Update (12/30/03)

Update (12/14/03)

Update (11/30/03)

Finally, the incredible DVD edition "The Beatles: Ed Sullivan Presents The Beatles: 4 Complete Shows" is out now in Germany since November 24, 2003.

Update (11/15/03)

Update (11/8/03)

Update (11/3/03)

Thanks, Fred, for that very sweet report about a truly fab night. It was very important to me and Andrew Solt (the man behind the DVD release) that our launch event be attended by fans as well as the industry, media and celebrities who usually attend such events.

Our thanks to Mark Lapidos (of The Event Formerly Known As Beatlefest) for circulating a "first responders" e-mail invitation to thousands of fellow Beatles fans. The first 80 e-mails received in response to Mark's e-vitation were invited to attend with a pal. (BTW - Mark himself would have been there but for a long-scheduled important family event.)

A few more details to share with fans. I was thrilled that several eminent folks I've become pals with over the years were able to attend - and share their love of the Beatles with us. Fred spotted Steve van Zandt (of Springsteen and Soprano fame) in the crowd. Other folks there were the wonderful Martin Landau (Oscar-winner for "Ed Wood" - and celebrated for 40 years of work including the original TV "Mission Impossible") and Janeane Garofalo (comedienne, actress and political activist.) Steve, Martin and Janeane are all long-certified Beatles fans. (I only like to hang with fellow Beatle fans!)

Eagle-eyed observers may have also spotted cult magician/actor Ricky Jay, Barbara Orbison (widow of the great Roy Orbison), Ken Kragen (long-time manager of the Smothers Brothers), and even a beautiful sister-in-law attending on behalf of one of the lads! (That was that drop-dead gorgeous lady dressed in black! Fans seated in those comfortable Museum theater seats were therefore virtually "sitting on a sofa with a sister-in-law or two..."!)

Andrew Solt, who, just for the record. is the executive producer, not the producer of the DVD, was thrilled with the event. Andrew has owned the Ed Sullivan archive since 1990, and it has been his dream to see the four original shows released as a home entertainment package. We fans owe him a huge thank you for locating the optimum masters (some of the originals had been missing from the library) and then digitally-restoring them for release. And for releasing them as "original shows" rather than just highlights.

Incidentally the one member of the panel whose name eluded Fred was Vince Calandra. Vince was not actually the executive producer of the original Sullivan shows. He was however a key member of the small production team. He worked for the show from 1958 until 1971. He was the show's sole production assistant in February, 1964, and subsequently worked as talent coordinator for the Beatles 1965 concert at Shea Stadium.

The VIP guests we presented at the screening were all participants and witnesses to the historic events of late 1963 and early 1964:

Louise Harrison was with her brother George throughout the momentous days in New York.

Sid Bernstein, of course, promoted the Carnegie Hall concert. (And subsequently the Shea Stadium concerts.)

Billy J. Kramer accompanied Brian Epstein on that vital visit to New York in early November 1963 (40 years ago this week!) at which Brian secured the deal for the Beatles to headline on an unprecedented three consecutive appearances on the Sullivan show. (Without that deal - Capitol would never have agreed to release the Beatles' records. They'd already rejected the Beatles FOUR times!)

Davy Jones, as noted, was a leading cast member of the Broadway production of "Oliver" (he played the Artful Dodger!) and thus appeared on that legendary first show with the Fabs.

Vince Calandra not only worked with the Beatles as a member of the Sullivan production team, but he also was a stand-in for George Harrison at the camera rehearsals on the Saturday which George had to miss because of a strep throat. There is a wonderful photo that survives of Vince with John, Paul and Ringo. Vince is the one with George's guitar, a bemused expression and a bad Beatles wig stuck on his head by a mischievous Ed Sullivan!

(BTW - Vince is due to be a guest on a segment about the DVD on CNN this coming Tuesday (November 4th) "Wolf Blitzer Reports" 5pm-6pm EST (2pm-3pm PST) The segment is about the DVD. Naturally the segment's appearance is subject to "breaking news")

Though he was not a direct witness to the history of 1963/1964, I regard Bruce Spizer as a wonderful Beatles historian, which is why I invited him to join the panel. His forthcoming book "The Beatles Are Coming!" is unbelievable! (I've had a sneak peek!) He has uncovered essential information and stories that have never been reported. And the book presents incontrovertible proof that explodes several myths that have been accepted as fact for 40 years. Quite remarkable. Bruce tells me that his book will be published on January 16, 2004 - the exact 40th anniversary of the official notification that the Beatles had reached #1 in the charts with "I Want To Hold Your Hand." I think that it is going to be one of the most important new Beatles books since Mark Lewisohn's "Sessions" book.

Well, there you have it! Working on this DVD has been as gratifying to me as the DVD of "A Hard Day's Night," which I had the honor of producing for DVD last year.

This is just the launch! We have a lot more celebrations in mind for the next 3 months - leading up to the 40th anniversary of February 1964.

Keep watching this space!,
Martin Lewis,
Associate Producer - "The Ed Sullivan Shows Featuring The Beatles"

Update (11/2/03)

I just got back from the November 1st Beatles/Ed Sullivan event at the Museum of Television & Radio in New York City, and it was a wonderful evening. The festivities started at 7pm where guests signed in at the door and received numbered tickets for a surprise afterwards.

There was a reception with drinks and munchies served. Folks mingled and talked with fellow fans. I met Bruce 'Buy My New Beatles Book' Spizer at the reception, who had an advanced copy of his upcoming 'The Beatles are Coming' book with him. The book looks great, and I plan on getting the soft cover version of it.

Soon, some familar faces started showing up. Louise Harrison, George's sister arrived and charmed everyone with her friendliness. Billy J. Kramer was there as was Beatles expert Martin Lewis who was the master of ceremonies. Andrew Solt, the producer of the Ed Sullivan DVD's was mingling amoung the guests, as was Beatles promoter Sid Bernstein. Soon, another familar face showed up, former Monkee Davy Jones who had performed with the Broadway cast of Oliver! on the same Ed Sullivan show the Beatles made their debut on. It was a nice surprise to see Davy there.

Soon the guests were led to the main screening room where Martin Lewis began the festivities with some words about the release of the Ed Sullivan/Beatles DVD's, giving tribute to Ed Sullivan, Brian Epstein and the Beatles. Then on the large screen was shown edited highlights of all four Ed Sullivan/Beatles shows. Everyone applauded during the Beatles performances. When a very young Davy Jones appeared on screen with the cast of 'Oliver!', there was first a gasp of recognition from the audience and then wild applause which I know Davy appreciated.

After the screening of the highlights, there was a panel discussion onstage featuring Sid Bernstein, Louise Harrison, Billy J. Kramer, the executive producer of the Sullivan show whose name escapes me at the moment, Davy Jones, Bruce Spizer with Martin Lewis as moderator. Martin asked those on stage questions about their memories about the Beatles and the Sullivan shows. Sid gave a very eloquent and touching response about the love generated by the Beatles which the audience applauded. Davy was very funny about his memories of being on that debut show, which was his US TV debut too. Everyone on the panel shared their memories with the audience, and Bruce gave a very informative talk on the events that eventually led up to the Sullivan shows.

After the panel, everyone returned upstairs where more food and drinks were served. Another famous face showed up too: Little Steven Van Zandt from Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band as well as the Sopranos! Steven was very friendly and signed autographs to the fans. I asked him about Mike Smith of the Dave Clark Five, who is currently very ill and paralyzed from the waist. He and Paul Shaffer plan to do a benefit concert for Mike soon, details which will be forthcoming.

As for the numbered tickets everyone who attended were given, when we turned them in at the door, we were given a FREE copy of the Ed Sullivan/Beatles DVDs! I got my DVD package signed by most of the special guests who attended. What a night, mingling with fellow fans, meeting famous Beatles folks, and getting a free DVD to boot!

Later, as the party was winding down and the guests were starting to leave, me and my friends lingered a little longer and the folks at the museum had extra copies of the Sullivan/Beatles DVD's which they gave to us! This makes up for me having to buy the earlier version of the DVDs TWICE earlier this year! (One which I sold on Ebay.) Now I've got a Christmas gift to send to one of my brothers!

Overall, it was a great and memorable evening, and a splendid time was had by all. You should have been there.

Update (10/28/03)

Update (10/23/03)

Hi Steve,

My name is Robin Chifari, and I am the friend of Frank Walker, that was recently inquiring about the Ed Sullivan 4 disc DVD of the Beatles. I just wanted to write and to thank you so much for running this site, and for making sure this DVD was available. Aside from the obvious, loving the Beatles part of it.......this DVD is extremely personal to me, and I was completely floored last night when I was presented it by Frank.

You see, my dad, Ralph D. Paul was the announcer for the Ed Sullivan show over a number of years, and just happened to do the introduction on the 1965 show that is on the DVD. As my father passed away in 1987, you can imagine the feelings that I had flow inside me when I put that DVD in the player, and heard the words that I have missed for a long time "Live from New York, it's Ed Sullivan" and all the product info that followed. That's my Dad and as much as he was in everyone's living room on Sunday evenings all those years ago, the feeling of him being in mine last night, and for many nights to come is simply priceless.

Thank you for indirectly making this lady cry many happy tears last night. If it wasn't for your site, and the release of this disc, who knows when I would have heard his voice again. That is an incredible gift.

All the best,
Robin Eve Paul-Chifari
www.robineve.com

Update (10/21/03)

Update (10/20/03) From Gustavo Muchado:

Hey Steve. While browsing at a nearby Wal-Mart (suburban Atlanta), I found the Ed Sullivan double-DVD set. It came in three different color schemes: white and pink, black and gold, and blue and yellow (I think). None had a price tag. I picked up one, took it to the register, and it marked $19.64 (cute).

Update (10/19/03)

I have an offbeat question for you &/or anyone who reads this. I just ordered the Ed Sullivan DVD set......do you or anyone here know if Ed's announcer Ralph Paul is seen or heard on any the dics? I know he left the ES show from 1961 to October 1964, but based on that he should at least be on the 1965 show. He was from Long Island, NY and I've recently gotten to know his daughter pretty well. I'd like to surprise her with this. Thanks very much for your time & any info you may have.

Update (8/29/03)

Update (8/27/03)

Update (8/26/03) The press release for the Ed Sullivan DVDs:

Historic Beatles TV Performances Discovered! Eleven Hit Songs Unearthed After 40 Years in the Vaults!

'Holy Grail' of Beatles TV Appearances Will Be Released on DVD by Sofa Entertainment

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NEW YORK/PRNewswire/ -- A "Holy Grail" of ELEVEN unedited live TV performances by the Beatles -- that have not been seen since their first airing 40 years ago -- has been discovered in TV vaults. The performances were shot during the Beatles' historic breakthrough on American television on the Ed Sullivan Show in 1964 and 1965.

The eleven songs include live performances of no less than seven #1 hit songs including "I Want To Hold Your Hand," "She Loves You," "I Feel Fine," "Ticket To Ride," "Yesterday," "Help!" and other Beatles classics including "I Saw Her Standing There" and "I'm Down." The eleven performances and nine other ultra-rare live tracks will be available on a double DVD "The Ed Sullivan Shows Featuring The Beatles."

The DVD is being released on Tuesday, October 28, 2003 to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the legendary first encounter between Ed Sullivan and the Beatles at London Airport -- which led directly to them being booked for their American debut in front of a world record-breaking TV audience of 73 million viewers -- and their consequent historic breakthrough in America.

The Beatles made their historic American debut on the Ed Sullivan Show on Sunday February 9, 1964 -- the first of an unprecedented three consecutive headlining appearances on the Sullivan show. The Beatles also gave their last-ever performance on an American TV program on the Ed Sullivan Show -- which aired on September 12, 1965. The savvy Ed Sullivan convinced the Beatles to perform between FOUR and SIX live songs on each of their appearances on his show, for a cumulative TWENTY live songs on their four Ed Sullivan Show appearances. Those original four programs featuring the Beatles only ever aired in the season in which they were made. And then they were locked deep in the vaults for nearly 40 years.

The fact that there are a total of TWENTY live performances and thus an ENTIRE HOUR of ultra-rare live Beatles material (including interactions and banter with Ed Sullivan) is a revelation. The news that all 20 performances have survived intact and have now been digitally restored for DVD release -- including the 11 unedited performances that have not been seen in 40 years -- makes this a major 'find' not just in the Beatle world - but also for students of contemporary music, television history and 20th century popular culture.

The historic material has been curated by the current owner of the Ed Sullivan Show archive, director-producer Andrew Solt. Solt has now digitally restored all the audio and video of the historic tapes and will release a double-disc DVD set which will present all four historic Ed Sullivan Shows which featured the Beatles -- IN THEIR ENTIRETY -- EXACTLY AS THEY APPEARED 40 YEARS AGO.

Fans will be able to experience all four shows exactly as they were seen by a cumulative total of over 200 million TV viewers in 1964 and 1965. They will see all of the Ed Sullivan introductions, the supporting acts and even the now-quaint TV commercials.

The DVD release is by arrangement with the Beatles' company Apple.