Summary

TAPE: 04/0050 IN_TIME: 07:29:43 DURATION: 2:50 SOURCES: APTN/VNR RESTRICTIONS: See Script DATELINE: New York, 16 January 2004/File SHOTLIST ?? NOTE THAT ALL BEATLES CLIPS CAN ONLY BE USED IN THIS STORY OR WHEN REFERRING TO THE DVD OF THE BEATLES PERFORMANCES ON THE 'ED SULLIVAN SHOW' BEATLES MATERIAL CANNOT BE AIRED AFTER APRIL 30, 2004 VNR File New York, February 1964 1 Various shots, Ed Sullivan introducing Beatles for the first time and their performance of I want to hold your hand APTN New York, 16 January 2004 2 SOUNDBITE: (English), Bruce Spizer, Beatles Historian and Author: So by the time the Beatles arrive in America, we've had saturation coverage and that's why we have thousands of teenagers at the airport It wasn't a coincidence, the radio stations got on the air and said the Beatles will be arriving at 1:20, Pan-Am airlines flight 101 international arrivals JFK airport and the kids were out there in force playing hooky (truant) on a Friday, mind you, and they were there And then when the Ed Sullivan show came on 73 million people tuned in because on that friday the major networks reported on the Beatles arrival at the airport VNR File New York, February 1964 3 Various shots, Beatles arriving at JFK airport APTN New York, 16 January 2004 4 Spizer seated next to Dr Joyce Brothers, columnist who was one of the first to write about the Beatles in 1964 5 Camera crews 6 SOUNDBITE: (English) Dr Joyce Brothers, Columnist: Teens always want rebellions and to express their rebellions, but Britney Spears is only a blip on the horizon The Beatles were there for 40 years and to have that kind of staying power is extraordinary I don't think anybody else has done it VNR File New York, February 1964 7 Various Beatles outside the Plaza hotel in New York, fans fainting STORYLINE: Standing outside the Plaza Hotel in 1964, a young girl playing hooky from school hoisted a handwritten sign: Elvis is dead Long live the Beatles Forty years later, John and George are dead, too - but Beatlemania endures The 40th anniversary of the Beatles' arrival in America will be celebrated on February 9, with fans of all ages preparing a variety of tributes Organisers held a Manhattan news conference to promote the events marking the famed February 9, 1964, appearance by the Fabulous Four on The Ed Sullivan Show An estimated 73 million Americans tuned in to see the boys from Liverpool in their US debut Judging from the number of anniversary tributes, many of them still care deeply about the band that split up more than three decades ago after becoming the most popular group in the world Among the 40th anniversary events were the DVD release of the Beatles' four Sullivan appearances, featuring 11 songs from rarely seen performances; retrospectives at the Smithsonian Gallery, the American Film Institute, and the Museum of Television and Radio; and a special screening of A Hard Day's Night at Lincoln Center The news conference featured a somewhat unlikely early Beatles booster: columnist Dr Joyce Brothers, who had predicted their British success would translate o this side of the Atlantic Brothers called teen idol Britney Spears A blip on the horizon in comparison with the Beatles Also present on the news conference was author and Beatles historian Bruce Spizer who is pushing his new book The Beatles are Coming In the book, released Friday, Spizer lends his insight into what exactly helped propel the Beatles to the top here of American music charts and even pop culture Meanwhile in Washington, the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History opened Friday The Beatles! Backstage and Behind the Scenes, a photo exhibit that features more than 80 never-before-published black-and-white images from US network CBS archives and Life photographer Bill Eppridge