The iconic British comedy musical film, “A Hard Day's Night,” premiered on this historic day, August 11, 1964, and starred the Beatles in their first feature-length film.
The film was released during the height of Beatlemania and the British Invasion, and “A Hard Day's Night” is widely considered a classic, according to Britannica.com.
It will celebrate its 60th anniversary in 2024.
“The musical presents a fictional account of 36 hours in the life of the Beatles, who portray themselves as they travel to London and attempt to record a television performance while evading adoring teenage fans,” the source said.
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The rock 'n' roll musical features catchy, classic Beatles tunes including “Can't Buy Me Love,” “I Should Have Known Better” and the eponymous “A Hard Day's Night.”
John Lennon wrote the song “A Hard Day's Night”; it is credited to Lennon-McCartney and was released on the soundtrack to the film of the same name in 1964, according to the Beatles' official website.
The Beatles smiling together. From left to right: George Harrison, John Lennon (top), Paul McCartney (bottom) and Ringo Starr. (George Rinhart/Corbis via Getty Images)
The American and British singles of “A Hard Day's Night,” as well as the American and British albums of the same title, each held the top spot on their respective charts for a couple of weeks in August 1964, the first time an artist had accomplished this feat, the same source said.
United Artists had come up with the premise for the film in October 1963, The New Republic said.
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The Beatles signed the deal but were “nervous” about what the film might be, the source said.
Time magazine called the film “one of the smoothest, freshest and funniest exploitation movies ever made.”
According to The New Republic, United Artists has appointed Walter Shenson as producer and Richard Lester as director. Alun Owen was hired to write the script.
The plot of “A Hard Day's Night” is about the Beatles being hunted down by their enthusiastic teenage fans.
Paul McCartney and John Lennon during a television appearance. Film critic Roger Ebert described the 1964 film “A Hard Day's Night” as “one of cinema's great life-affirming milestones.” (Bettman)
The Beatles—Paul McCartney, John Lennon, George Harrison and Ringo Starr—board a train to London from Liverpool to appear on a television show, accompanied by their manager, Norm, his assistant, Shake, and Paul's grandfather, Turner Classic Movies recounts.
Along the way, the Beatles must rescue Paul's unconventional grandfather from various misadventures, while drummer Ringo disappears just before a crucial concert, Film Affinity said.
The film “A Hard Day's Night” received two Oscars during the 37th Academy Awards.
Time magazine called the film “one of the smoothest, freshest and funniest exploitation movies ever made”, and film critic Roger Ebert described the film as “one of the great life-affirming milestones in cinema”.
Ebert added it to his list of great films.
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The film received two Oscars at the 37th Academy Awards (1965), which honored films from 1964.
“A Hard Day's Night” won an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay (Alun Owen) and Best Original Score (George Martin).
In addition, the film won the 1965 BAFTA (British Academy Film Awards) for films made in 1964.
The Beatles: from left to right: George Harrison, John Lennon, Ringo Starr and Paul McCartney. (Universal Archive/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
According to the Beatles Bible website, an exhausted Ringo Starr coined the phrase “A Hard Day's Night” after a filming session on March 19, 1964.
“We went to do a job, and we had worked all day and it turned out we worked all night. I came in thinking it was still daylight, I guess, and I said, 'It's been a hard day…' and I looked around and it was dark, so I said, 'Good night!' That's how we got to 'A Hard Day's Night,'” the source said.
“In 1984, 'Hard Day's Night' director Richard Lester received an award from MTV declaring him 'the father of the music video.'”
Also, while the saying was appropriate for the film, it was not a new phrase, the Beatles Bible said.
“It had appeared in John Lennon's book 'In His Own Write', published on March 23, 1964, although Lennon always attributed it to his colleague,” said the same source.
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The film has both a musical and cinematic legacy in pop culture, with MTV crediting it with inventing the music video, Vulture said.
Ringo Starr and Paul McCartney attend the world premiere of “The Beatles: Eight Days A Week — The Touring Years” at Odeon Leicester Square on September 15, 2016 in London, England. (Anthony Harvey/Getty Images)
“In 1984, 'Hard Day's Night' director Richard Lester received an award from MTV declaring him 'the father of the music video,'” the same source said.
“'Hard Day's Night' featured the Beatles performing in concert, but it also featured their songs playing during the action of the film,” Vulture said.
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In the spring of 1970, the Beatles formally disbanded and in the following years, all four members continued to produce solo albums.
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Lennon released a set of songs with his wife, Yoko Ono, and McCartney formed a new band, Wings, which “produced a number of commercially successful recordings in the 1970s,” Britannica said.
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Harrison and Starr also had success as solo artists.
Today, McCartney and Starr continue to perform.
