The Ed Sullivan Show was a cultural touchstone on TV for 23 years, from 1948 to 1971. It was an eclectic showcase for zany comics, daring circus acts, all kinds of musicians fro classical to rock, and everything in between. If the show is remembered for anything, it's the appearances by the just-arrived-on-our-shores Beatles. They had a immediate seismic impact on America's youth. And there was Elvis Presley. He was at the beginning of his historic career. Parents winced at his songs and gyrations, but their kids were enthralled.
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Sullivan himself was a genius at presenting what the public wanted to see - and he brought it to them week after week on Sunday nights in prime time. Per People, "It was also one of the first programs to champion Black musicians at a time when segregation was the norm....."
Sullivan is now the focus of a Netflix documentary titled Sunday Best that looks back at his stellar life and career. Among other topics, it describes the inauspicious start of his show.
Using A Voiceover, The Late Ed Sullivan Talks About His Show's Rocky Beginning
On the documentary, Ed Sullivan, who died in 1974, reflects via a voiceover on the rough launch of his show. Per the outlet, the initial reviews were lacerating. He was not handsome or debonair. And not especially charming. And the critics mercilessly zeroed in on him."Why, oh why, is Ed Sullivan on TV?" "On camera, Ed has been likened to a cigar store Indian, a stone-faced monument, just off the boat from Easter Island." "His smile is that of man sucking a lemon."
He Was Aware Of The Fiercely Negative Slams But Kept On Going Anyway
"They knocked my brains out. And when I saw the show, I couldn't blame 'em. I was named The Great Stone Face of 1949. The abuse was so awful that my daughter Betty stopped reading the newspapers." Sullivan was a humble and hardworking man, and he soldiered on despite the grating chorus of naysayers.
"I never thought I was the attraction. I just kept looking for the best thing to put on the show."
That is exactly what he did so well for over two decades.
