary.   The 20th anniversary was a pretty big deal it seems.    Like the Rolling Stone magazine I have been featuring, this Life magazine also speaks to individuals who were in New York at and had an encounter of some sort with the Beatles in February 1964.  This story is about Gregg Salomone, who was just 5 years old when he met the boys.

A month before the Beatles' scheduled arrival in New york, the Plaza Hotel decided it would turn down their request for reservations.  Gregg Salomone remembers the crisis.  His father, Alphonse, the hotel manager, announced at dinner in the family penthouse in the Plaza, "I'm going to have to cancel because I'm afraid the hotel won't be able to handle it."  At that point, says Gregg, "My sister screamed, 'The Beatles!' and began crying.  It was because of her carrying on that my father let the whole thing go through.

Gregg had a photo taken with the Ringo, Paul and George along with sister and a friend.  Just before the photo was snapped, says Salomone, Paul noticed the boy's fly was open.  "He said, 'Excuse me.' and bent down and zipped me up."

I want to hold your hand

Here is another article from the Feb 16, 1984 issue of Rolling Stone (issue 415).  This story is about two friends, Christian and Joanne  (both 17 at the time) who were able to meet the Beatles at the Plaza Hotel.

Christina:  My father was the photographer at the Plaza.  He was told that there wold be a press conference.  I came because I had access and Joanne came because she was editor of the school paper.  We couldn't tell a soul.  I probably was dying to tell somebody i my class, but we were sworn not to.

Joanne:  We thought it would be a fun idea to get a picture and meet the Beatles.  I was not some lunatic - crazy- screaming fan, but I enjoyed their music.

Christina:  The Beatles were sitting at a table with microphones.  We were the only teenagers in the room.  We went back to school, then I came back to the hotel later on.  I had a picture of myself taken with each one autographing my picture, and then I got a picture of Paul, George and Ringo.  It was a very exciting time.  I remember making prints and bringing them to school.  I sold them for a dollar a piece.  They sold like hot cakes.

This is what I wrote about what happened:

Joanne and I practically exploded in the taxi on the way back to school.  Although we had seen and spoken to the Beatles, the real excitement didn't come until the whole idea had penetrated our minds and we realized what had happened.  We knew the pinnacle of our excitement would come when we told the girls at school.  And so it did.  In the heat of our excitement, we tried to tell our fantastic tale,  but I just gave up and went over to the blackboard and wrote "We met, saw and spoke to the Beatles."  School life had to go on, and a few moments later, I found myself sitting before a typewriter, earnestly endeavoring to work my shaking fingers across the keyboard.  Now that's what I call Beatlemania...

The biggest moment for me during the whole day was after school when I went back to the Plaza, only to find myself  on the 12th floor.  When I had my picture taken with three of the boys, and Paul put his arm around me.  Well for a split second, I didn't know what to do!  Somehow it didn't seem right to put my arm around him, so I decided to put my arms behind my back.  Not only that, but Paul and Ringo signed kisses with their autographs!  No doubt you can tell I enjoyed my assignment for my school paper.

(Christina is now (1984) a professional photographer and president of her father's old studio in the Plaza.  Joanne is now Sister Joanne Safian, a high school English teacher in Westchester, New York).

Plaza autographs

This is an interesting item:  All four Beatles signatures on a Plaza postcard.  

Eyes for Paul

Right now this is my favorite vintage photo of fans.   It was taken outside of the Plaza in 1964.  I love how this Paul fan has brought her heavy duty binoculars to gaze at the Beatles in their hotel room up above them.   Good thinking!   This photo just keeps drawing me back in and I keep looking at it.

The Plaza

Many people today are remembering that it is the anniversary of when the Beatles first landed in American in 1964.    They are posting photos of the Beatles landing at J.F.K. airport or of the funny press conference that happened after they checked through customs.   But I am going to take a slightly different approach in honoring this day.   I am going to look at the Beatles and their fans who stayed outside of the Plaza Hotel where the fellows stayed while in NYC.    The story goes that when Brian booked the Plaza, the Beatles were still unknown in the States and the folks at the Plaza thought they were going to be British business men.  Boy were they in for a shock!    The Beatles were not welcomed back to stay at the Plaza and stayed at the Warwick during their other tours.

Here is what the Plaza Hotel looked like on the outside while the Beatles were staying there....

                 While inside of the Plaza, fans were trying to sneak into the hotel to see the Beatles.  Many were trying to pretend like they were reporters, maybe it worked?   Leaving the hotel was a wild time as well.  But they made it.  

The best film to watch to get a fan's view of this time in Beatles history is the movie, "I wanna hold your hand."   While it is a work of fiction,  it really shows how the fans felt and acted during that time.  If they ever turn this movie into a musical (which I think they really should do), then I WILL play Rosie.   I don't care how old I am, I was born to be Rosie from "I Wanna Hold your Hand." 

I love being a Beatles fan

I love being a Beatles fan because when I see an image like this one, the only thing in the photograph that seems outdated is the car.