By Steve Marinucci
Published on November 7, 2003, San Jose Mercury News (CA)
In the house where I grew up during the 1960s, there was one TV show above all others that spelled ``family time'': ``The Ed Sullivan Show.''
Sullivan started his career as a New York newspaper columnist, a journalist pounding a typewriter, but became one smart variety-show host. He knew that to attract a big audience every week he had to present something for each member of the family -- adults, youngsters and teens.
More often than not, what the teens got was that wild, raucous rock 'n' roll music they loved. If you're too young to remember those days, you might be surprised at what raised the ire of '60s parents: hairstyles that today seem tame; unusual clothes; and a noisier style of music than expected by those accustomed to Frankie Avalon and Paul Anka.
You can check out some of that with ``The Four Historic Ed Sullivan Shows Featuring the Beatles,'' a new two-DVD set from Sofa Entertainment, distributed by Goodtimes Video.
The discs include not just the performances by the Fab Four, which are available in clip compilations of the Sullivan show elsewhere, but also everything else on the show: Sullivan's introductions, other performers and the commercials. But forming the centerpiece are the 20 songs performed by the Beatles, 11 of which haven't been seen since they first aired. There are no extras; the shows speak for themselves.
Sullivan liked to tell the story of how he found out about the Beatles, on Oct. 31, 1963. ``My wife, Sylvia, and I were in London, at Heathrow Airport,'' he has been quoted as saying. ``There was the biggest crowd I'd ever seen in my life! I asked someone what was going on, and he said, `The Beatles.' `Who the hell are the Beatles?' I asked. But I went back to my hotel, got the name of their manager and arranged for them to do three shows.''
The first, on Feb. 9, 1964, attracted a TV audience of 73 million, setting a record that stood for years. That show is still vivid in my memory. The adults at my house were relaxing in chairs, the kids lying on the floor. Mom and Dad wanted to see the cast of the Broadway musical ``Oliver!'' (which included a young British actor named Davy Jones, later one of the Monkees) and British singer Tessie O'Shea. But my sister and I cared only about the band our schoolmates buzzed about and whose records we'd coaxed our parents to buy for us.
Finally, Sullivan got down to business. ``Now, yesterday and today, our theater's been jammed with newspapermen and hundreds of photographers from all over the nation, and these veterans agree with me that the city never has witnessed the excitement stirred by these youngsters from Liverpool who call themselves the Beatles,'' he told viewers, looking almost frightened at what he was about to unleash.
``Now tonight,'' he continued, ``you'll be entertained twice by them -- right now and in the second half of the show. Ladies and gentlemen, the Beatles!''
Screams from ecstatic fans pierced the TV speaker as the Fab Four launched into ``All My Loving.'' My sister and I sat hypnotized.
Our folks were less enthralled. The musicians had long hair. And Ringo -- was he homely!
The band performed ``Till There Was You'' and what would become its American trademark, ``She Loves You.'' But all too soon, the segment ended.
Sullivan reminded us the Beatles would be back in the second half, which meant we'd have to wait through magician Fred Kaps, the ``Oliver!'' cast, impressionist Frank Gorshin (the Riddler on the ``Batman'' TV series), Olympic athlete Terry McDermott, Tessie O'Shea and comics Mitzi McCall and Charlie Brill.
Whew!
After what seemed an eternity, the band was back on camera to do ``I Saw Her Standing There'' and ``I Want to Hold Your Hand.'' The screams of the audience blared through the speaker. The Beatles appeared to be having a great time.
Overall, their onstage performances here are livelier than the studio versions. Given that they had an audience of screaming young girls, that's really no surprise.
Sullivan had booked the Beatles again for the following Sunday, from the Deauville Hotel at Miami Beach, and for Feb. 23 in New York, a segment actually prerecorded before the band returned to England.
Those shows are here, too, as well as the Beatles' Sept. 12, 1965, appearance on the Sullivan show, when the fresh-faced group looked far more self-assured than the year before.
In addition to the Beatles, the shows spotlight comics Allen and Rossi, dancer Mitzi Gaynor, comic Myron Cohen, the British comedy team of Morecambe & Wise, singers Gordon and Sheila MacRae, Cab Calloway, instrumentalist Acker Bilk, Soupy Sales (who does his big hit, ``The Mouse'') and Cilla Black, a Liverpudlian who, like the Beatles, once worked at the Cavern Club and was managed by Brian Epstein.
Some of the acts were dreadful. Gordon and Sheila MacRae's takeoff on ``The Garry Moore Show,'' with Gordon's horrible impersonation of that show's host; Dave Barry's embarrassing comedy routine about teenagers on a show a lot of teens were watching; fellow Britishers Morecambe & Wise doing a weak routine about rare antiques. (The comic duo comes off much better in an appearance with the Beatles included on the ``Beatles Anthology'' videos.)
Still, the images are pristine. Watching them is like being transported back to the '60s.
And oh, by the way, my parents finally did become Beatles fans -- once they saw the Rolling Stones on the Sullivan show six months later.
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