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 BEATLE DOCUMENTARY RELEASED AGAIN New Anniversary Edition1/25/04 The Beatles - The First U.S. Visit APPLE CORPS PRESS OFFICE
The Beatles - The First U.S.Visit DVD, which includes never-seen-before footage, chronicles the remarkable two weeks in February 1964 that began America's still-enduring love affair with the group. The film of the frantic fortnight records the hysterical reaction to The Beatles U.S. debut in a documentary that was the real-life inspiration for the Beatles movie A Hard Day's Night. Closely shot at the shoulders of John, Paul, George and Ringo by the pioneering Maysles Brothers, The First U.S.Visit innovated intimate film-making that set a benchmark for rock and roll cinematography. Albert and David Maysles were granted all-areas access the like of which is now unknown, filming The Beatles in the eye of their own hurricane as the band besotted America and lifted the nation from its gloom in the wake of President John Kennedy's assassination. The First U.S.Visit release date by Apple Corps/Capitol Records is February 3rd in the U.S. and by Apple Corps/EMI Records on February 9th in the U.K. and rest of the world. The DVD release will follow exclusive theatrical premieres in New York, Los Angeles and London. The Maysles film captures the manic moments from when thousands of fans greeted The Beatles as Pan Am Flt.101 touched down in New York on February 7th and sparked a two-week frenzy. As The Beatles became the first British act to conquer
America - with " I Want To Hold Your Hand" at No.1 in the U.S. charts - the
Maysles Brothers shadowed the band off-guard and off-duty in dressing rooms, hotels and
night clubs, at photo-sessions and press conferences, travelling together in limos and on
trains as the then-wide-eyed lads from Liverpool sped from New York to Washington and
Miami revelling in the wild reception to their first US trip. Besides the revealing footage of The Beatles offstage, the DVD also features their first concert at The Washington Coliseum and their three historic performances on The Ed Sullivan Show - including the seminal night of February 9th when the band first exploded into the homes of a then-world record 73 million TV viewers. Beatles performances on the DVD include "All My Loving", "Till There Was You", "She Loves You", "From Me To You", "This Boy", "Twist And Shout", "Please Please Me", "I Saw Her Standing There", "I Wanna Be Your Man" and the hit that began it all for America, "I Want To Hold Your Hand". The original black and white film - which was first shown on U.S. and U.K. TV in 1964 as a 40-minute programme - has been re-graded and the sound re-mastered for the new 80-minute version. The DVD also includes a 50-minute Making Of The Beatles First U.S.Visit, featuring footage that has never been seen before. The DVD also includes a new and revealing interview with cameraman Albert Maysles. Subtitled in nine languages, The First U.S.Visit DVD chronicles one of the greatest cultural events of the 20th Century and is a permanent record for generations who still remember where they were when the legend began.
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The only film revealing the inside story of The Beatles conquest of America
is being re-released on a new DVD to mark the anniversary of the birth of Beatlemania in
the USA. 
