An online Beatles fan club for and about Beatle fans
Here we have a group of girls waiting to see The Beatles at Shea Stadium in 1965. They are all wearing white shirts, dark skirts, and orange armbands. They must be in the same club or group. Does anyone have any idea who they represent? I love how many of them have bought their programs and have cameras with them. What a great time capsule photo.
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| I love this throw back to The 1966 Beatles Shea Stadium show. |
The Beatles in Action on Stage at Shea Stadium
By Linda Joy
5 Bites of the Apple
July/August 1972
I have loved The Beatles ever since ’64, especially
Paul. I always wished to see them in
person, even though I came from a small town in Connecticut. In July ’66, I was looking through the
newspaper and saw “Beatles Appearing at Shea Stadium …. August 23rd!” I thought, “oh Christ, I Gotta go!” I called up my cousin, Cassie, and she wanted
to go too. So, I asked my mother. She said, “You can go, but you have to earn
your money to see them.” No one would
believe what I did. I always hated
housework – I cleaned everything! Then I
got this brainy idea to sell soda bottles down at the store. So, my cousin and I loaded up a wagon of bottles,
and downtown we went. Everybody thought
we were weird, but I didn’t give a shit because I wanted to see them! We earned
$12.00. I sent away for the
tickets. We were waiting for weeks, and
my father made the wisecrack, “Oh, they’re probably all sold out.” Well, it was at the end of July when we got
the tickets. I was jumping up and down
with rapture, saying, “I’m gonna see Paul!”
Enclosed with the tickets was a letter saying, “Here are your tickets. Hope you enjoy the show.” I was so happy. I was crying.
All my friends envied me. Then my
mother stated that she didn’t want me to go to New York alone, being that I was
only 14 then. (I guess she was afraid of
me being mugged or something). I
explained to her that I had to go, begging that I got the tickets already. She said, “I’ll drive you and Cassie to New York.” I nearly fainted!
Finally, August 23rd came around, and of course,
I couldn’t sleep at all. I work my mother
up at 6 am, telling her that we must get an early start. We all left around 10 am since my mother didn’t
know where Shea was (She had never driven into NYC before). On the way in, I was listening to WMCA, and
all they were playing were Beatle songs.
My cousin and I couldn’t believe we were gonna see the “Famous Four.” When we finally got to Shea, I let out a big
scream. I thought for a moment that my
mother was going to crawl underneath her seat.
My mother told us that she would wait in the car, and so she parked it
near the Stadium. Cassie and I walked
around. We talked to some girls, and
they told us that they were sleeping at Shea overnight! We went back to the car and then 3 buses
pulled up…shit! I’ve never seen so many
cops in all my life. My mother even took
my binoculars and stared at them. My
cousin decided to go in – it was getting around that time.
We entered, and an usher showed us to our seats. But there was an older woman and her daughter
sitting in our seats. I told her politely
that they were sitting in our seats, and she said we were crazy. So the usher told us to sit 2 rows behind
them, and I was swearing and pissed.
Then two New York girls said we were sitting in their seats. Cassie told them what happened. So I called the usher over again. He thought we were insane. So he led us to section 9 and told us no
matter what to stay there. Well, these
seats were better than our own! I couldn’t
believe the huge signs all over the place. Some said: We love Paul too, George
wave to us, Happy anniversary John and Cyn, Paul don’t’ marry Jane Asher, and
one sign said “Paul Is Sexy” but the “Y” fell off! Then finally the show started at 8 pm, and my
heart was pounding and pounding. Bobby Hebb
came on first, then the Remains and Murray the K. He told us the Beatles couldn’t wait to see
us fans, and they love us all. Everyone
screamed…including me!
Then the Ronettes came on.
Everyone said, “We want the Beatles – Get off!” Then Murray came on, and everyone sang “Happy
Anniversary John and Cyn,” “Yellow Submarine,” and “We Love You Beatles.” Then Murray said, “HERE ARE THE BEATLES!” Everyone stood up – screaming and jumping up
and down. George and Ringo came out
first, and I screamed “George! George!” Then John and Paul came out. Paul was skipping and waving, and I really
yelled his name! Christ, did my throat
feel that scream. I was wondering if it
were all a dream. A few seats down, this
girl had a book and she was banging it over her father’s head, screaming “Paul,
Paul!” Everyone around me was in
complete ecstasy. I looked at my cousin,
and she was just sitting there. Saying
nothing. She was looking at me in a
disgusted way when I was screaming, but I didn’t care. Nothing mattered.
Then Paul said, “May I speak?” These two asshole guys in the back of me
yelled, “No!” And they were yelling, “McCartney sucks!” My temper couldn’t take that anymore, so I
yelled, “Shove I up your ass, you b-----!”
Then these two other girls told them to cram it -well, they kept
quiet. Then Paul said, “I want everyone
to sing along with me and clap their hands.”
All of a sudden, these two girls went through the barricades. Paul and George were staring at them, and
everyone was yelling, “Go! Go!” The cops
caught them. When I was staring at Paul
and his body through my binoculars, I noticed that he was winking at a lady
copy, and she just turned her head. My
throat was so hoarse. I thought I wouldn’t
be able to ever talk again. It was then
Paul noticed the sign that said “Paul Is Sex,” and he said into the mic, “Oh
girls. I’m a male.” It was finally over, and John yelled, “Goodbye,
fans! We’ll be back next year, so save
your money, and we love you all.” I was
in complete shock. We had to leave, and
so we found my mother in the car, shaking, and the door locked. I asked her what was wrong, and she said, “Christ.
I never saw so many crazy kids screaming over them. They were jumping up and down on my car, and
I got scared.” I laughed. I asked my cousin to come with me to stand
near the gate once more for a minute, and I couldn’t stop thinking of Paul and
what happened. I could feel the tears running down my cheeks.
To this day, people still envy me. Yes, I was very lucky to think that was their
last New York appearance. But lucky to
see the four most beautiful people who brought happiness to me and whom I love
very deeply.
If you have seen the Beatles at Shea TV Special of the 1965 concert, you have the beginning where they show the Beatles getting ready for the show in the dugout. And you see John pick up a baby sweater and hold it up (see the screenshot I made above). And if you are like me, you have thought, "why is John holding a baby sweater? Why was there a baby sweater backstage to begin with?" Well, Beatle friends, I discovered the answer to that question in a 1982 issue of the fanzine Good Day Sunshine. Once again, one of the biggest Beatles mysteries has been discovered right here on MTBFR.
That Day At Shea
By Patty Saksa
Good Day Sunshine
December 1982
As I was reading a past edition of Good Day Sunshine, I was
reminded in “Beatle News and Other Interesting Views” that 17 years ago, on
August 15th, I was part of THE concert at Shea Stadium.
That day dawned after weeks of anticipation. As a 14-year-old girl, I thought the day
would never come. My friends and had
saved our babysitting money to purchase our prized possessions – TICKETS –
months before the show through Show Bus Tours.
What more could a Beatlemaniac ask for?
My friend Mary and I had decided that we would buy a present
for Ringo and Maureen for their yet unborn first child and then somehow get it
to him. Again, we saved more babysitting
money, and on August 12, 1965, we purchased an infant’s sweater set. Having wrapped the present carefully in paper
decorated with babies and flowers and with a letter included inside to Ringo,
we held on to our gifts to go as the bus left Norwalk, Connecticut, at about 5
pm.
Beatlemaniacs of all ages were on that bus, singing songs
and screaming as the bus converged with other Beatle buses onto the roadway to
the home of the New York Mets. As we
drew near, someone spotted a helicopter, and immediately we hung out of the
window, hoping that they would see us!
Our bus pulled in at 7:55 pm, and since the concert started at eight, a
mad rush ensued to find our seats: LOGE
BOX – SECTION 7 – BOX 341B – SEAT 7.
Having located our seats (we agreed that although they were good, the
seats at Forest Hills the year before were better), we tried to be patient as
the music began. From where we sat, we could
see the dugout from where THEY would come!
On stage, Murry the K introduced his dancers, and then N.Y. DJ Scott
Ross brought on King Curtis.
What? Isn’t that Mick, Keith, and Brian in the dugout? There, look, Ringo just walked through followed
by – oh my God – John! Nobody was
interested in what was going on on stage.
Mick started waving to the audience, and our screams drowned what music
could be heard through the small speakers.
The WMCA radio Good Guys next introduced Cannibal and the
Headhunters. During their act, Mary and
I decided to somehow get the present to Ringo.
Holding onto the gift, I told Mary and her younger sister Margie to just
walk down to the dugout as if we belonged in that section – but we were
separated. There I stood at the dugout,
present in hand, heart beating and knees shaking as policemen stood guard on
top of the dugout – sentries to keep us from our Heroes. Nervously, I asked one policeman to please
give my present to Ringo. He tried to
tell me no one was in there (but I knew better). I asked if he could give it to someone who could
give it to Ringo, but again he said there was nothing he could do. In tears, I screamed, “What am I supposed to
do? We spent all our money on this gift!” Angrily, I threw the gift, and it landed on
the field just outside the dugout. Those
around me cheered, and I floated on air, thinking I had come this close to
meeting them.
We made it back to our seats just as Brenda Holloway and
Sounds Inc performed. Finally, the
roadies brought their guitars on the stage, and screams rang through the stadium.
Cousin Brucie then introduced Side Berstein, who introduced Ed Sullivan, who
introduced The Beatles! Alas, the rest is
history preserved for prosperity in the film “The Beatles At Shea.”
Oh yes, our seater did make it to them! In the film, John holds up the sweater! Also, a few weeks later, I received a letter
from a girl in Canada named Gloria, who found my letter in their room in
Toronto. We corresponded for a while – a
treasured clipping from a Canadian paper forever captures John holding the
sweater but unfortunately, through years and moves, her letters have
disappeared. However, the fond memories
I have will never disappear. Preserved
in scrapbooks of used tickets, yellowing tape, and newspaper clippings of a
time 17 years ago when I experienced that day at Shea.
This is a screenshot from the Beatles Shea Stadium concert TV special. Has anyone seen this actual photograph?
This photo is Paul and John backstage in 1965 at Shea Stadium. Looks like they are tuning their guitars. They are talking to Murray the K. The girls in the photo are Patty Michaels and most likely her sister, Dale.
If you want to read Patty's story -- I posted it back in 2012. Click the link below.
http://www.meetthebeatlesforreal.com/2012/06/my-date-with-paul.html
August 15, 1965 -- The Beatles at Shea Stadium was one of the defining moments in Beatles history and so many of you were there. As far as I'm concerned none of The Beatles live performance can beat the Shea Stadium performance of "I'm Down." To me, that is the ultimate in Beatlemania and The Beatles live. When I saw the Shea Stadium concert after the film Eight Days a Week, it was great! Let's hope that we can see it released on Blu-Ray, DVD, streaming -- whatever is available in the near future!
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| Photo taken by Linda (Eastman) McCartney |
