When the Beatles were smuggled into Philadelphia… with the help of Frank Rizzo

The Beatles wave to fans after disembarking a plane at Kennedy Airport in February 1964. Their Philadelphia show would take place that September. (United Press International/Library of Congress)

If you have a passing knowledge of pop music history, you know the Beatles landed in America in 1964.

Their February appearance on the Ed Sullivan show gets most of the attention, but their first American tour was actually in August and September of that year.

The ninth show of the tour was in Atlantic City, on Aug. 30 at Convention Hall. The tenth show was set for Philadelphia, on Sept. 2 at Philly’s old Convention Hall (also called the Civic Center).

But the days before the concert were tense in the city.

Source: Avi Wolfman-Arent/billypenn.com

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