My Favorite Birthday Present

I received many fantastic presents on my birthday last Sunday, my favorite is this yet to be hung picture of the Beatles appearing on the Ed Sullivan Show, an historic moment for both the show and the group.  My wife was able to put a bid in on it at a silent auction at a Maple Valley wine bar.  The proceeds went to charity.

Fifty Years Ago--The Beatles Appear On Ed Sullivan

To celebrate The Beatles appearance on Ed Sullivan, you should understand the times.  It was 1964 and the world was in kind of a funk.  President Kennedy had been shot and killed a couple of months before and the youthful president who represented the future was replaced by Lyndon B. Johnson, a somewhat unpopular former senator. 
The Beatles wore what looked like suits and had hair cuts that no one had seen before.  As I remember it (I was only 6), we would gather to watch Ed Sullivan every Sunday night.  I recall being confused by the haircuts and all, beat it didn't take long for me to be a full fledged Beatles fan.  The earliest songs I remember are "Can't Buy Me Love", "I Wanna Hold Your Hand" and "Can't Buy Me Love".  Soon there was a Beatles cartoon that ran on Saturdays.  It would feature 2 cartoons which featured a Beatles song and a singalong between them,   The Beatles did not provide the voices for the characters.  I also got to see "A Hard Days Night", the first Beatles movie at the Liberty Theatre.  I also bought Beatles bubblegum cards around that time at the grocery store at 3rd and Yakima in Walla Walla.