The Beatles Invasion 50-Year Celebration: See The Fab Four on the Big Screen, Yeah, Yeah, Yeah

The Paley Center will celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of the Beatles arriving in New York with screenings of two essential programs for the Beatles fan. Experience their debut as it happened by seeing the complete Ed Sullivan Show from February 9, 1964, including commercials; and see the behind-the-scenes antics and the hysteria in the city captured in a cinema vérité documentary from the Maysles brothers. You might have seen clips of these shows on TV or YouTube, but now you need to see the Fab Four as big as life on a movie-size screen.

Read Ron Simon's article on TV in January 1964 

These screenings are FREE and open to the public. 

The Ed Sullivan Show

The date February 9, 1964, positively shrieks and screams in the history of rock ‘n’ roll: it was the first official appearance of the Beatles on American television screens, on The Ed Sullivan Show, after which the music scene and pop culture would never be the same. Amidst the tumultuous screaming of the adoring teenage girls, John (“Sorry, Girls, He’s Married”), Paul, George, and Ringo perform “All My Loving,” “Till There Was You,” “She Loves You,” "I Saw Her Standing There,” and “I Wanna Hold Your Hand.” Trying their best to capture attention for themselves are Ed’s other guests: magician Fred Kaps; impressionist Frank Gorshin; British singer Tessie O’Shea; comedians Mitzi McCall and Charlie Brill; novelty act Wells and the Four Fays; and cast members from Broadway’s Oliver!, including future-Monkee Davy Jones. No wonder the Fab Four seemed like a bolt of cool lightning. Includes the original commercials. (60 minutes; 1964)

What’s Happening! The Beatles in the U.S.A.

Noted documentary filmmakers David and Albert Maysles (Salesman, Grey Gardens) landed the assignment of a lifetime when they were chosen to capture a British rock band about to make their first American television appearance, on The Ed Sullivan Show. The arrival of the Beatles at JFK Airport; their snappy, irreverent repartee as they wait at the Plaza Hotel for their big moment on the air; a trip to a Manhattan nightspot; and highlights from their subsequent D.C. concert are all captured in the raw and spontaneous cinéma vérité Maysles style, an unscripted precursor to their classic film A Hard Day’s Night. Also on hand are Beatles manager Brian Epstein and deejay Murray the K. This was made for Granada Television in England. (Later re-edited and released as The Beatles: The First U.S. Visit). (70 minutes; 1964)