Beatles'a anti-segregation contract sells for $23,000
A Beatles contract for a 1965 California concert that reveals that the Fab Four refused to play before a segregated audience has sold for $23,033 -- more than four times its estimated price.
A Beatles contract for a 1965 California concert that reveals that the Fab Four refused to play before a segregated audience has sold for $23,033 -- more than four times its estimated price.The contract, which was signed by the Liverpool group's manager, Brian Epstein, specified that they "not be required to perform in front of a segregated audience" for their August 31, 1965, show at the Cow Palace in Daly City, California.It sold far above the pre-auction estimate of $3,000 to $5,000 at a Los Angeles auction held on Tuesday by Nate D Sanders.The buyer was not disclosed.The Cow Palace concert was part of the Beatles' third major tour of the United States. Signed on March 24, 1965, the contract guaranteed the band $40,000 against gross box office receipts of more than $77,000.In addition to the desegregation requirement, the agreement called for at least 150 uniformed police officers for protection and a special drumming platform for Ringo.It followed a public stand the Beatles took in 1964, during their first American tour, when they refused to perform at a segregated concert at the Gator Bowl in Jacksonville, Florida. City officials relented, allowing the stadium to be integrated, and the band did take the stage for that show.