The Beatles Research Paper

Jessica Hamilton
Professor Weierman
History and Journalism Paper
3/11/12
The Beatles
“Oh Yeah, I’ll Tell You Something
I Think You’ll Understand
When I Say That Something
I Want To Hold Your Hand…” “I Want to Hold Your Hand” was the first song released in America by the popular band from Liverpool, The Beatles. From that moment forward, The Beatles became popular all over the world and forever changed the music industry. The Beatles started the British Music Invasion in the United States. On December 10, 1963, Walter Cronkite from the CBS evening news featured a story about “Beatlemania” in the United Kingdom where their song “She Loves You” was featured. A girl from Maryland saw the news report and sent a letter to a DJ for a
Paul McCartney and Lennon met in July of 1957, and McCartney soon became the guitarist for the band. In February of 1958, McCartney invited his friend George Harrison to watch the group. He ended up auditioning for the band. Lennon was impressed by Harrison but he thought he was too young for the band because he was only fourteen years old at the time. After much persistence, Lennon gave in and allowed Harrison to become the lead guitarist. In 1959, John Lennon’s friends had left the group while he started his studies at the Liverpool College of Art. Lennon, McCartney, and Harrison then became “Johnny and the Moondogs” and played whenever they could find a drummer. Lennon’s friend from college, Stu Sutcliffe, joined the band and suggested they change the band name to “The Beetles”. They became a tribute band to Buddy Holly and The Crickets. According to Mark Lewishon, a Beatles expert, they used the name “Beatals” through the month of May, then became “The Silver Beetles”, then changed their name to “The Silver Beatles” before finally settling on “The Beatles” in August of
As they were leaving, about four thousand fans gathered at the airport to see them off. When they arrived in New York at John F. Kennedy Airport, they were greeted by approximately three thousand fans. Just two days after arriving in New York, the Beatles were featured on their first live US television show, The Ed Sullivan Show, where they performed. Approximately seventy-three million viewers in over twenty-three million households, or thirty-four percent of the American population, tuned in just to watch the Beatles. According to the Nielsen rating service, it was the “largest audience that had ever been recorded for an American television program.” Following their television performance, they gave a performance at the Washington Coliseum, as well as two shows at Carnegie Hall. The band then went to Florida to appear on the Ed Sullivan Show for a second time, in front of seventy million viewers, before returning to the United