The Beatles performed for the second and final time in Cincinnati on Aug. 21, 1966, a Sunday afternoon concert at Crosley Field.
The concert had been scheduled for the night before, but heavy rains and no tent over the stage raised concerns of electrocution from the soaked equipment. The show was canceled, but the band agreed to play the next day.
Sunday the sun was shining. The stage at second base was under a canopy. A hundred police officers guarded the stage from any overzealous fans. Signs in the double-deck stands read variations of “We love you, Beatles.”
Finally, the Beatles came out of the players’ tunnel, waved to the crowd, took the stage and started rocking.
None among the 12,000 screaming fans at Crosley Field knew it would be one of
the last shows John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr would play together.
Here's more about the concert, in the words of people who were there.
“Beatles’ Colossal Brush-Off Disappoints Fans – Idols fly in, snub crowd and vanish in 18 seconds” – Cincinnati Post headline
A few hundred fans were waiting at Lunken Airport to catch a glimpse of the Fab Four when their plane arrived at 2:45 a.m., August 20. But 18 seconds was all they got, as the band was whisked past the fans, reporters and photographers, into a limousine, and driven away.
“The Beatles are a pretty nice bunch of blokes. You’ve just got to meet them under the right circumstances.” – Enquirer reporter David Bracey
Bracey met them lounging in their dressing room, tuning their guitars. Ringo was chewing bubble gum. Paul was “having a put-on karate contest with one of the show staff.” George spoke of his interest in Indian music and learning the sitar.
“More’s the pity that fans and the foes never meet the Beatles when their volume is turned down,” Bracey wrote.
They talked about the controversy over John’s comments about Christianity, that the Beatles were “more popular than Jesus.” That didn’t play well in the Bible Belt and Deep South. People burned Beatles records, and the Ku Klux Klan picketed their concerts. Crosley Field was only half full.
“I don’t think what John said bothered the fans,” Ringo said. “But we’ve lost audiences, you see, because their mums and dads pay for the tickets.”
“It was so wet that we couldn’t play. They’d brought in the electricity, but the stage was soaking and we would have been electrocuted, so we canceled – the only gig we ever missed.” – George Harrison, “The Beatles Anthology”
It started raining before the 8 p.m. showtime on Aug. 20. The promoter had neglected to put the canopy over the stage, and it was too dangerous to plug in the electric guitars.
After a two-hour delay, the announcement came over the PA system that the show was off, and fans were told to come back at noon the next day.
“How can I? I’m going to church tomorrow,” cried one soggy, disappointed girl.
“Who knows, they could be framed in gold, and passed along generation to generation, in token of this great weekend we’ve had!” – Vernon Manor proprietor Joseph Link
The Beatles spent an extra night at the Vernon Manor in Mount Auburn. Three lucky girls managed to get the room next door.
“We watched them run around the hall in their socks,” Lynn Vonderahe Saul told The Enquirer in 1995. “They were so touchable!”
The hotel owner auctioned off sheets, pillow cases, towels and cigarette butts the band had used, the money going to children’s charities.
“You should have heard the noise! … When they were announced, the entire audience rose en masse. The screaming, which was absolutely deafening, continued throughout the performance.” – Enquirer contributor Susan Vonderbrink
The Beatles played a brisk, 11-song show in 30 minutes. The music could hardly be heard over the screaming. Fans came to see the Beatles, to experience this cultural moment. It would be the last chance.
After their American tour ended on Aug. 29, the Beatles stopped playing live concerts.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: The Beatles didn’t let rain, controversy spoil 1966 Crosley Field show
