Most Historic Iconic Beatles Collectible: 1964 Signed Ed Sullivan Show Contracts- 4 Separate Contracts John W. Lennon, JP MCCartney (Paul McCartney), Richard Starky (Ringo Star) and George Harrison
1964 Beatles Ed Sullivan Show Performant
We love them, Yeah, Yeah, Yeah. Beatlemania in the United States had its start on February 7, 1964. It was a seemingly normal day as the Pan Am Yankee Clipper flight took off from London’s Heathrow with The Beatles in tow ready for their first visit to the United States. After the jaunt across the pond, they arrived at John F. Kennedy Airport in New York City with quite an introduction. They were met with a near riot as 3,000 teary-eyed and hysterically screaming fans strained for just a glimpse. Dressed in mod-suits and sporting their trademark pudding bowl haircuts, the Fab Four did their famous press conference at JFK for their eager listeners.
Little did they know that the JFK arrival was just the beginning of Beatlemania. Two short days later, Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, John Lennon and George Harrison were ready for their real introduction to all of America on the beloved Ed Sullivan Show. An estimated 40% of the U.S. population (73 million), tuned in to watch the performance muffled by the screams of teenage girls in the studio audience. This performance on the Ed Sullivan Show was their true arrival into the iconic adventure of American music and pop culture history.
But what was the engine behind the scenes that actually made it happen?
The answer is presented here in this very offering. It is the contract that put into motion and finalized their commitment to the Ed Sullivan Show. This particular agreement would have been on file with the show’s production company. It was basically, a deduction of dues agreement to the AFL-CIO and it was signed for the producer of the show Robert Precht by each member.
NEVER before has any contract or document surfaced with their full name handwritten signatures disclosing the details of the Ed Sullivan performance. And here it is
And yes that’s right, it is important to note that they are signed formally with their full names as any contractual document would be. They signed, J. W. Lennon (John Winston Lennon), J.P. McCartney (James Paul McCartney), George Harrison and Richard Starky (Ringo Starr). Any Richard Starky signature alone makes this a tremendously impossible find.
The owner was inspired by the 50th Anniversary of the Ed Sullivan Show and a recent 1960s CNN documentary to bring these contractual documents to the public light.
With the magnitude of the documents importance, it was necessary to get renowned authenticator Roger Epperson to examine and authenticate them in person. Epperson stated, “The autographs being fully hand written, “J. W. Lennon (John Winston Lennon), J.P. McCartney (James Paul McCartney), George Harrison and Richard Starky (Ringo Starr) are a rarity. Binding the Beatles to the 1964 Ed Sullivan show on a formal document and contract, there’s no telling what price a collector would pay for them.”
Understandably, condition is important when it comes to documents. These are in pristine condition with each having a staple hole in the top left corner as they were once fastened together. There are no tears or discolorations on the off-white paper. In fact, they have not seen the light of day since 1992 when they were purchased right under the nose of Beatles superfan Michael Jackson at a private collector’s party. Apparently, Jackson did not step up to the plate with enough cash. Continue Reading
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