From the MCRFB NEWS archive: 1965
‘Beatlemonium at Stadium, Youngsters Get Carried Away’
NEW YORK — The Beatles experienced an impact of their own at Shea Stadium Sunday night, August 15. They faced a screaming crowd of 57,000. The performanced grossed $304,000, according to promoter Sid Bernstein; of this, the Beatles received $160,000.
The excitement started early, the stadium was flooded with screams, shouts, banners displayed throughout the stadium long before the Beatles made their appearance on stage.
At 9:14 p.m., Sid Bernstein introduced Ed Sullivan on stage who introduced the Beatles. After that, it was impossible to hear the band and flashbulbs popped everywhere. The Beatles kicked off with a tune that sounded, as much as one could hear it, like “Twist And Shout.”
Girls climbed over walls, fainted and cried throughout the 35 minutes as the Beatles performed. The only way you could guess when a song ended and another on began is that the Beatles stopped moving for a moment on stage.
At 9:51 p.m., the Beatles left the stage, climbed into a white station wagon parked nearby and were raced away.
Bernstein is offering the Beatles a guarantee of $250,000 for a return two-show engagement next July or August to pit their amplified music against the screams of another stadium full of youngsters. END
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(Information and news source: Billboard; August 28, 1965)
THE BEATLES LIVE AT SHEA STADIUM (Entire Concert Audio) Sunday, AUGUST 15, 1965
