Ques:      How would you define Beatlemania?

Lennon:  I couldn’t define it. I know that people have tried and I’m not going to try. Leave it to psychologists and let them get it wrong.

Aromas y Pάginas, “Beatlemania,” video, 34:17, accessed September 30, 2021, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TU6oF_5yumw.

These boys (and some men) were not musicians who were Beatles fans and became famous. One behavior that they shared was the urge to find themselves as close as possible to any one of the Beatles.

Although the predominantly held view that Beatlemania was a female-led phenomenon, it is this writer’s opinion that The Beatles’ influence remains largely with men to this day. Unfortunately, photos and films of male fandom are rare as photographers focused primarily on capturing female fans’ unrestrained emotions that continued until The Beatles’ last performance in August 1966. While it not only provided continued fandom press for the group, it also overlooked masculine emotional feedback and behaviors that were equally extreme. Male fans worldwide have demonstrated strong determination to be in proximity with the group and engaged in outlandish behavior to accomplish that. Gathering in packs, climbing trees, jumping into municipal canals and swimming distances, rushing the stage, and even fighting among themselves were some boys’ reactions in the presence of the group. Other sensitive boys cried or stared painfully at The Beatles on stage. Each of these male fans reacted on a highly expressive level and it is argued here that their understanding of The Beatles’ representation of their masculine self-aligned traits and behaviors was not only inherently recognized but sustained over time because of its authenticity and future significance for themselves personally.

France

Harrison and Starr spoke for all The Beatles with this observation of French fandom, without the girlThe French audience was dreadful. We had visions of all these French girls, “Ooh La La,” and all that, but the audience at least on the opening night was all tuxedoes elderly people and a bunch of slightly-gay-looking boys was hanging round the stage door shouting, ‘Ringo! Ringo!’ and chasing our car. We didn’t see any of the Brigitte Bardots that we were expecting. These boys chased us all over Paris. Before, we’d been more used to girls. The audience was a roar instead of a scream; it was a bit like when we played Stowe boys’ school.

The Beatles Bible, “Live: Olympia Theatre, Paris,” November 6, 2020, https://www.beatlesbible.com/ 1964/01/16/live-olympia-theatre-paris/.

The audio quality of The Beatles in Paris was unusually good. There was very little audience noise and what there was of it did not resemble the higher pitch squeals and screams from girls. In Paris, The Beatles were able to hear themselves play. Harrison noted:

Funny, you see there are more boys than girls. And we miss the good old screams. Quite a lot of shouts.

Molly Hopkins, “Beatles Unseen Footage: Part 1,” November 2010, YouTube video, 7:40 at 1:42, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8neR_pNYnfM&list=RDVLvTq6FdOj4 &index=19.

Holland

On June 6, 1964, The Beatles appeared at The Veilinghal, in Blokker, Netherlands. Male fans here were particularly demonstrative in their fandom behavior. The Beatles’ publicist Derek Taylor recalled in his autobiography, Fifty Years Adrift,

Thirty fans swam out to the boat as another 30,000 watched the spectacle from the canal banks.

Taylor also wrote:

I observed with powerful interest the scene around the Exhibition Hall. There was a lumbering procession of large lads, shoving and pushing, laughing, shouting, ripe for action and adventure.

Escorted on to the police boat.

Male fans surround The Beatles as they perform on Dutch, VARA-TV.

The boys enveloped the group, dancing around them, singing, touching and eventually pushing them as their numbers were increasing. One male fan took a domineering position in front of the group. Another deliberately pushed Lennon and Harrison as they tried to walk off stage.

Italy

Lennon evaded a young fan who grabbed him during The Beatles concert in Teatro Adriano in Piazza Cavour in Rome, Italy, on June 27, 1965.

USA, Indiana State Fair

A young ice cream vendor is captured in the sourced video, unable to move about. He is mouthing the words to “Can’t Buy Me Love,” and then starts to cry.

Sirpaulru, “The Beatles Live At The State Fair Coliseum, Indianapolis, USA (Thursday 3rd September 1964),” YouTube Video, 16:57, at 11:39-12:01

Fast foward to a McCartney concert in 2005…

This man appears very self-conscious of himself in this sourced video, looking around to see if anyone is watching him… um, yes! McCartney is playing, “All My Loving.”

Alex Umali, “All My Loving,” – Paul McCartney, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uXdGOYo_fsE.

Australia

The Beatles performed a total of thirty-two concerts in eight cities in Australia and New Zealand, from June 12 through August 16, 1964. The turnout for their arrival was the largest here than anywhere else in the world. Over 300,000 people lined the route to Mascot International Airport in Adelaide to greet The Beatles’ plane, generating the largest crowd ever gathered in this city.

The figure doubled Queen Elizabeth II’s Royal Tour visit the previous year. This was the largest Beatles crowd anywhere in the world, at any time. Over 50,000 purchase requests were made for The Beatles’ concert in Adelaide’s Centennial Hall, which had just 3,000 seats.

It would be impossible to say there were mostly men who greeted The Beatles when they were standing outside the Melbourne Town Hall balcony – but we’ll say it anyway!

There was one young Australian man’s enthusiastic desire to be a Lennon look-alike to show Lennon how much he was admired. Brent MacAuslan choreographed his unobstructed rush onstage to shake hands with Lennon as The Beatles were performing their last song of the evening at Melbourne’s Festival Hall. In the sourced video, Lennon appears horrified at first, but MacAuslan shows Lennon his admiration, placing his hand on his shoulder.

to be continued…..