Sept. 12, 1964 - Four two-legged Beatles scurried into Boston Garden tonight, let down their hair for a teenage audience, and gave the old sports emporium a new measure of madness.
Hysteria gave way to pandemonium when the mopheads appeared for their $60,000, 30-minute songfest.
No sports effort ever matched the physical exertion expended on behalf of the visiting Britishers by screaming, jumping, clawing, fainting juveniles with runaway emotions. During the mania, hands ran away from their owners and tore at faces, ears, mouths, and hair.
Music was an overlooked commodity, for the din denied hearing of this foursome who would like to hold your hand.
Twenty minutes after the show ended, a 16-year-old Reading girl was found lying face down in a pool of water in a restroom, overcome by hysteria.
She could not remember her name. She complained of pain in her legs.
Physicians took her to a first-aid room, where they tried to learn her identity. The room was placed in darkness, and after 10 minutes she started to recover. She was then transferred to Massachusetts General Hospital.
Another child, captivated by hysteria, was on the verge of jumping from a second balcony. An usher tackled her and pulled her to safety.
At least six other girls succumbed to hysteria and were carried unconscious in the arms of policemen to first-aid rooms. Others staggered from the seats — semi-conscious, in tears, and screaming.
A barrier of 25 police, their hands clasped to form a chain, held off the thundering assault of Beatle addicts attempting to approach their idols.
Little girls were paralyzed by excitement. They stood trembling, hands shaking, and sweat coursing down their faces.
At the apex of hysteria, the Beatles pulled a major coup.
They turned the stage over to a supporting cast, boarded a freight elevator; jumped into their limousine at the rear of Boston Garden, and escaped to Hanscom Field, Bedford, for their flight to Baltimore.
Boston police joined in the plot. They set up a decoy to prevent trouble.
Six motorcycles lined up outside the Boston Garden, as if in readiness to escort the lads, luring the waiting mob.
Back at the Garden, meanwhile, the screaming was unabated. Thinking they would return, it reached a fever pitch.
Then, with utter suddenness, the shock of relative silence gripped the hall. The Beatles were gone.
Some collapsed from fatigue. Other children wept. Still others rushed backstage to search, and some of the realistic complained they didn’t get their money’s worth.
The Beatles arrived at Hanscom Field at 10:15. Beatlemania passed from Boston.
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