The British Invasion was a cultural phenomenon that completely re-directed the course of history. In January, 1964, America was still mourning the death of President John F. Kennedy and everything seemed to be in a vacuum; music was dominated by manufactured teen idols; Elvis was in Hollywood; everything was squeaky clean and dull. On Sunday night, Feb 9, 1964, close to 50% of US television viewers tuned in to the #1 variety show of the era, The Ed Sullivan Show, to see the American debut of a British group called The Beatles.