Fifty Years Later, Audience Members Recall the Beatles on 'Ed Sullivan Show'

At NYT, "Historic Hysterics: Witnesses to a Really Big Show: The Beatles’ Debut on ‘Ed Sullivan’":

Debbie Gendler, a teenager from Oakland, N.J., had gone to television shows before, taking a seat in the studio audience and clapping dutifully when the “applause” light flashed. But this one was different. There were crowds outside the studio that chilly afternoon in February 1964, hysterical crowds, and a phalanx of police officers blocking the way.

“I kept showing the ticket,” said Ms. Gendler, now Debbie Supnik, “and my mother had to fight to say to this one police officer, ‘She has a legitimate ticket. Let her through and get her in there.’ They walked me, finally, in through the front of the building, past a couple of barricades and girls who were upset that I was being ushered in and who started to pull on me, pull on my jacket.”

Someone inside directed her to a seat in the balcony. It was still early — airtime was more than an hour away. The stage crew was checking the lights and the cameras. “I sat and sat,” she said, “and waited.”

From left, George Harrison, John Lennon, Vincent Precht, Ed Sullivan, Rob Precht, Ringo Starr and Paul McCartney.Loose Ends: John, Paul, George, Ringo and MeFEB. 8, 2014
She did not realize it, but she and the rest of that audience were waiting to become witnesses to history: the Beatles’ first live appearance on American television, on “The Ed Sullivan Show,” a variety hour that ranked as one of the top 10 programs in the country for most of its long run...

What a fabulous experience.

More at the link.

And video of the show is here. And the history of it all's at Wikipedia.