Ken’s 14th birthday Beatles themed cake. Beatles fans take great pride in sharing their stories about discovering the Fab Four. For many first-generation listeners, the story often centers around The Ed Sullivan Show on that auspicious Sunday evening of February 9, 1964, when the Beatles launched the British Invasion by seizing control of millions of American television […]
Blog
50 Years of Beatles: It’s Getting Better All the Time
Five decades ago, as the Beatles prepared to embark upon their first world tour, the unthinkable happened when Ringo Starr suddenly fell ill, thrusting one man from virtually anonymity into international stardom in the blink of an eye. On the morning of June 3, 1964, the Beatles’ lovable drummer collapsed during a photo session for […]
50 Years of Beatles: Winning over the Nonbelievers
In the wake of the Beatles’ triumphant appearance on “The Ed Sullivan Show” on Feb. 9, 1964, the band spent the next several months consolidating their fame, breaking sales records and gearing up for their first world tour. One of the key elements in their coming global onslaught was the production of their first feature […]
50 Years of Beatles: The Fab Four’s Historic High-Five
Penn State Laureate Kenneth Womack’s essay series, “50 Years of Beatles,” continues with a look at the week the Fab Four occupied the top five chart positions in America. As popular music’s most resounding commercial success, the Beatles havesold more than 2.3 billion albums, while earning six diamond, 24 multi-platinum, 39 platinum and 45 gold albums in […]
50 Years of Beatles: John Lennon’s “In His Own Write”
ALTOONA, Pa. — After the Beatles’ breakup in 1969, the former band mates would enjoy variously successful solo careers, collectively scoring 20 No. 1 hits in the United States and the United Kingdom between 1970 and 2002. But in March 1964 — long before the Plastic Ono Band, Wings, the Traveling Wilburys, and Ringo Starr’s […]