It was 60 years ago today that The Beatles landed in New York City and launched the Beatlemania craze! They were greeted by a crowd of 4,000 screaming fans and 200 journalists for their first visit to the U.S.
Throughout 1963, the group’s popularity had grown in the UK. By October of that year, the British press had started using the term “Beatlemania” to describe the absolute fan frenzy that surrounded the band at the concerts and during their travels. When Beatlemania became a worldwide phenomenon in 1964, it surpassed any previous examples of fan worship, including for artists like Rudy Vallee, Elvis, and Frank Sinatra. One reason may have been because of the baby boom, which gave the Beatles a larger audience of young fans than Sinatra and Elvis had the decade prior.
Two days after landing in New York City, the Beatles performed on The Ed Sullivan Show in their first live American television appearance. 73 million people tuned it to watch – about 40% of the population at the time. According to the Nielsen Ratings, it was the largest number of viewers that had been recorded for an American television program. Sullivan immediately booked them for 2 more appearances that month.
In the brief time the Beatles were in America in 1964, they sold more than 2 million records, and more than $2.5 million in Beatles-related merchandise was sold. In 1964, the band topped the Hot 100 chart with 6 different songs – that remains the most ever in a single calendar year. By 1966, the Beatles became disenfranchised with all aspects of touring, and began to focus more on studio recordings. The band broke up in 1970, leaving a legacy of 18 albums and 30 top 10 singles in the U.S. Learn more here.