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Forty Years Ago

Aired February 09, 2004 - 10:42   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR; How's this for trying to make you feel a little bit old? Forty years ago, Beatlemania hit the U.S. when the four lads from Liverpool showed up for an appearance on "The Ed Sullivan Show." Larry Kane, the only American journalist to join the group on its entire first tour of the U.S., and he talks about his experiences in his book. It's called, beautiful title, "Ticket to Ride."
Larry Kane joining us from Philadelphia now to share some of those stories with us.

Larry, good morning.

LARRY KANE, AUTHOR, "TICKET TO RIDE": Good morning. Great to hear you.

KAGAN: It's unbelievable that at the time when you think of what media is like today, that there was only one U.S. reporter along for this ride. Why you? How did you get the ticket to ride with the Beatles on their tour?

KANE: Well, there were other people onboard at various intervals. I wrote a letter, but I wrote a letter. I was a 21-year-old news director at a Miami radio station. I wrote a better to Brian Epstein, and I added my business card with it and some letters from fans. And I think he thought that I was the head of all the news of all the seven stations that were listed on the business card. And when he met me in February of course we met, but then in August with the big tour, he realized I was 21 years old and I was this news director from a pretty tiny station in Miami, and there we were ready to roll August 18th, 1964.

KAGAN: And there you go, so as you hit the road, we look back on these films and we see all the screaming crowds and especially the screaming girls and women, could you tell at the time what a big deal this was?

KANE: It was an incredible time, and you had to understand, that when you sat there and watched the people in the audiences, they were looking directly at the Beatles and they were convinced that the Beatles were singing to them.

For example, I was in a corridor in the middle of one of the concerts in the Cow Palace (ph) in San Francisco, and I was knocked down by a crowd of people, totally knocked down by them. They caused me to have a bloody nose. They were using me as a trampling base. I sat in the middle of the one of the kids, and he was eating A Soft serve ice cream cone. The ice cream cone melted on my lap. So by the time I got on the plane, I had blood on my shirt and cream in my lap.

KAGAN: What a mess, but well worth the effort taking the hit to get such a great story. Of the Fab Four, when you were traveling with them, was there one in particular that stood out, that you thought, this one is the genius of this group?

KANE: Absolutely. John Lennon was spectacular. He was a man who said in public what he thought in private, and he did that all the time. He was also one of the most genuine and one of the most real article of the Beatles. He remembered my mother passed away in the summer of 1964 from multiple sclerosis. And in 1975, he joined me in Philadelphia for a three-day marathon to raise money for MS, and even did the weather on my program where I was anchoring the news. McCartney was a spectacular person, but very subdued, very, very subdued and private. And certainly the quiet Beatle, but couldn't wait to get out on stage. He made love to the audience with his eyes. He had that special connection, because every single Beatles fan was convinced that he was singing to them, and he was unbelievable on stage.

KAGAN: So many great stories. You went on to have a whole other career, viewers in Philadelphia of course knew and grew up with you as the local anchor man there. Why did you wait, Larry? Why did you wait so long to write this book?

KANE: Well, I had a career. Donna and I brought up two great children. I wrote another book on my life here. I said it's the 40th anniversary, this is the time to write it. It's simple as that. All the people who were buying it and people who were joining in this are in their 50s now, were Beatles fans then. Some are grandmothers and say they'd leave in a minute the Beatles came to their door. Most of them are in their 30s and 40s and teenagers, or people who were nine years old. Because one thing is overriding, no matter what you want to talk about, whether it be the fanaticism, or that excitement or that craziness in the crowd, or the joy on the tour, that's all over with now. What we have left here in 2004 is the greatest body of music assembled in the history of recorded music. It's pretty unbelievable when you think about it.

KAGAN: Pretty unbelievable, and great stories in the book. It's called "Ticket to Ride." Larry Kane, thanks for sharing a few of them with us this morning. Appreciate it.

KANE: Thank you. Have a great day.

KAGAN: Larry Kane, joining us from Philadelphia.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com







Aired February 9, 2004 - 10:42   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR; How's this for trying to make you feel a little bit old? Forty years ago, Beatlemania hit the U.S. when the four lads from Liverpool showed up for an appearance on "The Ed Sullivan Show." Larry Kane, the only American journalist to join the group on its entire first tour of the U.S., and he talks about his experiences in his book. It's called, beautiful title, "Ticket to Ride."
Larry Kane joining us from Philadelphia now to share some of those stories with us.

Larry, good morning.

LARRY KANE, AUTHOR, "TICKET TO RIDE": Good morning. Great to hear you.

KAGAN: It's unbelievable that at the time when you think of what media is like today, that there was only one U.S. reporter along for this ride. Why you? How did you get the ticket to ride with the Beatles on their tour?

KANE: Well, there were other people onboard at various intervals. I wrote a letter, but I wrote a letter. I was a 21-year-old news director at a Miami radio station. I wrote a better to Brian Epstein, and I added my business card with it and some letters from fans. And I think he thought that I was the head of all the news of all the seven stations that were listed on the business card. And when he met me in February of course we met, but then in August with the big tour, he realized I was 21 years old and I was this news director from a pretty tiny station in Miami, and there we were ready to roll August 18th, 1964.

KAGAN: And there you go, so as you hit the road, we look back on these films and we see all the screaming crowds and especially the screaming girls and women, could you tell at the time what a big deal this was?

KANE: It was an incredible time, and you had to understand, that when you sat there and watched the people in the audiences, they were looking directly at the Beatles and they were convinced that the Beatles were singing to them.

For example, I was in a corridor in the middle of one of the concerts in the Cow Palace (ph) in San Francisco, and I was knocked down by a crowd of people, totally knocked down by them. They caused me to have a bloody nose. They were using me as a trampling base. I sat in the middle of the one of the kids, and he was eating A Soft serve ice cream cone. The ice cream cone melted on my lap. So by the time I got on the plane, I had blood on my shirt and cream in my lap.

KAGAN: What a mess, but well worth the effort taking the hit to get such a great story. Of the Fab Four, when you were traveling with them, was there one in particular that stood out, that you thought, this one is the genius of this group?

KANE: Absolutely. John Lennon was spectacular. He was a man who said in public what he thought in private, and he did that all the time. He was also one of the most genuine and one of the most real article of the Beatles. He remembered my mother passed away in the summer of 1964 from multiple sclerosis. And in 1975, he joined me in Philadelphia for a three-day marathon to raise money for MS, and even did the weather on my program where I was anchoring the news. McCartney was a spectacular person, but very subdued, very, very subdued and private. And certainly the quiet Beatle, but couldn't wait to get out on stage. He made love to the audience with his eyes. He had that special connection, because every single Beatles fan was convinced that he was singing to them, and he was unbelievable on stage.

KAGAN: So many great stories. You went on to have a whole other career, viewers in Philadelphia of course knew and grew up with you as the local anchor man there. Why did you wait, Larry? Why did you wait so long to write this book?

KANE: Well, I had a career. Donna and I brought up two great children. I wrote another book on my life here. I said it's the 40th anniversary, this is the time to write it. It's simple as that. All the people who were buying it and people who were joining in this are in their 50s now, were Beatles fans then. Some are grandmothers and say they'd leave in a minute the Beatles came to their door. Most of them are in their 30s and 40s and teenagers, or people who were nine years old. Because one thing is overriding, no matter what you want to talk about, whether it be the fanaticism, or that excitement or that craziness in the crowd, or the joy on the tour, that's all over with now. What we have left here in 2004 is the greatest body of music assembled in the history of recorded music. It's pretty unbelievable when you think about it.

KAGAN: Pretty unbelievable, and great stories in the book. It's called "Ticket to Ride." Larry Kane, thanks for sharing a few of them with us this morning. Appreciate it.

KANE: Thank you. Have a great day.

KAGAN: Larry Kane, joining us from Philadelphia.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com