Feb. 9, 1964: Beatles win over America on ‘The Ed Sullivan Show’ -- 5 fun facts
It was 55 years ago; nearly 73 million people were watching when “The Ed Sullivan Show” went on the air and The Beatles took over music forever.
John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr, fresh from Liverpool, England, kicked off the first of three Sunday appearances on the variety on Feb. 9, 1964.
A screaming crowd and national television audience watched that first show, and the yelling did not subside as the quartet sang five songs over two sets.
Here are five fun facts about that smashing debut:
PLAYLIST: The Beatles opened their set with “All My Loving,” “Till There Was You,” and “She Loves You." Later in the show, the band returned to play “I Saw Her Standing There” and ended their set with their No. 1 hit, “I Want to Hold Your Hand." All but “She Loves You" would appear on the group’s first album for Capitol Records.