This week’s Illustration Friday challenge word is “acrobat”.
Vaudevillians Billy Wells and The Four Fays were booked to appear on the February 9, 1964 episode of the wildly popular Ed Sullivan Show. The group, who were introduced by Sullivan as performing their “unique brand of acrobatic physical comedy”, waited backstage, anxious to make their television debut.
Unfortunately for the tumbling troupe, a British musical group called The Beatles were also making their American television debut that night, scheduled just before Wells and The Four Fays’ performance.
(Incidentally, The Four Fays featured Jacqueline Jessica Anderson, mother of singer/dancer/choreographer Toni Basil. Toni sang the popular 1982 hit “Mickey”.)
AcroBeatles!!! 🙂
Very nice illustration.
It would certainly be disconcerting to have to follow The Beatles! great story and image as always 🙂
Love the drawing! I saw this TV programme and remember when mothers somewhat later decided that they did like the Beatles once they’d see the Stones. It’s a lovely historical irony that the poor Fab Fays were upstaged by a group which went on to be called ‘The Fab Four’.
I know that the acrobats had a very long and successful career…but what ever became of those English lads?