Name: Ringo Starr Remembers The Beatles' First Appearances On The Ed Sullivan Show | Letterman
Uploaded: 2022-02-23T13:07:18.000Z
Description: Watch the stand-up comedy video 'Ringo Starr Remembers The Beatles' First Appearances On The Ed Sullivan Show | Letterman' from Letterman on Comedy Buff. Published 2022-02-23. Transcript available.

Watch the stand-up comedy video 'Ringo Starr Remembers The Beatles' First Appearances On The Ed Sullivan Show | Letterman' from Letterman on Comedy Buff. Published 2022-02-23. Transcript available.

- Now this is cool, kids.
31 years ago, our first guest made his American debut
on this very stage right here in this theater
as a member of the Beatles.
We couldn't be happier to have him back here tonight
on "Candy and Gum Night."
Ladies and gentlemen, please say hello to Ringo Starr.
- Nice to see you.
Welcome to the show. - Thank you, Dave.
- The crowd is so excited they turn black and white
all of a sudden.
Welcome back to the Ed Sullivan Theater.
- Oh, thank you. - 31 years ago.
- I know, before most of these people were born.
- Well, hell, before I was, well.
- Well, not quite.
- Let's talk about that experience.
I mean, living through that just as an observer,
an amazing phenomenon.
What was it like when you guys came to the United States,
landed at, I guess it was then, Idlewild Airport, wasn't it?
Yeah.
What was it like then from the ride in right here
to the center of town?
- Crazy. - Yeah.
All right, we'll be right back with Ringo Starr
with some more of those fascinating details.
- Uh, it was pretty amazing, you know,
'cause when we were booked to play on the Ed Sullivan Show,
we didn't really know who Ed was,
but we'd play anywhere.
- Sure.
- And, uh, we had no records here.
We'd had two records out and nobody wanted them,
so we were really nervous.
And, uh, oh yes, I know.
These are sad tales, I'm telling you.
- Yes, it is.
It's just too bad things didn't work out.
- It was like this, you know.
So anyway, we got here and just with the madness of it all,
we landed with a number one record.
And so there was like 50,000 kids at the airport,
which was very nice 'cause we were used to that.
And the drive-in, uh, you know, it just was craziness.
But what was great was that when we got to the hotel,
because we come from England, you know,
they have one radio station and one TV channel.
When we got there, there was all this media stuff,
and we were phoning the, uh, the, uh, the DJs
and then listening to ourselves on the radios,
and all this thing was getting crazy and crazy.
Then we got here and, uh, you know, not really knowing,
okay, it's Ed Sullivan, what's that really mean?
We didn't know.
- Did Ed know you guys?
Did you get a sense that he knew exactly what?
- No, I don't think he knew anybody.
- He didn't know anybody?
- Oh, that's okay.
- That's a sad comment about Ed.
- Well, no, it just wasn't Ed.
- There's Ed right there.
- I don't know.
- So, I mean, my memory of Ed, we came here with,
oh, it's American, we had all this craziness,
and Ed's going to say, yeah, they are the greatest,
the best, you know, big, big, big buildup,
and it seemed like Ed said, uh,
here they are, the Beatles.
- Ringo, there's something that I've wanted to ask you
for a, uh, a long, long time.
It seemed to me when I first was aware
of your group, the Beatles,
and we would see, you know, pictures in magazines
and newspapers and stuff about touring Europe,
in London and everywhere, Liverpool, and what's,
and it seemed to me then that the hair
that we came to identify so closely,
and readily with the Beatles,
it was just like guys growing long hair.
- Sure.
- And then when you got to the United States,
it was like, oh, man, look at that hair.
You know, everybody had kind of matching hair.
- Yeah.
- So, I'm like wondering, were you,
was that your actual hair?
Were you guys wearing, like, Beatle wigs?
- Oh, that was our actual hair.
- It was your actual hair.
- Yeah.
- Oh, yeah, we just grew it like that.
- No.
- Yeah.
- But, do you think this is a cool audience?
Everybody always wonders, you know,
what was it like when you did the Ed Sullivan show?
- Yeah.
- Besides, I was in the back somewhere down there.
- Yeah.
- Well, you know, I thought if you were up to it,
I could sort of maybe give you a moment's feeling of what was like.
- How so?
What exactly are you going to do?
- Well, I thought if we could have the audience,
when I count to three,
and all the very high-pitched voices scream.
- No, not yet, not yet, but do you think you could do that?
- Yeah.
- Yeah, okay.
But you have to help me out, Dave.
- But what do I have to do?
Well, hell, I passed out Candy.
What do you want for me?
- Well, I got a little something here.
A little-- - Oh, prop.
- It's gonna be good.
I want you just to do this, because the last couple of times I saw the show,
I saw you sort of complaining about your hairstyle.
- I have some hair.
I have interesting hair.
- Well, I got this for you.
And so you don't feel alone, so you don't feel alone.
- I'll just take this back to the room.
- Let's go and stand down there, and I'll give him one, two, three,
and they're just going to shrink the brains out.
- Paul, are they paying me enough to do this?
Well, why don't we have Paul come down, too?
- Thank you.
Thank you very much.
There you go, Paul.
Now, let's pack that camera back there.
- Oh, my God.
- Come on, Dave.
It's sweeps week.
- We ain't in that better shape.
- Anyway, you like Paul.
Now, don't you feel good, Dave?
Don't you feel good?
- Yeah, you don't.
Thank you.
Thank you very much for my grandest moment of public humiliation.
Nice to see you again, Rick.
I'll see you again next time.
I'll see you again next time.
I'll see you again next time.
Bye.
Bye.
Bye.
Bye.
Bye.