The Beatles' Last Tour, continued...

We continue the saga of the Beatles and their final concert tour. On August 20, 1966, they missed a live gig for the first and only time, getting rained out at the old Crosley Field in Cincinnati. The boys wanted to play, but their sole roadie (imagine that today!) plugged in an amp and was zapped halfway across the stage, which was covered by a single leaky canvas tarp. They made up the show the next afternoon, then flew to St. Louis for their scheduled concert that night at the relatively new Busch Stadium, just recently torn down. It rained again but this time they were under a corrugated tin roof that also leaked. Afterward they dodged screaming fans rushing the stage by jumping into a van with no seats and nothing to hold onto. The boys looked around while careening down the street as if to say, "Really? It's come down to this?" That was the proverbial last straw for any future live appearances after this tour. They next had a free day in NYC and another chance for John to explain his "we're bigger than Jesus" comment to the press corps before a return to now-razed Shea Stadium, site of their triumphant sold out (55,000+) '65 concert. This time there were over 10,000 empty seats. Then it was out to LA for a day off, a quick trip to the Seattle Center Coliseum (now Key Arena) and back to La-La Land and a rented house near the Sunset Strip for a couple more days off. Two more gigs remained on the tour. To be continued...