A mania indeed! Looking back at the extent of the mania is somewhat.... well, unbelieveable.

I read that at the shea stadium concert the Beatles were given towels (for obvious reasons) and after the concert some business person cut the towels to small squares and sold them for 5 pounds (I think). At the end of the day none was left and he sure got a profit!

Any other "mania" stories?

apparently some American radio station played I Wanna Hold Your Hand 10 times in a row!

After Paul's song, "Penny Lane" became a Beatles hit, the street signs for the actual Penny Lane in Liverpool disappeared with such regularity (as they did on the real Abbey Road), that the town reverted to simply painting 'Penny Lane' on the buildings, rather than have street signs.

The fact that the Beatles, as a band, have not only influenced generations of musicians even after they broke up, but also have been able to have young fans even today shows that Beatlemania has yet to die down. This past year has been a great example: Beatles Rockband, the success of LOVE (Cirque du Soleil), and new releases.

I've been working on a contest and have been able to see the diversity of Beatles fans. To enter, Beatles fans have to write a song containing only Beatles titles and the results have really shown that Beatlemania lives on. As a fan, I know that the prize is a very cool way to celebrate this important year for the Beatles: a trip to Las Vegas to stay at The Mirage and amazing tickets to LOVE. The website is http://www.thebeatlesinvasion.com. Let me know if you quys have any questions.

Have any of you seen LOVE before?