$40.5
$57.11
The Fabulous Beatles poster – Sorry Sold Out! Forest Hills Tennis Stadium, New York 28-29 August 1964 Despite having already played New York City, Miami and Washington in February ’64, 19 August 1964 saw The Beatles embark on what has since been known as their first American tour. The 25 date tour throughout the U.S. and Canada, was to earn the group well over $1 million. The eight and ninth shows of the tour took place on the 28 and 29 August at Forest Hills Tennis Stadium in New York. The band played one show on each date in front of 16,000 fans. But this poster wasn’t produced to advertise the show. It was to inform fans that tickets for the two Forest Hills shows had completely sold out. The eye-catching, bright yellow poster features an illustration of the four black-haired mop-tops, reminiscent of the images on the band’s Hard Day’s Night album cover that had been released a month earlier. Above the Fab Four the poster reads The Fabulous Beatles. It then names the four band members, Ringo Starr, John Lennon, Paul McCartney and George Harrison, before adding the devasting news ‘Sorry! Sold Out. Hope to see you Next Time Around. The Beatles Forest Hills Tennis Stadium,New York From 1961 to 1971, the Forest Hills tennis stadium was the location for the annual Forest Hills Music Festival. The 1964 festival featured seven acts over several weekends in July and August. The Festival’s first performance was a one-night-only show by Barbara Streisand on July 12. Other artists included Trini Lopez, Count Basie, Woody Allen, Harry Belafonte, Joan Baez, Johnny Mathis, Peter Nero with the closing performances being The Beatles on August 28 and 29. The Beatles arrived in New York at Kennedy Airport at three o’clock in the morning. Even at this early hour, the boys were greeted by 3,000 waiting fans. The Paul McCartney project website explains “In no more than two minutes, they ran from the plane into their limousine. Police confined the fans to a 30-foot-high observation deck, which was 200 feet away from where the plane landed”. John, Paul, George and Ringo were driven straight to the Delmonico Hotel on Park Avenue and 59th Street where, despite their accommodation location being a closely guarded secret, even more fans were waiting. The fans were dispersed by police at 4am but by the time The Beatles awoke later that morning thousands more fans were outside. Following a press conference on WABC Radio the band stepped back into a limousine to a heliport in lower Manhattan, and flown to Forest Hills Stadium. The band were protected by 200 police officers inside the venue and a further 300 officers on patrol in the surrounds. Private detectives were on the scene, four ambulances were stationed, and fire hoses were in operation to dampen outbursts that venture beyond. Tickets for each of the venue’s 15,983 seats were sold out. Tickets for the show were priced at $1.95, $2.95, $3.95, $4.95 with tickets on the day being sold for $6.95. The audience were kept from the stage by an eight-foot high fence topped with barbed wire. The master of ceremonies on the first night was the WMCA Good Guys, and Murray The “K” on the second night . The Stan Rubin Orchestra offered pre-show entertainment. The support acts were, in order of appearance, The Bill Black Combo, The Exciters, The Righteous Brothers and Jackie DeShannon. The Beatles arrived late and took to the stage at 9.50pm. They stormed through the standard US tour setlist consisting of “Twist and Shout” (The Top Notes cover), “You Can’t Do That,” “All My Loving,” “She Loves You,” “Things We Said Today,” “Roll Over Beethoven” (Chuck Berry cover), “Can’t Buy Me Love,” “If I Fell,” “I Want To Hold Your Hand,” “Boys” (The Shirelles cover), “A Hard Day’s Night,” and “Long Tall Sally” (Little Richard cover). Clips of the band’s performance and the fan’s hysteria were captured and can be seen here. How much is an original The Beatles Forest Hills Tennis Stadium Sorry Sold Out! poster worth? The original Beatles Sorry Sold Out poster measured 38¾x26½in. (98.4×67.3cm.) The Beatles Forest Hills poster has become one of the rarest pieces of Beatles memorabilia ever. According to the auction house Christie’s, it is believed that only four copies of the poster were ever produced. Only two copies have ever appeared on the auction market. One of those was placed at auction in 2005 and achieved a sale price of $7,800. We reckon that value will have at least doubled by now. There’s no argument from us, if you can find an original copy and can afford to buy it, you’re on to a winner. There’s nothing like owning an original vintage poster and they often make a great investment. Chances are in just a few years you’ll be able to sell it for more than you paid for it. Unfortunately, for most of us, an investment, even at the entry-level prices of the collectible poster isn’t even close to being a possibility. This is where our stunning high-quality reproductions come into their own. They cost a fraction of an original and look absolutely fantastic when they’re framed and hung on your living room wall. Let’s face it, there are some very wealthy Beatles fans out there. And, with just one original out there, you’re never going to get to own the real thing. If you like the poster the only way to own one is a reproduction poster print. Ours is available in a choice of sizes to suit your wall space. It looks amazing, especially in the larger sizes. Order your copy with your lunchtime drinks. You won’t be disappointed.
Beatles Posters
